As honest blue-collar work in manufacturing and other industries have disappeared over the years, a condescending liberal media from the coasts looked down their noses and told those workers to “learn to code” to get by. But then, the same snarky advice was thrown back at members of the liberal media following a string of layoffs last week, journalists had a conniption. It was that blatant hypocrisy that Fox News Channel host Tucker Carlson blasted during Tuesday’s edition of his show.
Carlson began by sharing his sympathy for those in the liberal media who had lost their jobs during the “pretty awful [two weeks] for American journalists.” “No matter what you think of those sites, it’s sad. Anyone who has lost his job knows that it is very tough,” he told viewers.
Shifting gears, he then recalled how “in previous cycles of what we used to call to creative destruction, journalists had readied advice for newly unemployed blue-collar workers: just learn to code. Coding is the future, stop whining and embrace it.”
The segment continued as Carlson read off a litany of headlines about blue-collar workers learning to code. Some were more condescending than others:
Here's a selection of headlines you might remember on that subject. This one is from NPR, “From coal to code: new path for laid-off miners in Kentucky”. From Wired, the tech evangelist magazine, “Can you teach a coal miner to code?” From CBS News, “Out of work coal miners find new work in computer industry”. And this from Bloomberg, “Appellation miners are learning to code”. And from the venerable New York Times, “The coders of Kentucky”.
“But no problem, just learn to code. Everyone in Brooklyn is doing it,” Carlson sarcastically proclaimed before getting serious. “Well, coding was never a real solution to any of this, obviously. But it had the effect of making journalists feel even more self-satisfied. And of course that was the point, it’s always a point, actually.”
Getting back to those laid off liberal journalists, Carlson noted that “someone on Twitter came up with a pretty brilliant piece of advice for all of those laid off journalists trying to figure out what to do with their lives. ‘Learn to code!' Perfect!”
“But journalists did not see the humor in this at all....People who went to Wesleyan and should not have to ‘learn to code,’” Carlson quipped as he further pointed out their fragile egos and hypocrisy:
So that they complained to the censorship of authorities at Twitter, who immediately concluded that asking someone to “learn to code” might be, quote, "targeted harassment." But, only when it is directed at people who used to work at BuzzFeed. For the paper mill guy in New Hampshire, coding is still a future.
Hopefully, folks in the liberal media learn from this and realize what it’s like to have snarky recommendations lobbed their way.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
FNC’s Tucker Carlson Tonight
January 29, 2019
8:53 p.m. EasternTUCKER CARLSON: Well, the past couple of weeks have been pretty awful for American journalists, hundreds of reporters and editors at places like the Huffington Post and BuzzFeed lost their jobs, victims of systemic changes to their industry. No matter what you think of those sites, it’s sad. Anyone who has lost his job knows that it is very tough.
Now, those journalists suddenly have a lot in common with millions of other Americans, factory workers, loggers, retail clerks, coal miners, all of them, and many more have seen their way of life disappear thanks to technology or outsourcing or private equity. This kind of thing has been going on a long time.
Now in previous cycles of what we used to call to creative destruction, journalists had readied advice for newly unemployed blue-collar workers: just learn to code. Coding is the future, stop whining and embrace it.
Here's a selection of headlines you might remember on that subject. This one is from NPR, “From coal to code: new path for laid-off miners in Kentucky”. From Wired, the tech evangelist magazine, “Can you teach a coal miner to code?” From CBS News, “Out of work coal miners find new work in computer industry”. And this from Bloomberg, “Appellation miners are learning to code”. And from the venerable New York Times, “The coders of Kentucky”.
See? It is that simple. Let's say that you spent 30 years making a solid middle-class living in a paper mill in northern New Hampshire, then one day the mill spouts down, sold for scrap to China. Happened a lot. But no problem, just learn to code. Everyone in Brooklyn is doing it.
Well, coding was never a real solution to any of this, obviously. But it had the effect of making journalists feel even more self-satisfied. And of course that was the point, it’s always a point, actually.
Fast forward to this month. Someone on Twitter came up with a pretty brilliant piece of advice for all of those laid off journalists trying to figure out what to do with their lives. “Learn to code”. Perfect. Suddenly learn to code was everywhere on Twitter. But journalists did not see the humor in this at all. A former New Yorker employee called Talia Lavin called the phrase, quote, “far-right hate”. People who went to Wesleyan and should not have to “learn to code”.
So that they complained to the censorship of authorities at Twitter, who immediately concluded that asking someone to “learn to code” might be, quote, "targeted harassment." But, only when it is directed at people who used to work at BuzzFeed. For the paper mill guy in New Hampshire, coding is still a future.
