Hex08
Hero
I don't know anything about the required credentials to be a critic. Are there any? How many critics have degrees in fields relating to cinema? How many critics ended up in their role for reasons other than having a background in art? Is it a mix of the two and how can the average reader of criticism know the difference? I ask because I have no idea, but I think it's important, especially since all this talk of anti-intellectualism is being tossed around.
Anti-intellectualism, as I understand it and simply put, is the distrust or denigration of facts and experts. Yes, anti-intellectualism is common in the U.S. (I won't give examples because we can start treading on politically or religiously sensitive topics even though they should not be) and elsewhere. Are movie critics generally experts in the field they are engaging in? One of my interests is science and if you want science news that is trustworthy and accurate you have to avoid traditional media and visit sites (or listen to/watch programing) dedicated to the topic. This is because traditional media no longer, generally, employs science reporters. Instead, regular reporters who don't have the background or education to understand what they are reporting on are tasked with a story and they tend to be really bad at it.
Critics can be found all across different forms of media, how do I know that if I'm not reading a cinephile website that the critic knows his job? How many of the critics on Rotten Tomatoes only got their job because the local paper they started out at needed someone to fill the role regardless of qualifications? If the critics that are being railed against are truly experts, then maybe accusations of anti-intellectualism are appropriate (although probably not an effective way of winning people to your point of view), if they are not....
"I don't know if it's art, but I know I like it." Walt Disney
Anti-intellectualism, as I understand it and simply put, is the distrust or denigration of facts and experts. Yes, anti-intellectualism is common in the U.S. (I won't give examples because we can start treading on politically or religiously sensitive topics even though they should not be) and elsewhere. Are movie critics generally experts in the field they are engaging in? One of my interests is science and if you want science news that is trustworthy and accurate you have to avoid traditional media and visit sites (or listen to/watch programing) dedicated to the topic. This is because traditional media no longer, generally, employs science reporters. Instead, regular reporters who don't have the background or education to understand what they are reporting on are tasked with a story and they tend to be really bad at it.
Critics can be found all across different forms of media, how do I know that if I'm not reading a cinephile website that the critic knows his job? How many of the critics on Rotten Tomatoes only got their job because the local paper they started out at needed someone to fill the role regardless of qualifications? If the critics that are being railed against are truly experts, then maybe accusations of anti-intellectualism are appropriate (although probably not an effective way of winning people to your point of view), if they are not....
"I don't know if it's art, but I know I like it." Walt Disney