Letter of the day –
Katy Perry and the floods in Spain
A reader invites us to reflect on the place given to information in Geneva which concerns a star and a deadly natural disaster abroad.
Letters from readers
Published today at 8:17 p.m.
Bes volunteers helping people affected by the floods in Spain, in Benetusser.
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BotTalk
Thoiry (Ain), October 31
I am taking up my (electronic) pen on this foggy day to write to you, which I have never done (everything needs a beginning), because reading your daily newspaper this Thursday, I found it somewhat indecent. writing an article taking ¾ of a page on “Katy Perry’s incredible birthday in Geneva”and a few pages further, discover an article ⅔ smaller on catastrophic and historic floods in Spain.
– Yes, Katy Perry was in Geneva and tasted typically Swiss regional dishes.
– Yes, she spent a lot of money in this beautiful town in the canton and visited emblematic places in the region.
– Yes, your newspaper is called the “Tribune de Genève” and Geneva is close to us, while Spain is less so.
– Yes, he is a public figure, so his private life must (obligatory?) be public.
– No, she didn't want that to be known, otherwise she would have announced it in advance everywhere and would not have signed confidentiality contracts.
– Yes, we all know one or more Spaniards.
– Yes, this tragic event touches us because Spain is not that far from us, and such a tragedy has already happened in Switzerland and France in the past, certainly with fewer deaths, but also with strong damage; and this will most certainly happen again in the future.
Your careful investigation to absolutely know who were the lucky ones elected to be present at this quarantine event, what they had enjoyed and how much it had cost leaves me with a somewhat bitter taste, considering the human losses and the disappearance of the subsistence minimum (water, food, housing, electricity, vehicle) that the Spaniards are currently experiencing; not to mention the loss of souvenirs, official papers and other property. And it's not over given what is announced for today, October 31.
I understand and appreciate that your pages mainly report local news, and this is quite normal given the name your gazette bears. However, the number of words for each of these two articles could or should have been reversed, or at least be equal. Or even better, that of this beautiful artist postponed to another publication day.
No worries, I will continue to read your texts with pleasure, despite this little “misstep”.
Joelle Horvath
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