Journalists: Equal Effort Always

My first “real job” as a journalist was as a reporter at a small community newspaper. One afternoon, soon after I started, two of my stories ran on the front page, an ego-boosting accomplishment for a rookie.

The next morning, the publisher called me into his office. As I entered, I saw the paper’s editor sitting beside him. My chest grew tight. What had I done?

The publisher pointed to my first story, a colorful piece about two old friends who got into a heated argument over a baseball cap. The argument ended with a gunfight and a hospital visit. My first sentence read, “John Smith just wanted his hat back.”

“That’s a great lede,” said the publisher.

My head swelled. A smile spread across my face. “Thank you,” I stammered.

Then, the publisher’s expression changed. He gestured dismissively at my second story, a routine city council meeting recap about a proposed sewerage and water measure. It started, “On Tuesday, the Springfield City Council voted to extend . . . ”

“So, how can you write this garbage on the same page?” he snarled (he also used a word other than “garbage”).

My smile vanished, along with my momentary pride. Of course, he was right. The second story was awful. I had put all of my effort and enthusiasm into the first piece, and I’d reported the second piece as the boring news item that it was.

I slinked out of his office having learned my first “real job” journalism lesson: Write every story as if it’s the front-page lead, whatever the content.

Writers and editors struggle with this all the time. We love the juicy features full of plot and vivid characters, but we balk at the boring roundups and routine recaps.

That’s too bad—and unacceptable. As professional journalists, we must strive to tell every story with equal enthusiasm. We must work to engage the reader, whether the topic engages us or not. Every story deserves our best effort.

One of the perks of being a journalist is the opportunity to write about a variety of subjects. Sometimes, that’s a shootout over a ball cap. Sometimes, it’s a much calmer debate over a new water main.

Either way, there’s a good story in there somewhere. And it’s our job to tell it well.

Posted By: Chad Kirtland