It’s been fifty years since I sat in Dr. Paletz’s Politics and the Media class.
He was engagingly intimidating — coming at you with angled questions, each designed to push you toward learning and, more importantly, knowing.
Among the fresh insights he offered, one that never left me was:
“Politics is saying something your opponent can never disagree with — like ‘The
sun rises in the morning’ or ‘I’m against crime.’ To challenge that would be
absurd.”
In nearly forty years of leading people, teams, and culture, I’ve carried that lesson with me — the discipline of ensuring that truth remains itself.
Another gem: “It’s not the headline, but what’s in the body.”
I’ve had many memorable professors at Duke, but Dr. Paletz remains with me still — present in every word, every moment of communication that seeks both clarity and integrity.
Meril Yu, David’s consistent “C” student 1975, 1978 & 1979