--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a journalist, it is so easy to get…" description: "\"As a journalist, it is so easy to get hardened when you see so many stories that are disturbing. Sometimes it's just your survival mechanism that makes..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecb/linda-vester-37746_disturbing_as-a-journalist-it-is-so-easy-to-get-har_2363223.jpg" --- # As a journalist, it is so easy to get hardened when you… ![“As a journalist, it is so easy to get hardened when you see so many stories that are disturbing. Sometimes it's just your survival mechanism that makes you hardened to some of it.” quote by Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecb/linda-vester-37746_disturbing_as-a-journalist-it-is-so-easy-to-get-har_2363223.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecb/linda-vester-37746_disturbing_as-a-journalist-it-is-so-easy-to-get-har_2363223.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecb/linda-vester-37746_disturbing_as-a-journalist-it-is-so-easy-to-get-har_2363223.jpg) > “As a journalist, it is so easy to get hardened when you see so many stories that are disturbing. Sometimes it's just your survival mechanism that makes you hardened to some of it.” [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Journalists develop emotional hardening as a protective response to repeated exposure to disturbing stories. **In simple terms:** Hardening protects journalists from emotional overload. Key Takeaway Recognize and manage defensive coping. Themes journalism psychology resilience Mood reflective concerned Type advice reflective When to use this quote - newsroom - covering trauma - self‑care routines - editorial meetings Key Concepts emotional shielding survival mechanisms Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance protection with compassion? - What practices help maintain emotional health? A Different Perspective Hardening can also numb empathy and reduce story depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Disturbing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disturbing/) [Easy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easy/) [Hardened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardened/) [Hardened Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardened-stories-5794920/) [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [Journalist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalist/) [Mechanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mechanism/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Disturbing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-disturbing-5794921/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) ## Related quotes > [Seek ye counsel of the aged for their eyes have looked on the faces of the years and their ears have hardened to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/seek-ye-counsel-of-the-aged-for-their-eyes-have-looked-on-the-faces/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [We're releasing hardened criminals from jails all over California. They don't have the money. They don't have the room anymore. The jails are overflowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/we-re-releasing-hardened-criminals-from-jails-all-over-california/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [It had never occurred to him that the body of a woman of fifty, blown up to monstrous dimensions by childbearing, then hardened, roughened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-had-never-occurred-to-him-that-the-body-of-a-woman-of-fifty-blown/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Commercialism is the blemish on the fair face of American life. Fighting against the terrible conditions of the explorer and pioneer, our forefathers had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-foote-macdougall/commercialism-is-the-blemish-on-the-fair-face-of-american-life/) [Alice Foote MacDougall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-foote-macdougall/) > [Tragedy can break the heart but not the dam of the tearducts while schmaltz can dissolve the most hardened sophisticate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-otis-skinner/tragedy-can-break-the-heart-but-not-the-dam-of-the-tearducts-while/) [Cornelia Otis Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-otis-skinner/) > [A cement mixer collided with a prison van on the Kingston Pass. Motorists are asked to be on the lookout for 16 hardened criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronnie-corbett/a-cement-mixer-collided-with-a-prison-van-on-the-kingston-pass/) [Ronnie Corbett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronnie-corbett/) > [Does love always form, like a pearl, around the hardened bits of life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-sean-greer/does-love-always-form-like-a-pearl-around-the-hardened-bits-of-life/) [Andrew Sean Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-sean-greer/) > [“Law enforcement hardened you. It made you cynical about people. Even people you loved. The people who deserved your unconditional trust.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-lanyon/law-enforcement-hardened-you-it-made-you-cynical-about-people-even/) [josh lanyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-lanyon/) > [The glassblower knows: while in the heat of beginning, any shape is possible. Once hardened, the only way to change is to break.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat-of-beginning-any-shape-is/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [The sun by the action of heat makes wax moist and mud dry, hardening the one while it softens the other, by the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodoret/the-sun-by-the-action-of-heat-makes-wax-moist-and-mud-dry-hardening/) [Theodoret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodoret/) > [Then the old man's face hardened. "What about you young man?" he asked flatly. "Would you like to get what you deserve?" Jones let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/then-the-old-man-s-face-hardened-what-about-you-young-man-he-asked/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) > [“We still go where we want, even if we got to crawl for the right.' - Tom Joad (Jr.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/we-still-go-where-we-want-even-if-we-got-to-crawl-for-the-right-tom/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Loud o'er my head though awful thunders roll, And vivid lightnings flash from pole to pole, Yet 'tis Thy voice, my God, that bids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-scott/loud-o-er-my-head-though-awful-thunders-roll-and-vivid-lightnings/) [Walter Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-scott/) > [Our past is the forge upon which we are hardened and tempered, to prepare us for the present. We are like a fine blade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-atchley-jr/our-past-is-the-forge-upon-which-we-are-hardened-and-tempered-to/) [Larry Atchley Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-atchley-jr/) > [Weakness is a great thing, and strength is nothing. When a man is just born, he is weak and flexible. When he dies, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-tarkovsky/weakness-is-a-great-thing-and-strength-is-nothing-when-a-man-is-just/) [Andrei Tarkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-tarkovsky/) ## More by Linda Vester > [The school made it very clear that women were entitled to positions of authority. That sense of entitlement allowed us to feel