Malcolm Fabiyi writes:
In a nobler time social criticism required more than just the ability to string words on paper. In that gilded age, social criticism was not only rooted in verbiage and media activism. It was not a career choice, or a meal ticket. The positions that public commentators took were driven by deep ideological beliefs, and their activism was not an act, it was a life style. Their devotion to their cause was one of total immersion. They were prepared to die for their beliefs, to suffer prison and privation.More here
