What to Do?

As a species, humans have made an incredible amount of progress. Look at where we were, say, a hundred years ago compared to where we are today. We live longer, healthier lives. Food is more accessible. Shelter is more attainable. In fact, one would be hard pressed to select any field or aspect of life and not see a level of improvement. Good for us. However, as we know, this is not to say life is now rosier for everyone. There are those, even in our country, who have not seen or enjoyed that level of advancement in the same way many others have. Sadly, for many of those viewed as being poor and/or to be living in poverty, it is not their fault.

This, of course, is not new information. We are familiar with the cliché designation of "haves" and "have-nots." Further, any one even halfway following the news over the past 30 years knows the gap between the two has been steadily increasing. Such a trend is not good for a nation such as ours whose economic foundation is built on a strong and vibrant middle class. The smaller that class becomes the weaker the nation's economic foundation. Again, this is not new information. Looking at this unfortunate reality, I look at the field of communication and its ever-growing number of practitioners, scholars and students, and raise the question of the role they can and should be playing in helping reverse this trend.

I confess to not knowing the answer, at least in terms of being able to propose a series of tangible recommendations. At the same time, because virtually all of those who represents the "haves" and those looking to become part of that group utilize and/or depend upon those who organize, author and help distribute information - communicators - then a given connection already exists that can be exploited in a way that helps better educate everyone about this damaging trend and then sets in motion conversations as to what to do about it. It seems there is a key role professional communicators can and should play here.