In the era of partisan journalism, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find honest and impartial reporters. Rather than seeking the truth and serving their duty as dedicated professionals, most journalists have now become nothing more than political hacks, driven by clicks and ratings instead of objectivity. This is an unfortunate deterioration of journalistic integrity that has been on the rise in recent years. It is as though “video killed the radio star” has also killed off the journalist.
Finding a true and hardworking journalist today is like discovering a rare species of animal. They are few and far between, with sightings as scarce as those of mythical creatures like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster. Even supposedly reputable publications such as Time magazine have not been immune to this sad decline in journalistic standards and ethics, as evidenced by one particular story that was recently covered. It can be depressing to witness such a decrease in professional morals from what was once an esteemed profession.
A so-called journalist for the decaying rag wrote about an interview with Natalia Mehlman Petrzela. Petrzela is a professor of history at New York’s The New School. She recently released a book entitled “Fit Nation: The Gains and Pains of America’s Exercise Obsession.” From the title, a reader might assume the book focuses on obsessive exercise, something that does exist. However, Petrzela’s key focus was on how exercise began as a pastime for white Americans to strengthen their race to counteract growing immigration and the end of slavery.
Under “TIME History” for December 28, 2022, it reads: “The White Supremacist Origins of Exercise, and 6 Other Surprising Facts about the History of U.S. Physical Fitness.” Now, the absurdity of this insinuation is clear.
However, exploring how Petrzela reached her insane conclusion is pretty funny. She claims that Americans saw obesity as a net positive because it signified “affluence.” Wealthier people had access to nourishment that the rest of the country could only dream of. In other words, being fat and out of shape, or simply unhealthy, meant you were white and wealthy. Again, the absurdity of that theory should render the rest of the book a joke. It pretty much does.
Petrzela says, “Until the 1920s or so, to be what would be considered today fat or bigger, was actually desirable and actually signified affluence.” She thinks that now if people are fat, they’re deemed to be poor.
No, people who are overweight, with the exception of those who have unavoidable health issues, are individuals who DO NOT take care of themselves. They either eat poorly, resist the need for healthy exercise, or a little of both. Obesity and poor health are not “racially isolated” problems. There are “out-of-shape” white people, brown people, and black people. The color of your skin has nothing to do with how motivated you are to exercise. Hot Air writer David Strom dismantled Petrzela’s argument.
Unlike the previous writer, who thinks exercise and good health are racist, Strom used facts. He said, “Think about all the cultural artifacts from the 19th and 20th century you are familiar with. Cartoons, movies, paintings, whatever.” “It simply isn’t true that being fat was admired.” Digging a little deeper into Petrzela reveals a lot. This isn’t the only radical leftist ideology she advocates. According to the Daily Mail, she supports Marxist movements such as Defund the Police and Black Lives Matter.
Exercise and fitness are things that cross gender and racial boundaries. Suggesting otherwise is racist. But what’s more disappointing than this foolish idea is that a once proud magazine saw fit to publish such garbage. Journalistic integrity is dead.