Great Moments in Journalism: On Track
Great Moments in Journalism are submitted by readers, and can be sent to this address. Your Moment today comes from a Clyde Haberman column about Wesley Autrey, the subway savior, whose story has yet to cause a ripple of suspicion over even the vast pool of our cynicism. Haberman correctly calls it "the No. 1 feel-good story of 2007." Sadly, he doesn't stop there. It's a piece full of Moments (e.g., "Frankly, we can see why many New Yorkers, men or women, might want to diet simply to fit into subway seats. Some of the made-in-Japan cars seem designed for made-in-Japan rumps, not New Yorkers' wider beams. You want to talk about trans fats? Try transit fat.") we're choosing this one as your nominee:
Naturally, transit officials still want people to stay on guard. "If you see something, say something" continues to be the slogan.But Mr. Autrey kicked it up several notches, didn't he? By leaping to the tracks to save a life, he effectively told New Yorkers: "If you see something, do something."
We're smacking ourselves hard in the forehead, does that count?