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Did all the journalists being targeted by this actually tell blue collar workers to learn coding? I've searched on my own and found articles about "this company
by etg34525 8y ago
Did all the journalists being targeted by this actually tell blue collar workers to learn coding? I've searched on my own and found articles about "this company in west virginia that's training coal miners to code" or "jobs that will be automated in 10 years - is your's next?", but I don't specifically see or recall journalists telling displaced workers that coding would fix their problems. If anyone here can provide examples of that, I would appreciate it.
If this was a widespread thing that many journalists spouted, I understand the outcry. If only a few journalists spouted this nonsense, then I don't think it's fair to punish an entire industry over some bad apples.
What I suspect is that the "learn to code" push was more of a society-wide meme trafficked by politicians, economists, and tech CEOs. And I have to imagine that some journalists gave those people a platform. But perhaps I'm looking at the wrong evidence?
EDIT: dexen's post found maybe one example: A Buzzfeed quiz that suggests coding could become the next blue collar profession. That kind of fits the "learn to code" meme. The other articles dexen posted were actually counter to that - An article where Michael Bloomberg said learning to code is unrealistic for many displaced workers, and another article about coal miners proving him wrong.
Is that it? Or are there more examples?
- leereeves 8y agoWhether it was journalists pushing it, or "politicians, economists, and tech CEOs" pushing it, and journalists merely repeating it, I don't know. But I definitely remember hearing that message in the media for the last 20 years, and I don't recall anyone calling it "trolling" until it was directed at journalists.
- etg34525 8y agoWell it's important to know what was actually said and who said it. If, by and large, journalists did not actually advocate for displaced workers to code their way out of unemployment, then harassing them with #learntocode is unjustified. I've wasted the entire morning looking for sources of this by now. Like you, I sort of remembered hearing that message over the years. But now that I'm looking, I'm not actually finding many examples where news outlets are seriously suggesting this. Have you ever thought you knew something, but end up misremembering it? There are lots of people who swear they remember a movie called Shazzam staring Sinbad as a genie, but there is no such movie. There was a movie called Kazaam staring Shaquille O'Neal, and Sinbad once dressed up in similar garb when hosting a movie showing. But people conflated the two things. I think that's whats going on. And if so, we should not be harassing journalists who had nothing to do with this.
- onlydeadheroes 8y ago> punish The whole point is that it wasn't a punishment when some journalists did it, but it's a punishement when some journalists hear it. So, they are full of crap.
- etg34525 8y ago> it wasn't a punishment when some journalists did it, But when did they do it? and who? Please send me any evidence you have. I feel like I'm going crazy here. Not finding anything.
- hellllllllooo 8y agoRetraining is one of the options when an industrial sector shrinks. Suggesting a growing industry like software development as an option doesn't deserve a "punishment" unless it was spiteful in some way. Mocking journalists, or anyone else, who has lost their job is the toxic part of this.
- apacheCamel 8y agoI agree with your sentiment. I don't recall this being such a widespread thing. I think it is fine to scold the people who originally made these remarks (I myself do not remember who particular started the "Learn To Code" platform) but we should leave it at that. Just getting more upset about it and involving journalists who were never originally involved is a bad idea to just keep upsetting more and more people.