I get quite a bit of feedback via e-mail but it's rare that I'll get a response from someone I've actually written about. However in the last week, I've personally heard from two subjects of separate posts -- one who had positive things to say, the other very negative.
Last week, after my piece about CNN's decision to let go of Miles O'Brien and its entire Science and Technology Unit, I received e-mails from Miles O'Brien's wife, Sandy, and Miles himself. As I mentioned, I worked with Miles and like him quite a bit; although I won't repeat them word-for-word, his comments to me were what I would've expected: courteous, classy, very kind. I felt like I said something which needed to be said, so that in itself was its own reward -- but admittedly, hearing from Miles and knowing that he and his family were grateful for what I'd written was very much appreciated.
Last night, I received a separate e-mail -- this one from CNN's Veronica De La Cruz. Needless to say, she was -- and is -- less than pleased with the comments I made about her in regard to her being laid off from her job at the network along with international correspondent Jennifer Eccleston. For the record, and once again I won't post her e-mail nor repeat its contents word-for-word, she was very cordial in spite of the criticism I leveled at her -- criticism which was, despite my typical acid tongue, aimed more at Jon Klein than at the person whom he, I believe, mistakenly hired.
To be clear, I based my opinion of Veronica on what I witnessed personally while working on American Morning coupled with the opinions of friends, insiders, and those who've worked closely with her whom I trust implicitly. I in no way think that Veronica De La Cruz is a bad person. I told her as much in a response to her e-mail. I also don't think she's the worst thing I've ever seen or worked with in television news -- far from it. I felt like she was seriously miscast, and that her hiring and short-lived ascendency within the network stood in sharp contrast to the image that CNN attempts to convey. She's not "dumb"; she just wasn't right for the job of internet correspondent on CNN, and putting her there was a ridiculously bad idea.
In her e-mail to me, Veronica vigorously defended herself; she also made it clear that she felt personally hurt by the things I said and I can certainly understand that. I don't mince words and the entire aesthetic of this site is made clear in the tagline below the masthead: "Making a Mockery of Mockery." There are plenty of times that I reconsider something I've written and, in hindsight, wish I hadn't written it at all. There are plenty of times I think I've crossed the line. This wasn't one of them. I stand by my opinions (and I never say this because I always assume I don't have to, but a lot of what's written on this site is, in fact, opinion).
With that, I'll likely let this thing go simply because there's not much more to it than what's already been said.
If you're interested in reading more about the layoffs of Jennifer Eccleston and Veronica De La Cruz, you can head over to Jacki Schechner's site as I know she'll continue to have understandably strong opinions on the subject.
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