Look For The #SilverLining

Image by iStock

Writer-at-Large Jane Eisner April 18, 2017

Most of us in journalism didn’t go into the profession only to write stories about people behaving badly, or only to rail against injustice, or only to point out all of society’s flaws. But too often the magnetic pull of the negative becomes the default definition of “news” and journalism fails to make enough room to celebrate and inspire the good that is happening all around us, even if we don’t quite notice.

That is why the Forward is launching #SilverLinings.

It’s a collection of feel good stories and a new, weekly newsletter that, we hope, will help restore your faith in humanity, featuring stories of people behaving well, pursuing justice and meaning, ameliorating society’s flaws, or just simply doing a random act of kindness that makes a difference in someone’s life. These are stories that already appear on our website, but wedged between the latest outrage from the Trump administration, or the fallout from war or terror, or the silly shenanigans from Jewish celebrities, you may have missed their glow.

We want to help you find it again, to offset the natural (Jewish) tendency to expect the worst. Expect the better, instead. Look for — you guessed it — the silver lining.

To manage your newsletter subscriptions, please click here.

Jane Eisner was editor-in-chief of the Forward from 2008 to 2019.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward. Discover more perspectives in Opinion. To contact Opinion authors, email [email protected].

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO