How we're honoring people overlooked by history | Amy Padnani

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4.1 • 11.9K Ratings

🗓️ 11 July 2019

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Since its founding in 1851, the "New York Times" has published thousands of obituaries -- for heads of state, famous celebrities, even the inventor of the sock puppet. But only a small percentage of them chronicle the lives of women and people of color. In this insightful talk, "Times" editor Amy Padnani shares the story behind "Overlooked," the project she's leading to recognize people from history whose deaths were ignored -- and refocus society's lens on who is considered important.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This TED Talk features editor Amy Pednani recorded live at Ted Salon Trailblazers 2019.
0:09.4	My name is Amy Putnani, and I'm an editor on the obituaries desk at the New York Times.
0:14.8	Or as some friends call me, the angel of death.
0:20.1	In fact, people will ask me,
0:22.3	isn't it depressing, working on obituaries
0:24.5	and thinking about death all the time?
0:26.8	But you know what I tell them?
0:28.3	Obits aren't about death.
0:29.9	They're about life.
0:31.0	They're interesting.
0:32.1	They're relatable.
0:33.3	Often about something you never knew.
0:36.5	Recently, for example, we had the obit for the inventor of the sock puppet.
0:42.9	Everyone knows what a sock puppet is,
0:45.1	but have you ever thought about who created it or what their life was like?
0:49.5	Obis are a signature form of journalism, an art form, if you will.
0:53.6	It's an opportunity for a writer
0:55.2	to weave the tale of a person's life into a beautiful narrative. Since 1851, the New York Times
1:03.0	has published thousands of obituaries. For heads of state, famous celebrities, even the person
1:10.5	who came up with the name of the slinky,
1:12.6	there's just one problem. Only a small percentage of them chronicled the lives of women and people
1:20.3	of color. That's the impetus behind a project I created called Overlooked, which tells the
	...

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