Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Sunday Morning
The New Insecurities
Aired September 14, 2003 - 09:38 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: Of course the war on terror was initiated, triggered by the attacks on September 11, which will likely be remembered as the day that split time in two. The time before and the time after the World Trade Center attacks. So for a picture of who we are and how we behave now, two years later, Bruce Burkhardt brings us this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today let's visit the airport of a large city.
BRUCE BURKHARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An educational film from the late '40s.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In this room at the airport other passengers are waiting for planes.
BURKHARDT: A nostalgic reminder of the way we used to look at airports. Today's view would look more like this. At least in the eyes of a Canadian artist, Isabelle Devos, who's mounting an exhibit using these photos. Photos taken by travelers who were asked by security people to click their camera to prove that it wasn't a weapon. She calls it the "Insecurities Project," a snapshot of our culture, post 9/11.
But for all the talk of a new normal, there is evidence to suggest that in many ways, we are back to the old normal.
AMITAI ETZIONI, SOCIOLOGY PROFESSOR, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: Even though we continue to fear other attacks, a majority believe, and I think there's reason, that there are going to be more attacks, they are flying almost as much as they did before 9/11.
BURKHARDT: Amatai Etzioni, a sociology professor at George Washington University has used polling and other data to paint a picture of who we are and how we behave two years later.
ETZIONI: Now as it's gradually faded into almost wallpaper, people are now returning to normal life on many of these issues, but not on all of them.
BURKHARDT: And as the fear has slowly headed downward, there's been an upward swing in our concern for basic freedoms.
ETZIONI: After 9/11, up to 70 percent of Americans said, don't worry about the constitution, give me safety. Again, with every three months that pass, they return to saying, wait a moment, give me rights.
BURKHARDT: But the seeming appearance of a return to normalcy could, in itself, be a cultural coping mechanism.
ALAN LIPMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF VIOLENCE: Given the 90 percent appearance, and in fact demonstration of normality, people function well, they go out, they enjoy themselves, they live their lives, but there's an awareness. And there's an awareness that in some ways shapes and limits behavior.
BURKHARDT: According to Dr. Lipman, human beings adapt to such a situation in a couple of very different ways. This is one of them.
LIPMAN: Things in the culture, like reality TV, that will provide a real distraction from worry and anxiety.
BURKHARDT: You think you can relate that popularity to 9/11?
LIPMAN: I think it's a plausible connection. That is, I think there's a tendency right now in the culture to focus on, A, distraction from anxiety.
BURKHARDT: And the other way, according to Dr. Lipman, of adapting to this undercurrent of anxiety is latching on to what seem to be certain solutions.
LIPMAN: There's a tendency to focus on very clear-cut, extreme, controlled solutions, both on the left and right.
BURKHARDT: A search for certainty, or a distraction? Either way, two years later, in many ways, we are still finding our way. Bruce Burkhardt, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 14, 2003 - 09:38 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: Of course the war on terror was initiated, triggered by the attacks on September 11, which will likely be remembered as the day that split time in two. The time before and the time after the World Trade Center attacks. So for a picture of who we are and how we behave now, two years later, Bruce Burkhardt brings us this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today let's visit the airport of a large city.
BRUCE BURKHARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An educational film from the late '40s.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In this room at the airport other passengers are waiting for planes.
BURKHARDT: A nostalgic reminder of the way we used to look at airports. Today's view would look more like this. At least in the eyes of a Canadian artist, Isabelle Devos, who's mounting an exhibit using these photos. Photos taken by travelers who were asked by security people to click their camera to prove that it wasn't a weapon. She calls it the "Insecurities Project," a snapshot of our culture, post 9/11.
But for all the talk of a new normal, there is evidence to suggest that in many ways, we are back to the old normal.
AMITAI ETZIONI, SOCIOLOGY PROFESSOR, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: Even though we continue to fear other attacks, a majority believe, and I think there's reason, that there are going to be more attacks, they are flying almost as much as they did before 9/11.
BURKHARDT: Amatai Etzioni, a sociology professor at George Washington University has used polling and other data to paint a picture of who we are and how we behave two years later.
ETZIONI: Now as it's gradually faded into almost wallpaper, people are now returning to normal life on many of these issues, but not on all of them.
BURKHARDT: And as the fear has slowly headed downward, there's been an upward swing in our concern for basic freedoms.
ETZIONI: After 9/11, up to 70 percent of Americans said, don't worry about the constitution, give me safety. Again, with every three months that pass, they return to saying, wait a moment, give me rights.
BURKHARDT: But the seeming appearance of a return to normalcy could, in itself, be a cultural coping mechanism.
ALAN LIPMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF VIOLENCE: Given the 90 percent appearance, and in fact demonstration of normality, people function well, they go out, they enjoy themselves, they live their lives, but there's an awareness. And there's an awareness that in some ways shapes and limits behavior.
BURKHARDT: According to Dr. Lipman, human beings adapt to such a situation in a couple of very different ways. This is one of them.
LIPMAN: Things in the culture, like reality TV, that will provide a real distraction from worry and anxiety.
BURKHARDT: You think you can relate that popularity to 9/11?
LIPMAN: I think it's a plausible connection. That is, I think there's a tendency right now in the culture to focus on, A, distraction from anxiety.
BURKHARDT: And the other way, according to Dr. Lipman, of adapting to this undercurrent of anxiety is latching on to what seem to be certain solutions.
LIPMAN: There's a tendency to focus on very clear-cut, extreme, controlled solutions, both on the left and right.
BURKHARDT: A search for certainty, or a distraction? Either way, two years later, in many ways, we are still finding our way. Bruce Burkhardt, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
