From the desk of President Mia

Mia Rhodarmer

Mia Rhodarmer


February 2010

Have you ever written anything that made somebody mad? Has anyone ever threatened to get you fired? What was the best story you ever wrote?  Does your paper have a good heart or a bad heart?

These were some of the questions I answered during a recent visit with a roomful of fifth graders. (And yes, sometimes I was not sure if I was smarter than a fifth-grader).

Each year, two fifth-grade classes in Sweetwater read “The Landry News.” This is a great book about a fifth-grader who starts her own newspaper, and then her classmates help her create a bigger paper that soon becomes very popular. But, because of one story the editor decides to print, school officials demand the students stop printing the paper and the teacher gets summonsed for a disciplinary hearing.

The story centers around the issues of freedom of speech and freedom of the press. So in addition to answering all the fifth-graders’ questions about the life of a small-town newspaper editor and reporter, I spend time talking to them about the importance of our freedoms and using them responsibly.

We talk about presenting different sides of a story, so people can form their own opinions about issues. We talk about the difference between fact and opinion, and how there is a place for both in a newspaper. We talk about how just because we have those freedoms, does not mean we should just print or say anything we want, without being aware of the consequences.

And to answer their questions: Yes, I have written articles that made people mad (sometimes the truth hurts or maybe somebody just got mad because his DUI report ended up in the paper). Yes, I have had some people so mad they wanted to get me fired. Fortunately I have always had good editors and publishers to back me, and as long as I do my job properly, I shouldn’t have anything to worry about.

What was the best story I ever wrote? I have lots of favorite stories about good people doing amazing things in our community. And, as a reporter and editor I get to be a part of some things I may otherwise not have been a witness to.

A good heart or bad heart? This is a question the students writing The Landry News ask. And, it is something all of us journalists should ask with each story we approach. What is the purpose of what we are reporting? I always tell the students our paper has a good heart. Yes, sometimes the front page is filled with a lot of “bad” news, which may seem like we have a bad heart. But, with each story we publish our news staff considers the public’s right to know and we do not sensationalize the bad news. We also seek out the good things happening in our community and highlight those activities.

As my visit with the students ended, one girl raised her hand and asked if I thought they could publish a newspaper. Absolutely! That is one of the wonderful things about living in the United States; even a fifth-grade student has the freedom to publish her own newspaper.

January 2010

Each year ETSPJ hosts the Front Page Follies to raise money for scholarships for students majoring in journalism at the University of Tennessee and Pellissippi State Community College.

A few weeks ago I had the honor of meeting our PSCC scholarship recipient. She is an energetic young woman who seeks to discover and report the truth, no matter what. She doesn’t like the idea of news being influenced by advertising, politics or corporate policies.

She has her own inspiring story to tell about her education.

She and her two younger brothers come from a broken home where education was not a priority. Although her parents, said they were homeschooling their children, there was actually very little education going on. Her parents pulled her out of school when she was in the eighth grade. Yet, despite being classified as a disabled student and having a math learning disability, she educated herself to get her GED. Then she taught her brother and helped him get his GED. He has now enrolled in his first semester at PSCC. Her success has apparently made a difference in the way her parents think about education too. They plan to enroll her 13-year-old brother in an online education program, when previously they were not teaching him at all.

This young woman is married and says sometimes her husband gets frustrated with all the time she spends at school, on homework and working. But, she is determined to finish her degree and knows the sacrifices she is making now will be worth it in the end.

In her thank you letter to us, she stated: “I want to become a well-rounded person and reach my full potential as a human being and contribute to society. The opportunity to attend college has given me a sense of self worth and has been a positive example in my brother’s eyes.”

I am proud the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists had the opportunity to help this young woman. Thank you to all our members and donors who contribute to the Front Page Follies and allow us to make a difference in someone’s life.

November 2009

Have you ever written anything that made somebody mad? Has anyone ever threatened to get you fired? What was the best story you ever wrote?  Does your paper have a good heart or a bad heart?

These were some of the questions I answered during a recent visit with a roomful of fifth graders. (And yes, sometimes I was not sure if I was smarter than a fifth-grader).

