Serious business

On the surface, this Columbia Journalism Review story on the Wall Street Journal changing its headshots from happy to grim in these economic times seems lighthearted, but it really drives home a point that is often missed in the media. A happy face is inappropriate when reporting a grim story. I still remember Jane Pauley smiling during a televised tribune to John Lennon the day of his shooting death. I realize that many broadcast people (and others in the public eye; check out CEOs' photos, for example) are trained to keep one face on at all times when they are on the air, but Pauley's smile was so inappropriate for the event that the memory still bothers me. So, kudos to the Wall Street Journal visual people for making this change.