Yes to Yes Men

Re: What A Gag, Peter Shawn Taylor, Sept. 3.

Peter Shawn Taylor frets that the Yes Men break the bonds of trust between journalists and the public. He entirely misses the point of their actions. Those bonds are broken with or without the Yes Men. Media satirists use the broken bonds to provoke the public to rethink the media. News companies and journalists who do not take those provocations seriously are unlikely to be part of the solution.

This is precisely why Wilfrid Laurier University’s digital media and journalism program is teaming up with the Yes Men. Our program does not just teach students the reporting skills associated with the vocation, but also how to think critically about the news media and the role that they and journalists play in society. In addition to raising awareness about a wide range of social and environmental issues, the Yes Men also shine a bright light on a free press populated by many reporters who rely solely on press releases and press conferences to report issues without ever questioning the expert voices of authority behind them.

This has been a troubling development in the news media and one that our students ( and many practising journalists) need to stop and think critically about. Taylor argues, “A Yes Men success is, by definition, a failure of good journalism.” In fact, a Yes Men success is proof of bad journalism by reporters who are required to produce more with fewer resources. We are fortunate and honoured to have the Yes Men here at Laurier to highlight the broken bonds between journalists and the public. Sue Ferguson, Abby Goodrum, Simon Kiss, Ellen Russell and Kenneth Werbin, faculty members, digital media and journalism program, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ont.