Each year, two fifth-grade classes in Sweetwater read “The Landry News.” This is a great book about a fifth-grader who starts her own newspaper, and then her classmates help her create a bigger paper that soon becomes very popular. But, because of one story the editor decides to print, school officials demand the students stop printing the paper and the teacher gets summonsed for a disciplinary hearing.

The story centers around the issues of freedom of speech and freedom of the press. So in addition to answering all the fifth-graders’ questions about the life of a small-town newspaper editor and reporter, I spend time talking to them about the importance of our freedoms and using them responsibly.

We talk about presenting different sides of a story, so people can form their own opinions about issues. We talk about the difference between fact and opinion, and how there is a place for both in a newspaper. We talk about how just because we have those freedoms, does not mean we should just print or say anything we want, without being aware of the consequences.

And to answer their questions: Yes, I have written articles that made people mad (sometimes the truth hurts or maybe somebody just got mad because his DUI report ended up in the paper). Yes, I have had some people so mad they wanted to get me fired. Fortunately I have always had good editors and publishers to back me, and as long as I do my job properly, I shouldn’t have anything to worry about.

What was the best story I ever wrote? I have lots of favorite stories about good people doing amazing things in our community. And, as a reporter and editor I get to be a part of some things I may otherwise not have been a witness to.

A good heart or bad heart? This is a question the students writing The Landry News ask. And, it is something all of us journalists should ask with each story we approach. What is the purpose of what we are reporting? I always tell the students our paper has a good heart. Yes, sometimes the front page is filled with a lot of “bad” news, which may seem like we have a bad heart. But, with each story we publish our news staff considers the public’s right to know and we do not sensationalize the bad news. We also seek out the good things happening in our community and highlight those activities.

As my visit with the students ended, one girl raised her hand and asked if I thought they could publish a newspaper. Absolutely! That is one of the wonderful things about living in the United States; even a fifth-grade student has the freedom to publish her own newspaper.

October 2009

Oct. 4-10 is National Newspaper Week, and this year’s theme is “Carrying the Torch of Freedom.” This seems to go hand-in-hand with SPJ’s new slogan: “Fighting for Your Right to Know One Story at a Time.”

We must have free speech and a free press to do our jobs of informing people. And when we do our jobs, then people can exercise their freedom to make decisions about their government and the issues important to them.

Unfortunately, a recent survey released by the Pew Research Center shows most people think we don’t do a very good job in delivering the facts.

Of the 1,506 people surveyed in July, 63 percent believe news stories are often inaccurate. Only 29 percent said we generally get the facts straight.

In the initial 1985 survey about the news media’s performance, 55 percent said news stories were accurate while 34 percent said they were inaccurate. According to a release from the center, the percentage fell sharply by the late 1990s and remained low over the last decade.

I look at that number and cringe. But, I also wonder if readers or viewers sometimes perceive a story as being inaccurate simply because they disagree with what is being reported or because they have seen other reports stating different facts about the same subject. We all know, especially with the popularity of the Internet, people can find information to support whatever their view is, whether it’s accurate or not.

But, it would benefit us as professional journalists to consider what our readers and viewers think and continue to do our best to provide accurate and balanced coverage while giving people the information they have the right to know.

September 2009

The East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists has kicked off another year and your board members are busy planning educational programs as well as some socials for us just to get together, get to know each other and share our experiences.

First, I would like to begin by welcoming our new board members – Jamie Foster, news director at WATE-TV; Jim Stovall, faculty member at UT-JEM; and Megan Venable Smith, executive assistant at UT. I look forward to working with you during the next year.

Our first social will be in September, so be watching your e-mail inbox or your snail mail for more details. We will invite students from the UT Journalism and Electronic Media Department to join us. After a year hiatus, we are pleased to see there is some effort to reorganize the student SPJ chapter. Let’s pledge to help them get going and provide support along the way.

Your chapter sent five representatives to the National Convention in Indianapolis the last week in August. Amanda Womac and I served as delegates and Jean Ash was our alternate delegate. Also joining us were Georgiana Vines and Elenora Edwards.

