Goodbye, farewell everyone
Bryan Doyle
Issue date: 5/4/07 Section: Opinion
"I will be as harsh as truth, and uncompromising as justice ... I am earnest, I will not equivocate, I will not excuse, I will not retreat a single inch and I will be heard."
William Lloyd Garrison had it pretty sweet as a newspaper editor. He had gravitas, to be sure, like many abolitionists did of the 1830s. But, at least he had an issue: slavery, a bad idea.
I'm not trying to insinuate that we have it harder at The Daily Mississippian than Ole Lloyd here. Thank God we live in a community where, generally, such grievous institutional corruptions as slavery are a thing of the past. The problem for your youthful editor, then, is being unsure what mission to take. The passion is there, as is the desire to champion the little guy is his quest to stick it to "The Man." But, what happens when it's not black and white?
Early this year at a conference, I shared my desire to lead a journalistic crusade against university authority to Hank Klibanoff, the managing editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. I expected my enthusiasm to be met with a slap on the back and and a telling of stories of newspaper warriors of lore, of whispery speak-easies, of Deep Throats and of "Common Sense."
What Klibanoff said surprised me, though. He told me that sometimes it can be just as bold, and just as brave, to discern when nothing is wrong, to quell the desire to cynically lash the establishment, and to refuse to be influenced by calls for controversy from within, knowing that sometimes "The Man" actually gets it right.
Many of my year's greatest moments, and my worst, were based on whether I correctly chose between a fiery tongue and equally fierce restraint.
The decisions one makes as a student journalist, be it as a writer or editor, is harder than you think; afterall, we're students too.
We have the challenge of learning our craft in front of the entire campus, and sometimes we suffer journalistic equivalent to a shattered lab beaker.
Working for The DM means choosing between a breaking news story and getting ahead in French class. It means writing a story knowing you will see the teacher it affects the next day. Sometimes it means being misunderstood.
That's why I'm so proud of our staff. Together, we've been able to make great progress this year. We helped to give the paper a fresh, professional look through a redesign.
We've greatly expanded our local news coverage. We placed a usually unwelcome magnifying glass on the university when it was needed most - when the Ole Miss community came together to dedicate a civil rights monument. We prioritized discussion of the alcohol issue on campus, which, though some would like to play down, is still one of the most important issues of the last decade. We've called for public transportation, for an efficient student government, and for student activism on campus.
To the staff:
I have the greatest respect for you of anyone else on this campus, if only because you have had to deal with me as a boss for the past 12 months. You had quite an act to follow when the last Farley Hall kids graduated, but you made the paper all your own.
To the Student Media Center support staff and the journalism faculty:
We could not have properly published this newspaper without being surrounded by a strong network of university support. Special thanks to journalism faculty chair Samir Husni, SMC Director Ralph Braseth, Traci Mitchell, Mark Dolan, Joseph Atkins and Kathleen Wickham.
To Marty Russell and Ellen Meacham, DM advisers:
When I graduate, I will leave this university fully believing that the two of you have superhuman powers. Thank you for saving me from lawsuits, nervous breakdowns, and yes, Ellen, poor eating habits.
To Marti Covington, incoming editor and work spouse:
I've spent the greater part of the last two years of my life with you, and to be honest, I'm not sure if I'm comfortable with the thought of looking to my over my shoulder and you not being there. I can't think of any editor I've been involved with who has been more ready than you. Remember: No one on this campus knows how to run this paper better than you. I'll try not to be a bitter, crusty emeritus, tearing apart your copy editors from my new throne in the Union lobby.
I look forward to taking you to dinner so you can relax. I look forward to listening when no one else understands. I can't tell you how proud I am of you. I love you. But call me after 3 a.m. and I'll kill you.
So, what's left for me next year? Well, I'll be finishing my pursuit of a journalism degree, having allowed my paper life to hijack my academic career. Who knows, my name may show up in The DM pages, if my editor will have me.
Some days, I focus on the mistakes I've made - on those times when I knew what was right but chose to do otherwise. Yet, when I look at what we've done this year and how the staff has grown, I know that right now the paper is in a better place than it has been for years. That my name can somehow be attached to this change makes it all worth it. I hope Ole Lloyd would be proud.