that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/the-school-made-it-very-clear-that-women-were-entitled-to-positions/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [I think I'd like to stay anchoring because, number one, I'm learning a lot, and I love it when I'm learning. And number two,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/i-think-i-d-like-to-stay-anchoring-because-number-one-i-m-learning-a/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [Finally, I get to have houseplants and they stay alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/finally-i-get-to-have-houseplants-and-they-stay-alive/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [In my rational mind, I know... that is a very simplistic way of looking at it, but when there is violence of that kind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/in-my-rational-mind-i-know-that-is-a-very-simplistic-way-of-looking/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [Sometimes stories are inherently important whether or not they have a direct relation to your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/sometimes-stories-are-inherently-important-whether-or-not-they-have-a/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [But there's always a Mass. 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I felt very guilty for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/what-upset-me-the-most-was-not-that-i-would-die-but-that-i-was/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [So now my road map has changed and I don't have a really clear idea of what the next stops are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/so-now-my-road-map-has-changed-and-i-don-t-have-a-really-clear-idea/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [And since I just turned 32, I'm thinking about getting married, having a family, and that's very difficult to do on the road as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/and-since-i-just-turned-32-i-m-thinking-about-getting-married-having/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [I didn't want my parents to support me. I wanted to prove that I could do it by myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/i-didn-t-want-my-parents-to-support-me-i-wanted-to-prove-that-i-could/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) > [But for the first time in many years, I get to sleep in my own bed every night. I haven't done that, literally, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-vester/but-for-the-first-time-in-many-years-i-get-to-sleep-in-my-own-bed/) [Linda Vester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) [Explore all 12 Linda Vester quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-vester/) ## More Disturbing quotes > [When you lived it for years and years and years and seen different characters just get pummeled and squashed because 'I said so,' it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arn-anderson/when-you-lived-it-for-years-and-years-and-years-and-seen-different/) [Arn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arn-anderson/) > [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/) [Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/) > [I rejoice to live in such a splendidly disturbing time!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-rejoice-to-live-in-such-a-splendidly-disturbing-time/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I find in working always the disturbing intrusion of elements not a part of my most interested vision, and the inevitable obliteration and replacement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-find-in-working-always-the-disturbing-intrusion-of-elements-not-a/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [There is so much joy in native culture but so much poverty. It's very disturbing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buffy-sainte-marie/there-is-so-much-joy-in-native-culture-but-so-much-poverty-it-s-very/) [Buffy Sainte-Marie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buffy-sainte-marie/) > [“Silence can often be more disturbing than noise, it reveals the complicated mechanism of our thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-rodrigues-migueis/silence-can-often-be-more-disturbing-than-noise-it-reveals-the/) [Jose Rodrigues Migueis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-rodrigues-migueis/) > [Some guy once sent me a care package with lingerieand a seminude photo of himself. That was disturbing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuliana-rancic/some-guy-once-sent-me-a-care-package-with-lingerieand-a-seminude/) [Giuliana Rancic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuliana-rancic/) > [I just remember that disturbing feeling of walking into that prison, the complete loss of privacy, the complete loss of stimulation, dignity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/i-just-remember-that-disturbing-feeling-of-walking-into-that-prison/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [You can go to a play that is enjoyable because it's funny, and then on the next night you can go to a play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-shawn/you-can-go-to-a-play-that-is-enjoyable-because-it-s-funny-and-then-on/) [Wallace Shawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-shawn/) > [The theme of the party was Neverland Ranch, so guests were asked to come as anyone or anything associated with Michael Jackson. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-winchell/the-theme-of-the-party-was-neverland-ranch-so-guests-were-asked-to/) [April Winchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-winchell/) > [I'm aware that because America is so powerful - with its tentacles reaching out to the world - one doesn't escape it by leaving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/i-m-aware-that-because-america-is-so-powerful-with-its-tentacles/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Deeply disturbing in a way that only the most honest stories are, YACCUB is a fiercely written, daring journey through America's urban wilderness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-massey/deeply-disturbing-in-a-way-that-only-the-most-honest-stories-are/) [Brandon Massey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-massey/) > [I am fascinated by the idea of employing beautiful images as a device to convey something extremely disturbing in an apparently harmless way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurizio-cattelan/i-am-fascinated-by-the-idea-of-employing-beautiful-images-as-a-device/) [Maurizio Cattelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurizio-cattelan/) > [Compassion automatically brings happiness and calmness. Then, even if you receive disturbing news, it will be easier to take, as your mind is still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/compassion-automatically-brings-happiness-and-calmness-then-even-if/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [He continues to smile expectantly. I take a step back. I don't want to catch whatever he has. He is a disturbing out-of-uniform Santa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/he-continues-to-smile-expectantly-i-take-a-step-back-i-don-t-want-to/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) [Browse all 535 Disturbing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disturbing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a journalist, it is so easy to get hardened when you see so many stories that are disturbing. 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