At our annual board retreat in August we reorganized some of our committees to help share the workload. We also invite all our members to serve on committees and give input into the programs and activities we provide.

As I have written before, it was the programs ETSPJ offered that led me to become a member and to serve on the board. Now more than ever, with newsrooms reducing training budgets and journalists needing to update their skills, our programs are invaluable. Most programs are free to members or for a low cost. Our goal is to have a program each month, and National encourages chapters to have programs on topics such as diversity, ethics, open government and Project Watchdog. If you have ideas for programs please contact one of our program committee chairs: Amanda Womac, Jamie Foster or Michael Grider.

In April 2010, our chapter will be hosting the Region XII conference here in Knoxville. Our regional also includes Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Amanda Womac is chairing that committee, along with organizing our second annual Writing Green environmental reporting workshop. The regional conference and Writing Green workshops will be held the same weekend, April 9-11. Mark your calendars now.

And finally, I would like to thank all the board members, for their support during my first term as president of our chapter. There is a lot to learn and do, but it is all the board members who work so hard that make our chapter successful.

March 2009

As journalists we often hear from our readers and viewers that we focus too much on the bad news and not enough on the good news.

Some days that is probably true. But, we also know bad news sells, and we all must sell our product whether its print or broadcast, in order to stay in business. My circulation manager and I often look at the number of paper sales on certain days and review what was in the headline those days. Most of the time it was the bad news that sold the most number of papers.

This past Monday during a tribute to Paul Harvey, I heard a rebroadcast of one of his shows discussing that very topic. He gave examples of newspapers that tried to print nothing but good news, but soon went out of business. So, people can tell us they want more good news, but they will continue to buy the bad news.

I think it is important to find a balance. In many ways we are the face of our communities, so that means our reporting should be as diverse as the places we live. But as journalists we don’t create the news, we report the news, and some days, just as in our personal lives, there is more bad news, and other days there is more good news.

Speaking of which, is there any good news lately for the media business? Our own reports lately have been filled with news of media companies going bankrupt, newspapers closing, employees being laid off or put on furlough, having their pay cut and getting fewer benefits.

And those of us who are still working, even under less than ideal circumstances, are left thinking, “At least I still have a job.”

Because of all the media attention the news business has been getting, I am getting more and more questions from our readers wanting to know how the newspaper business is going and what is happening with papers around the country. Or people are asking why our paper has fewer pages than it once did. As a result, I have spent a lot of time explaining the correlation between advertising and the amount of space allotted for news. More ads mean more news.

I don’t know how we break this cycle we are in. As more people lose their jobs, there is less money to spend and thus businesses are forced to layoff even more people or even close. It’s important for people to support their local businesses now. This will help save jobs and create more sales tax revenue for our local governments. And, it’s important for journalists to help people and businesses understand the roles they will play in helping our economy recover. A stronger economy is good news we all want to hear.

February 2009

Your SPJ chapter board members are busy planning a variety of programs for the coming months.

Later this month we will be hosting a diversity program to discuss how the media covers race and diversity. This is a timely program with the inauguration of the country’s first black president.

Shortly after President Obama was elected, I wrote a column for our paper and stated I hoped that people did not think just because we had elected a black president that racism no longer exists. Unfortunately, it exists in small towns and large cities across our country. Ideally, we would live in a world where people are not judged by their race, gender, religious beliefs, or ethnicity. The point of my column was that although this was a great historical moment for our country, the work for equality must continue.

The next day I was shocked when a woman called and accused me of being a racist because I had mentioned racism. She also was upset that we had not published more about Obama’s campaign and a picture on him on election night. I explained to her we are a small local paper and that we do not subscribed to the Associated Press, or any other wire service, therefore we cannot publish the photos and articles she had seen in the News Sentinel.  That explanation seemed to somewhat change her opinion that our paper was biased and a McCain supporter.

It is always interesting to learn what our readers (or viewers or listeners) think about our work and I appreciate the opportunity to talk to them about the decision making process that goes into our news coverage. I look forward to hearing from our panelists. The program will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26 at the YMCA Cansler Family Branch.

