New article on Aeon.co

I was so thrilled to have the opportunity to co-write an essay for the online magazine, Aeon, since I love their articles, essays, and videos. It's one of the smartest places on the Internet, with deep and thought-provoking commentary. I had a wonderful experience working with the editor, but I was disappointed that Aeon didn't share their choice of image to accompany our article before it went live.  We were sent an edited PDF to review without the image, and then I asked specifically about the choice of image, but received no reply.  Needless to say, I wasn't thrilled that they decided to use the hammer and sickle for an article about "anti-anti-communism." For people who don't read the article (which is too many people these days), it gives the wrong impression. I also know that it is offensive to many of my east European colleagues, and that some will be outraged by just seeing this symbol on their dash. 

These are the challenges when academics try to write for broader audiences. You have to cede editorial control to editors that don't always allow you to participate in key decisions. Now I begin to understand why so many of my colleagues refuse to write for the general public and often bury their ideas in impenetrable prose inaccessible to lay readers. This is of great frustration to me, and I wish I had understood the process a bit better before I dove in to general writing. But these are the costs of trying to communicate ideas to an audience beyond one's immediate scholarly peers.

So, for the record again, I had no say in the choice of this image, and did not even see it until the essay was posted live (even though I specifically asked about it beforehand). Had I known, I would have certainly asked for a different image to accompany the piece.