William Lloyd Garrison had it pretty sweet as a newspaper editor. He had gravitas, to be sure, like many abolitionists did of the 1830s. But, at least he had an issue: slavery, a bad idea.
I'm not trying to insinuate that we have it harder at The Daily Mississippian than Ole Lloyd here. Thank God we live in a community where, generally, such grievous institutional corruptions as slavery are a thing of the past. The problem for your youthful editor, then, is being unsure what mission to take. The passion is there, as is the desire to champion the little guy is his quest to stick it to "The Man." But, what happens when it's not black and white?
Early this year at a conference, I shared my desire to lead a journalistic crusade against university authority to Hank Klibanoff, the managing editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. I expected my enthusiasm to be met with a slap on the back and and a telling of stories of newspaper warriors of lore, of whispery speak-easies, of Deep Throats and of "Common Sense."
What Klibanoff said surprised me, though. He told me that sometimes it can be just as bold, and just as brave, to discern when nothing is wrong, to quell the desire to cynically lash the establishment, and to refuse to be influenced by calls for controversy from within, knowing that sometimes "The Man" actually gets it right.
Many of my year's greatest moments, and my worst, were based on whether I correctly chose between a fiery tongue and equally fierce restraint.
The decisions one makes as a student journalist, be it as a writer or editor, is harder than you think; afterall, we're students too.
We have the challenge of learning our craft in front of the entire campus, and sometimes we suffer journalistic equivalent to a shattered lab beaker.
Working for The DM means choosing between a breaking news story and getting ahead in French class. It means writing a story knowing you will see the teacher it affects the next day. Sometimes it means being misunderstood.
That's why I'm so proud of our staff. Together, we've been able to make great progress this year. We helped to give the paper a fresh, professional look through a redesign.
We've greatly expanded our local news coverage. We placed a usually unwelcome magnifying glass on the university when it was needed most - when the Ole Miss community came together to dedicate a civil rights monument. We prioritized discussion of the alcohol issue on campus, which, though some would like to play down, is still one of the most important issues of the last decade. We've called for public transportation, for an efficient student government, and for student activism on campus.
To the staff:
I have the greatest respect for you of anyone else on this campus, if only because you have had to deal with me as a boss for the past 12 months. You had quite an act to follow when the last Farley Hall kids graduated, but you made the paper all your own.
To the Student Media Center support staff and the journalism faculty:
We could not have properly published this newspaper without being surrounded by a strong network of university support. Special thanks to journalism faculty chair Samir Husni, SMC Director Ralph Braseth, Traci Mitchell, Mark Dolan, Joseph Atkins and Kathleen Wickham.
To Marty Russell and Ellen Meacham, DM advisers:
When I graduate, I will leave this university fully believing that the two of you have superhuman powers. Thank you for saving me from lawsuits, nervous breakdowns, and yes, Ellen, poor eating habits.
To Marti Covington, incoming editor and work spouse:
I've spent the greater part of the last two years of my life with you, and to be honest, I'm not sure if I'm comfortable with the thought of looking to my over my shoulder and you not being there. I can't think of any editor I've been involved with who has been more ready than you. Remember: No one on this campus knows how to run this paper better than you. I'll try not to be a bitter, crusty emeritus, tearing apart your copy editors from my new throne in the Union lobby.
I look forward to taking you to dinner so you can relax. I look forward to listening when no one else understands. I can't tell you how proud I am of you. I love you. But call me after 3 a.m. and I'll kill you.
So, what's left for me next year? Well, I'll be finishing my pursuit of a journalism degree, having allowed my paper life to hijack my academic career. Who knows, my name may show up in The DM pages, if my editor will have me.
Some days, I focus on the mistakes I've made - on those times when I knew what was right but chose to do otherwise. Yet, when I look at what we've done this year and how the staff has grown, I know that right now the paper is in a better place than it has been for years. That my name can somehow be attached to this change makes it all worth it. I hope Ole Lloyd would be proud.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Billy Brooks
posted 5/12/07 @ 10:47 AM CST
Tell it like it is - Call em as you see em. Best Wishes.
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