In April we will again have the opportunity to hear from the public when we team up with National to host a Town Hall Meeting during Ethics in Journalism week.  The topic of the meeting will be media credibility. We have been chosen as one of 12 chapters across the country to host one of the meetings. Victor Hernandez, who works at CNN and is a Poynter Institute Ethics Fellow, will moderate the meeting.

One of the goals of SPJ’s strategic plan is restore the public’s faith in the press by equipping the public with tools to evaluate all forms of journalism and we want to increase the dialogue between the public and the press. The Town Hall meetings will be one was to accomplish that goal. We will be asking all our journalists in East Tennessee to help promote this event.

Front Page Follies

I want to take this opportunity to thank Adina Chumley and Dorothy Bowles for agreeing to chair the Front Page Follies. There has been much discussion during the past several months about what to do about Follies. This is our biggest fundraiser and helps fund the two scholarships we provide to journalism students at UT and Pellissippi State. However, the task of planning the event is a monumental one and we have been concerned about how the economy will affect ticket and auction sales. But the show will go on and we hope you will support this important event. Mark your calendar for July 18.

Visit our Web site, www.estpj.org, for a complete listing and details of upcoming events.

As your president, attend and get involved in the chapter’s activities. While your dues memberships are important to the continuance of SPJ’s work at the national level, your local chapter provides wonderful training and educational opportunities. Most of our events are free or offered at low cost to members. And, we can always use extra hands in the planning process of the events. If you would like to serve on one of our committees or have an idea for a program or fundraiser, please contact me at editor@advocateanddemocrat.com or call (423) 337-7101.

January 2009

Another year has come to an end. And what a year it was. Dwindling revenue and layoffs made 2008 a difficult year for many in our business. Although this is a time unlike most of us have ever seen, I am confident we will survive. And, what we are learning during this time may make us better journalists.

As I was doing some year-end cleaning and sorting through piles of papers, I found the notes I took  during one of the sessions at the national convention in Atlanta. It was about reinventing journalism.

The presenter was Howard Owens from Gatehouse Media, who made some good points. However, after listening and thinking about his list of ways to reinvent journalism, I have come to the conclusion we  don’t need to reinvent journalism. We need to return to the core of our business. We need to practice good, solid journalism based on fact and produce stories that help people better understand the cities
and towns where they live and those who live there with them.

It is very easy for us to get in a rut of relying on official sources and just reporting what happens in  various meetings without taking the time to really get to the meaning of the story and how it will affect people and their day-to-day lives.

Here is a condensed version of Mr. Owens’ tips for reinventing journalism. Read it, and I think you will see too that this is real journalism, not journalism reinvented.

(The full list is online at www.howardowens.com/2008/ten-things-journalists-can-do-to-reinvent-journalism/.)

  • Stop treating journalism like a competition-Write for our readers, not for awards or scoops. It’s more important to get the story right than to be first.
  • Listen closely to your readers (or viewers)- Cherish their unsolicited praise and don’t write off their criticism (there may be a lesson to learn).
  • Cover the people, not the process-Put emphasis on how things affect real people. Don’t just write about what the mayor or councilman says.
  • Be smarter-You should know more about your beat than anyone else. This allows you to give your stories substance and perspective.
  • Be accurate-Get the facts right and give the story the right approach. Don’t sensationalize just to make the story play better on the front page or so it will be the lead on the 6 o’clock news.
  • Forget the false promise of objectivity -aim to be fair, honest, impartial and accurate.

The Society of Professional Journalists will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2009. So let this be the year we all make a New Year’s resolution to celebrate our heritage and honor our industry by practicing great journalism.

November 2008

We are now in the holiday season, but unfortunately for some of our fellow journalists the days ahead may not look merry and bright. During the past month we received the disheartening news about many of our fellow journalists being laid off here locally and across the nation. This is a trying time for people and businesses, and the media is not immune to the effects of our lagging economy.

When times are slow like this advertising seems to be one of the first things people cut from their budgets. Most people reading this are probably in the news business, but we know without the advertising to pay for the printing of our papers or the airing of our newscasts, we can and will be out of a job.

