--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Let's not pretend there isn't a huge…" description: "\"Let's not pretend there isn't a huge industry driven by the choices made by editors and writers who decide what a story is.\" — Tom Hanks" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg" --- # Let's not pretend there isn't a huge industry driven by… ![“Let's not pretend there isn't a huge industry driven by the choices made by editors and writers who decide what a story is.” quote by Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg) > “Let's not pretend there isn't a huge industry driven by the choices made by editors and writers who decide what a story is.” [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The media industry is heavily shaped by editorial decisions that determine which narratives reach the public. **In simple terms:** Editors control what stories get told. Key Takeaway Recognize the power of editorial choices. Themes media influence storytelling power dynamics Mood critical inquisitive Type analytical observational When to use this quote - newsrooms - publishing houses - film studios - online platforms - advertising agencies Key Concepts gatekeeping agenda setting cultural production Questions to Reflect On - How do editorial choices affect public opinion? - What mechanisms can increase story diversity? A Different Perspective Editorial bias can limit diverse perspectives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Choices Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices-editors-1894154/) [Choices made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices-made/) [Decide Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decide-story-1894153/) [Driven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driven/) [Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/editors/) [Editors Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/editors-writers-1859409/) [Huge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/huge/) [Industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industry/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers Decide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-decide-1894152/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [When I was in college, I was the editor of the literary magazine and insisted neither the editors nor the writers be specifically identified-only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/when-i-was-in-college-i-was-the-editor-of-the-literary-magazine-and/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [I've known several cases of writers who decide to write about something and they research the hell out of it and when they're ready…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-doctorow/i-ve-known-several-cases-of-writers-who-decide-to-write-about/) [E. L. Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-doctorow/) > [I went through a big Kurt Vonnegut phase. But the writers who made me decide at a very early age that this is probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-b-weiss/i-went-through-a-big-kurt-vonnegut-phase-but-the-writers-who-made-me/) [D. B. Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-b-weiss/) > [“The Difference between Writers and Editors. Writers are creative using one end of a pencil. Editors are more adept using the opposite end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-a-higgins/the-difference-between-writers-and-editors-writers-are-creative-using/) [Roy A Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-a-higgins/) > [I wonder if these editors, why they're not writers sometimes, because they know so much about writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hampton-fancher/i-wonder-if-these-editors-why-they-re-not-writers-sometimes-because/) [Hampton Fancher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hampton-fancher/) > [“We decide what story to tell ourselves. Or whether we will tell one at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/we-decide-what-story-to-tell-ourselves-or-whether-we-will-tell-one-at/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [Characters are so important to a story that they actually decide where the story is going. When I write, I know my characters. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-konigsburg/characters-are-so-important-to-a-story-that-they-actually-decide/) [E. L. Konigsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-konigsburg/) > [“Don’t settle for being merely a teller of stories about significance. Decide to be the story of significance. Become the central character in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/don-t-settle-for-being-merely-a-teller-of-stories-about-significance/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [We have a rule in our franchise that there is no canon. You as a player decide what your story is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-hudson/we-have-a-rule-in-our-franchise-that-there-is-no-canon-you-as-a/) [Casey Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-hudson/) > [Film-makers must decide what story to tell and how to tell it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-valenti/film-makers-must-decide-what-story-to-tell-and-how-to-tell-it/) [Jack Valenti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-valenti/) > [We human beings do have some genuine freedom of choice and therefore some effective control over our own destinies. I am not a determinist.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-j-toynbee/we-human-beings-do-have-some-genuine-freedom-of-choice-and-therefore/) [Arnold J. Toynbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-j-toynbee/) > [Our enemies send other people's children on missions of suicide and murder. They embrace tyranny and death as a cause and a creed. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/our-enemies-send-other-people-s-children-on-missions-of-suicide-and/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [As an actor, your text is your bible, so you're not making a documentary, but you still have to follow the choices made by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-dormer/as-an-actor-your-text-is-your-bible-so-you-re-not-making-a/) [Natalie Dormer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-dormer/) > [Choices are our choices so I am not taking away anyone's personal choice, but we run into difficulty when we're having choices made for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-moss/choices-are-our-choices-so-i-am-not-taking-away-anyone-s-personal/) [Robert Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-moss/) > [Look at situations as contingent, not as inevitable, look at them as the result of a series of historical choices made by men and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/look-at-situations-as-contingent-not-as-inevitable-look-at-them-as/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) ## More by Tom Hanks > [I've worked with people who are much further to the left than I am and much further to the right than I am. