The flap in Happy Valley, Home of Penn State University, reminds us again that we receive our “news” from an entertainment driven media. What is news is squeezed out by deciding who should get star billing.
Multiple children, likely more than a dozen, were raped, their bodies, souls and psyches violated. They will live their entire lives with the emotional fallout of having been betrayed and assaulted by an adult in a position of trust.
Set the headline: Paterno Goes To Practice; Paterno To Retire At Season’s End; Paterno Fired; Paterno Issues Statement.
Get it? The children don’t matter. There is a famous person, a recognizable name, Paterno, within shouting distance of the real news. That’s the headline. That’s the story. It’s about Paterno, not the children or the man who set up a foundation to lure vulnerable kids for his sexual gratification. Welcome to the world of infotainment.
In the wake of the Penn State revelations, have you read, seen, heard substantial discourse on protecting children from pedophiles? How about treating the victims of pedophilia or the lifelong psychological impact of pedophilia on those who have been child raped? If you have heard, read, seen such discourse, how does it compare by column inch or minute by minute coverage to the latest on “JoePa”.
Does this mean Paterno should skate? No. What we know is that he did what was legally required, but no more. And, more details may come out that place him in even a lesser light. We don’t know. What we do know is that he is not the rapist, nor is he one of the rapist’s victims. Paterno isn’t the story. He’s an aside, a footnote. The story is upside down. The antics of the famous have once again trumped the substance of the news in our infotainment world.
Contributor, aka tidbits. Retired attorney in complex litigation, death penalty defense and constitutional law. Former Nat’l Board Chair: Alzheimer’s Association. Served on multiple political campaigns, including two for U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield (R-OR). Contributing author to three legal books and multiple legal publications.