Fortunately for those of us who work at smaller papers, we have not been hit as bad as our larger counterparts. I’m not an economist so I won’t try to explain all the reasons for that, but I do believe one reason is because smaller papers have stayed more true to our roots.

We are providing the news that no one else can provide. I know larger papers and television stations serve larger markets, therefore their news coverage must include stories from around the region and the nation. I know my readers here in Monroe County are going to buy the Sentinel or watch a Knoxville newscast, but they are going to buy our paper for all the moments in their life that end up clipped and posted on the refrigerator or tucked away in a scrapbook.

Metro papers are realizing the importance of local news and are now focusing more of their efforts in that direction. But, due to the economy, they are trying to do that with fewer people.

In November ETSPJ hosted a program about getting into the freelance business. One of the panelists talked about how the digital age has changed the way we do business and predicted the demise of newspapers.

I have to disagree. Yes, newspapers, like other media businesses, must change the way we think. The same way we have done business for years and years will not work today. But, that does not mean newspapers are becoming extinct. We have survived the invention of radio, the competition of local television and cable TV, and we will survive in the digital age and the Internet. However, we must learn to use the Internet and our own Web sites to support our newspapers, not compete with them.

And, newspapers are not alone in this new venture. Radio and television stations are learning new ways of delivering information too. And, that is what we are in the business to do – deliver information to our readers and viewers – whether that information is news, commentary or entertainment. Our job is to inform.

Let’s start the New Year with hope for brighter days ahead and a renewed sense of why we have chosen to be journalists.

October 2008

Our chapter and district had a good representation at the SPJ National Convention held Sept. 4-6 in Atlanta.

Representing our chapter were Jean Ash, Georgiana Vines, Kristi Nelson Bumpus, Jamie  Bumpus, John Huotari, Amanda Womac, Elenora Edwards and I.

Our chapter won a Circle of Excellence Award for diversity programming and was a finalist in  the competition for best small chapter.

We also cheered on Jean Ash as she received the Howard S. Dubin Outstanding Professional Member award for all her years of service to SPJ. I  know Jean has been a big help to me since I joined the board, and I appreciate all her hard work.

The convention in Atlanta was the first SPJ convention I have attended. I enjoyed getting to meet new people and seeing a lot of the people I met earlier this year at the Scripps Leadership Institute. There’s a lot of energy and excitement at the convention, and I recommend you attend  if you get the chance.

Most of the education sessions I attended were about how the media are evolving. When I decided I wanted to be a journalist I knew I wanted to work at a newspaper and dedicated much  of my education to learning about print journalism. Fortunately, my school, UNC-Asheville,  offered a degree in mass communications and I had the opportunity also to learn about video production. Of course, I did not know then that 16 years later I would be making videos and posting them on my newspaper’s Web site.

In one of the sessions, a newspaper reporter told how he used Twitter to write a story about the release of the iPhone. The reporter could only be in one place at one time the day of the release, so he had people at different stores sending him messages about how long the lines were at the store, if people were getting grumpy standing in line, if they had water to drink and if the store was running out of phones. It enabled him to do “man on the street” reporting without really being on the street. In today’s world of layoffs and fewer people doing more work, it is important we learn how to use all this technology efficiently and effectively.

Speaking of Twitter, it was a hot topic in several sessions. Some of us would look at each other questioningly and shrug, having heard of Twitter but not sure exactly what it is or how to use it. We came back home thinking we probably need to offer a workshop about the latest technology and the online social/networking communities. We’ll keep you posted.

As a traditional print person, I struggled with the questions most newspaper people are asking.

If we post everything online, will people still buy our paper? Do we put all our stories online or  just part of them? Do we charge for content online? At my newspaper, we have nswered some of those questions, but there are new ones every day, and we continue to learn and experiment.

I think the important thing for us to remember is that we are in the business of providing information, whether we do that in print, on television, on the radio, online or a combination of ways. We must remain dedicated to providing the people in our communities accurate, timely information about issues that affect their lives.

Mia Rhodarmer is general manager and editor of the Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater.

September 2008

I had the opportunity to represent our chapter at the Ted Scripps Leadership Institute June 6-8 in Indianapolis.

