Trevor Jones
4/3/15
Modern Day Socrates
Brian Williams is a modern day Socrates for several reasons, including the false accusations brought upon both of them, both men being spokesmen that generally appealed to the public, and both made a scapegoat after accused. First of all, Socrates was tried on the false accusation of corrupting the Athenian youth. This accusation is similar to what Williams is being accused of, indirectly of course, since Brian Williams has not been taken to court, but similar in the fact that they are spreading information that is known to be false to the youth (and adults), therefore corrupting their minds. This brings me to my next point, Williams and Socrates are both spokesmen, meaning they speak about certain topics due to their employment; Socrates being a philosopher and Williams being a news anchor. On top of this, both men generally appeal to the public, and I say generally because there are many exceptions. Socrates was hated by several men, most of them who were currently accusing him, but also had many who admired and adored him, such as the men whom he had tutored when they were children. The same is true with Williams, he is a friendly face, adored by millions of Americans, but like any man with an opinion, has people who despise him, especially after he told his embellishments of his war experience in 2003. Finally, after each man was accused for different reasons, they were made a scapegoat by the public and began uproars much bigger then what they can individually control. Socrates, however, took it so far as to be a martyr for his cause, whereas Williams caused major uproars in social media and throughout society. Putting it all together, Brian Williams is a modern day Socrates because they share similarities such as being falsely accused, being widely appealed spokesmen, and being made a scapegoat by the public.
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