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/i-ve-worked-with-people-who-are-much-further-to-the-left-than-i-am/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [In the 1998 Oscars, I found myself in the bathroom in a stall, next to Tom Selleck. So I leaned over and I said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/in-the-1998-oscars-i-found-myself-in-the-bathroom-in-a-stall-next-to/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Mass-market movies have become about one thing. They kind of declare themselves right off the bat. . . . But when I go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/mass-market-movies-have-become-about-one-thing-they-kind-of-declare/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [If you look at romantic comedies as pieces of commerce, the audience is looking for wish fulfillment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/if-you-look-at-romantic-comedies-as-pieces-of-commerce-the-audience/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Some people are cowards... I think by and large a third of people are villains, a third are cowards, and a third are heroes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/some-people-are-cowards-i-think-by-and-large-a-third-of-people-are/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [I try to do what I call the three E's - educate, entertain, and enlighten. If you don't entertain, no one will show up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/i-try-to-do-what-i-call-the-three-e-s-educate-entertain-and-enlighten/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [But actors with political views are a dime a dozen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/but-actors-with-political-views-are-a-dime-a-dozen/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [We're part of a greater humanity and we can actually affect the world by the choices we make once we leave the theater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/we-re-part-of-a-greater-humanity-and-we-can-actually-affect-the-world/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Saying no to something is actually much more powerful than saying yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/saying-no-to-something-is-actually-much-more-powerful-than-saying-yes/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [If things were easy to find, they wouldn’t be worth finding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/if-things-were-easy-to-find-they-wouldn-t-be-worth-finding/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Reading a script is usually as exciting as reading a boilerplate legal document, so when you read one that makes you feel as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/reading-a-script-is-usually-as-exciting-as-reading-a-boilerplate/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [It just so happens that my body type and my lifestyle gives me a preclusion for high blood sugars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/it-just-so-happens-that-my-body-type-and-my-lifestyle-gives-me-a/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Are you crying? There's no crying. There's no crying in baseball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/are-you-crying-there-s-no-crying-there-s-no-crying-in-baseball/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [My son is a gentleman and a professional who is pursuing something difficult. Yet the only thing he has ever asked me for is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/my-son-is-a-gentleman-and-a-professional-who-is-pursuing-something/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Even if a story has nothing to do with my life, if I can recognise something of myself in the character and think, 'Oh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/even-if-a-story-has-nothing-to-do-with-my-life-if-i-can-recognise/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) [Explore all 213 Tom Hanks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) ## More Choices quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [“Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into taking a job in a field that doesn’t feel right in your gut. You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) [Alison James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-james/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [Clarissa," he said, "here with the vampire, I see. When things have settled a bit, we really must discuss you choice in pets..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/clarissa-he-said-here-with-the-vampire-i-see-when-things-have-settled/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [I don't know that any woman could ever not think about that at some point - even making the choice not to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-watts/i-don-t-know-that-any-woman-could-ever-not-think-about-that-at-some/) [Naomi Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-watts/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) [Browse all 11,466 Choices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Let's not pretend there isn't a huge industry driven by the choices made by editors and writers who decide what a story is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tom Hanks" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-industry-driven-by-the-choices/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choices" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-industry-driven-by-the-choices/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/tom-hanks-1717_choices_let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-ind_176045.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Let's not pretend there isn't a huge industry driven by the choices made by editors and writers who decide…” — Tom Hanks", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tom Hanks", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Let's not pretend there isn't a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-industry-driven-by-the-choices/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/let-s-not-pretend-there-isn-t-a-huge-industry-driven-by-the-choices/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```