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Last week as I pulled into the news office I noticed a little wooden plaque in the store window next door.
It was a carving of a rooster doing his private business and reading a copy of the St. John News. Above it were the words have you ever seen a chicken- uh, poop? I thought to myself, “Hmm, me thinks somebody is unhappy.”
Good.
One thing they taught us in journalism school is you’ll never make all the people happy all of the time. Kind of sounds like life doesn’t it?
It’s easy to go through life, or run a newspaper, being a cheerleader. Everything’s great, stay upbeat, report only the good news, but that isn’t how life really is and it doesn’t make for a conscientious newspaper.
Another thing they taught us in journalism school is that a local paper should be a record of a communities conversation with itself whether that is good or bad if it is what people are talking about in the coffee shops, and gathering places it is something that should be talking about in the paper. If it incites a response or more conversation so much the better.
I don’t always do a great job of getting it all in the paper. I take the easy way out too often and report on only upbeat, atta boy stories that are easy to write and don’t ruffle any feathers. I fret sometimes that I don’t cover some of the hard-hitting or controversial stuff that maybe I should, but console myself with the fact that we do pretty good with the resources and time allotted to us.
So when I drive up to the office and see that we covered something that got somebody fired up enough to make a custom wood carving, I realize that maybe I’m doing my job better than I think.
The story that prompted the plaque was one of much discussion in the community and something I got asked about quite often as I went about my daily business so I guess while I don’t always think so, we are covering the conversations of the community be they for good or bad.
And we’re doing it well enough to invoke a response. Good for us.
When I was growing up in northern Kansas there was a chicken place called “Chicken George’s” that sold great fried chicken. On their sign outside was a disheveled looking chicken sitting on a stump or something holding a bucket of chicken. Every time I went by, the sign reminded me of what great chicken the place sold.
Now I have my own chicken. I’ve named him George as well. It seemed to fit him.
Every time I see George I’m reminded that our job is to not only be a cheerleader for the good, easy, fluff stories, but to also report on the conversations of the communities we serve, whether it is good, bad, or sometimes just a little chicken- uh, poop.
Last week as I pulled into the news office I noticed a little wooden plaque in the store window next door.
It was a carving of a rooster doing his private business and reading a copy of the St. John News. Above it were the words have you ever seen a chicken- uh, poop? I thought to myself, “Hmm, me thinks somebody is unhappy.”
Good.
One thing they taught us in journalism school is you’ll never make all the people happy all of the time. Kind of sounds like life doesn’t it?
It’s easy to go through life, or run a newspaper, being a cheerleader. Everything’s great, stay upbeat, report only the good news, but that isn’t how life really is and it doesn’t make for a conscientious newspaper.
Another thing they taught us in journalism school is that a local paper should be a record of a communities conversation with itself whether that is good or bad if it is what people are talking about in the coffee shops, and gathering places it is something that should be talking about in the paper. If it incites a response or more conversation so much the better.
I don’t always do a great job of getting it all in the paper. I take the easy way out too often and report on only upbeat, atta boy stories that are easy to write and don’t ruffle any feathers. I fret sometimes that I don’t cover some of the hard-hitting or controversial stuff that maybe I should, but console myself with the fact that we do pretty good with the resources and time allotted to us.
So when I drive up to the office and see that we covered something that got somebody fired up enough to make a custom wood carving, I realize that maybe I’m doing my job better than I think.
The story that prompted the plaque was one of much discussion in the community and something I got asked about quite often as I went about my daily business so I guess while I don’t always think so, we are covering the conversations of the community be they for good or bad.
And we’re doing it well enough to invoke a response. Good for us.
When I was growing up in northern Kansas there was a chicken place called “Chicken George’s” that sold great fried chicken. On their sign outside was a disheveled looking chicken sitting on a stump or something holding a bucket of chicken. Every time I went by, the sign reminded me of what great chicken the place sold.
Now I have my own chicken. I’ve named him George as well. It seemed to fit him.
Every time I see George I’m reminded that our job is to not only be a cheerleader for the good, easy, fluff stories, but to also report on the conversations of the communities we serve, whether it is good, bad, or sometimes just a little chicken- uh, poop.