Fifty chapter leaders from all corners of the country attended. We even had someone there from Hawaii.

The price of gas was an ice-breaker and topic of many conversations. I didn’t hear how much gas was in Hawaii, but they are paying $6 a gallon for milk! We spent our first afternoon getting to know each other through a variety of activities such as giving an “elevator” speech about why we are SPJ members and an SPJ trivia contest.

Friday evening we went duck pin bowling. For those of you unfamiliar with this sport, it is similar to regular bowling, except the balls are smaller and the pins are heavier, but you wear the same goofy shoes.

Saturday was a challenging and inspiring day. Our classes started at 8:30 with several hours spent learning about different leadership styles. Although, we were cautioned not to “pigeon-hole” people into a certain leadership style category, it was difficult not to recognize the traits of people I know at work, in SPJ and other organizations. But, that knowledge will be helpful when communicating with different people.

That afternoon we spent time brainstorming about programs, fundraisers and membership recruitment and retention. Our President John Huotari and Membership Chairman John Becker were mentioned for their successful membership recruitment techniques.

We ended our classes in time to watch the heart-breaking Belmont Stakes.

SPJ President Clint Brewer was the guest speaker at our dinner Saturday night. He and other SPJ officers spent time answering questions from the crowd. Following dinner, my roommate and I spent the evening walking along the canal in downtown Indianapolis. It is an amazing example of downtown revitalization with apartments, restaurants, museums and historical exhibits along the walk. You can even ride in a gondola along the canal.

Before departing Sunday morning, we spent some more time sharing ideas and discussing issues that chapters face.

One common issue that many of the chapters have is that a core group of people ends up doing a lot of the work, which leads to burn out. In the coming year we hope to get more of our members involved in planning and producing our programs and events. This is your chapter, so let us know if you have ideas about ways the chapter can better serve you.

While at the Leadership Institute I met a lot of nice people with the common goal of making our chapters better and serving our fellow journalists. I returned home with new ideas for programs and fundraisers and hope you will be a part of them.

[updated 12/4/09]

 

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December 2009

Each year ETSPJ hosts the Front Page Follies to raise money for scholarships for students majoring in journalism at the University of Tennessee and Pellissippi State Community College.
A few weeks ago I had the honor of meeting our PSCC scholarship recipient. She is an energetic young woman who seeks to discover and report the truth, no matter what. She doesn’t like the idea of news being influenced by advertising, politics or corporate policies.
She has her own inspiring story to tell about her education.
She and her two younger brothers come from a broken home where education was not a priority. Although her parents, said they were homeschooling their children, there was actually very little education going on. Her parents pulled her out of school when she was in the eighth grade. Yet, despite being classified as a disabled student and having a math learning disability, she educated herself to get her GED. Then she taught her brother and helped him get his GED. He has now enrolled in his first semester at PSCC. Her success has apparently made a difference in the way her parents think about education too. They plan to enroll her 13-year-old brother in an online education program, when previously they were not teaching him at all.
This young woman is married and says sometimes her husband gets frustrated with all the time she spends at school, on homework and working. But, she is determined to finish her degree and knows the sacrifices she is making now will be worth it in the end.
In her thank you letter to us, she stated: “I want to become a well-rounded person and reach my full potential as a human being and contribute to society. The opportunity to attend college has given me a sense of self worth and has been a positive example in my brother’s eyes.”
I am proud the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists had the opportunity to help this young woman. Thank you to all our members and donors who contribute to the Front Page Follies and allow us to make a difference in someone’s life.

