Posted on September 10th, 2023.

Most of the people who comment on my remarks on the radio, and my Editor’s Notes in this magazine, give them favorable reviews. However, there have been a small number of people who have complained.

Recently, I had a reader call me on the phone, complaining about my Editor’s Note. She haughtily insisted that political commentary had no place in this magazine. In return, I asked her to tell me why she thought that she had the right to dictate what was appropriate for me to print.

She began by claiming that the owners of the magazine would surely not approve of my inserting politics here. When I informed her that I just happen to be the owner of this magazine, she accused me of lying.

“I happen to know that your magazine is owned by the Roanoke Times.”

Well, dear readers, nothing could be further from the truth. The Roanoke Times has NEVER owned this magazine, although they do own another local magazine. This woman, like many others, has trouble distinguishing between Discover and the other magazine. I don’t know why, since the editorial position of The Roanoke Times is decidedly opposite to my own.

I did explain to her that she is hardly the first person to confuse the two magazines. It’s a fairly common misconception. I also pointed out that while the other publication has a penchant for pandering to advertisers, or potential advertisers, mine is geared toward the reader. Once again, she admonished me, saying that politics had no place in my magazine.

“Are you telling me that you should decide what goes in my magazine?”

She explained that she really loved the rest of the magazine, and enjoyed reading it, but insisted that my political opinions had no place in it. I gently suggested that perhaps she should read the parts that she enjoyed, and ignore the part that she didn’t like.

That was when she informed me that she was a frequent visitor, with intentions of moving here, and possibly starting a business. She punctuated that by stating flatly that she would never advertise in my magazine as long as I continued to voice my opinions therein. That was when I reminded her that my magazine is geared toward the reader, and not the whims of advertisers. I told her that if her potential customers enjoyed the content of the magazine, it didn’t matter that she did not.

“The fisherman does not eat the bait,” I said.

Another lady was very upset, she told me, about the sarcastic tone of one of my articles. She, too, pointed out that she loved the rest of the magazine, but that she “did not appreciate” my sarcasm. She did not need to tell me that she was of the opposite point of view, but she did so anyway. Again, I told her that she was free to skip over the parts of the magazine that she did not like, and read the parts that were more appealing to her.

There have been a few other isolated examples of people who chose to complain about my editorial point of view, both on the radio and in these pages. Whenever I am approached by one of them, I simply tell them that I understand that they don’t agree, but that doesn’t give them the right to dictate the content of my media.

I usually go on to explain that most of the other media outlets will get just as political in their content, but more to their liking. So in reality, it isn’t that I am getting political… it’s that I am not feeding them the usual party line. I’m certain that if I demonized Donald Trump, or Ron DeSantis, those people would not complain, and might even cheer me on.

Everywhere I turn, in TV shows, newspapers, and Hollywood movies, I am usually barraged with left-leaning and/or “woke” content, usually disguised as fact, or “the new normal”. I am but one small voice who dares to take a contrary point of view. I do take pains to make sure that most of the content herein has a generic appeal, but I also reserve the right to make my voice heard.

I’m somewhat amused that people will call me or email me to tell me that they will no longer read my magazine, or listen to my radio station. I always tell them, “This isn’t an airport. You don’t need to announce your departure.” Sometimes I will thank them for their input, but the position of Editor/Program Director is currently filled, and I will be happy to keep their resumes on file for future openings.

It’s not that I am insensitive to other people’s opinions, but I resent being told that I have no right to express mine. By the way, I DO practice what I preach. When I see something that I don’t like on TV, or in a movie, or in print, I simply ignore it and move on to something else. I don’t bother with it any more, and turn to something else that I prefer instead. In the words of Evelyn Beatrice Hall, “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

This attitude is notably absent in most public arenas today. What does it say about your argument if the only defense of it is to silence anyone who might disagree?