Honestly, I have been trying to improve my English communications since I came to the U.S. While my progress has been tediously slow, I started recognizing how important and difficult it is for my thoughts to be accurately perceived by others. The more I am aware of the language, the more difficult it is not only to express myself but also not to be misguided by others. Yes, I am talking about words, sentences, communications, truth telling, and manipulation.

My serendipitous book-pick at my town’s library shelf this month introduced me an interesting book called “Do I make myself clear? – Why writing well matters” (2017) by Harold Evans. Evans is considered as one of great editors in our era and a renowned journalist. He teaches us in this book how easily we are influenced by deceived sales talks, not sincere political campaigns, and misleading fake news. I don’t think this book alone will not help my communications skills improve, but Evans opened up my awareness of the power of language, written or spoken.

Speaking of language manipulation, George Orwell’s “1984” (!949) came to my mind. In an era of social media full of junk, I think it is imperative for us to pay extra attention to the words and phrases communicated through the government’s non-stop propaganda microphones.

In reading through the fancy words or distorted catchphrases, we have to train ourselves to search the intention of the writers/speakers and bottom-line of the meaning of the words they use, or hide. As the title of the book “The Death of Truth” (2018) by Michiko Kakutani indicates, truth is hard to find these days. Even a word of alternative facts was introduced. What is truth and where do we find facts?

That will bring me the importance of keeping journalism alive. Without any interference by the government of reporting on government officials affairs and public concerns, the democracy will not survive. The survival of the democracy is no doubt dependent on free journalism. Now I am afraid current U.S. democracy is threatened by our own government’s control over the journalism’s participation. We cannot count on so-to-speak media which spread words of complacency either.

Wake up America, this is not America I came for. I think truth is only brought to the public by a diversified group of journalists. I strongly believe that truth-based communications is only attained by truth searching journalism. We need to help real Journalism survive and work.