November 2009

Have you ever written anything that made somebody mad? Has anyone ever threatened to get you fired? What was the best story you ever wrote?  Does your paper have a good heart or a bad heart?
These were some of the questions I answered during a recent visit with a roomful of fifth graders. (And yes, sometimes I was not sure if I was smarter than a fifth-grader).
Each year, two fifth-grade classes in Sweetwater read “The Landry News.” This is a great book about a fifth-grader who starts her own newspaper, and then her classmates help her create a bigger paper that soon becomes very popular. But, because of one story the editor decides to print, school officials demand the students stop printing the paper and the teacher gets summonsed for a disciplinary hearing.
The story centers around the issues of freedom of speech and freedom of the press. So in addition to answering all the fifth-graders’ questions about the life of a small-town newspaper editor and reporter, I spend time talking to them about the importance of our freedoms and using them responsibly.
We talk about presenting different sides of a story, so people can form their own opinions about issues. We talk about the difference between fact and opinion, and how there is a place for both in a newspaper. We talk about how just because we have those freedoms, does not mean we should just print or say anything we want, without being aware of the consequences.
And to answer their questions: Yes, I have written articles that made people mad (sometimes the truth hurts or maybe somebody just got mad because his DUI report ended up in the paper). Yes, I have had some people so mad they wanted to get me fired. Fortunately I have always had good editors and publishers to back me, and as long as I do my job properly, I shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
What was the best story I ever wrote? I have lots of favorite stories about good people doing amazing things in our community. And, as a reporter and editor I get to be a part of some things I may otherwise not have been a witness to.
A good heart or bad heart? This is a question the students writing The Landry News ask. And, it is something all of us journalists should ask with each story we approach. What is the purpose of what we are reporting? I always tell the students our paper has a good heart. Yes, sometimes the front page is filled with a lot of “bad” news, which may seem like we have a bad heart. But, with each story we publish our news staff considers the public’s right to know and we do not sensationalize the bad news. We also seek out the good things happening in our community and highlight those activities.
As my visit with the students ended, one girl raised her hand and asked if I thought they could publish a newspaper. Absolutely! That is one of the wonderful things about living in the United States; even a fifth-grade student has the freedom to publish her own newspaper.

October 2009

Oct. 4-10 is National Newspaper Week, and this year’s theme is “Carrying the Torch of Freedom.” This seems to go hand-in-hand with SPJ’s new slogan: “Fighting for Your Right to Know One Story at a Time.”
We must have free speech and a free press to do our jobs of informing people. And when we do our jobs, then people can exercise their freedom to make decisions about their government and the issues important to them.
Unfortunately, a recent survey released by the Pew Research Center shows most people think we don’t do a very good job in delivering the facts.
Of the 1,506 people surveyed in July, 63 percent believe news stories are often inaccurate. Only 29 percent said we generally get the facts straight.
In the initial 1985 survey about the news media’s performance, 55 percent said news stories were accurate while 34 percent said they were inaccurate. According to a release from the center, the percentage fell sharply by the late 1990s and remained low over the last decade.
I look at that number and cringe. But, I also wonder if readers or viewers sometimes perceive a story as being inaccurate simply because they disagree with what is being reported or because they have seen other reports stating different facts about the same subject. We all know, especially with the popularity of the Internet, people can find information to support whatever their view is, whether it’s accurate or not.
But, it would benefit us as professional journalists to consider what our readers and viewers think and continue to do our best to provide accurate and balanced coverage while giving people the information they have the right to know.

September 2009

The East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists has kicked off another year and your board members are busy planning educational programs as well as some socials for us just to get together, get to know each other and share our experiences.
First, I would like to begin by welcoming our new board members – Jamie Foster, news director at WATE-TV; Jim Stovall, faculty member at UT-JEM; and Megan Venable Smith, executive assistant at UT. I look forward to working with you during the next year.
Our first social will be in September, so be watching your e-mail inbox or your snail mail for more details. We will invite students from the UT Journalism and Electronic Media Department to join us. After a year hiatus, we are pleased to see there is some effort to reorganize the student SPJ chapter. Let’s pledge to help them get going and provide support along the way.
Your chapter sent five representatives to the National Convention in Indianapolis the last week in August. Amanda Womac and I served as delegates and Jean Ash was our alternate delegate. Also joining us were Georgiana Vines and Elenora Edwards.
At our annual board retreat in August we reorganized some of our committees to help share the workload. We also invite all our members to serve on committees and give input into the programs and activities we provide.
As I have written before, it was the programs ETSPJ offered that led me to become a member and to serve on the board. Now more than ever, with newsrooms reducing training budgets and journalists needing to update their skills, our programs are invaluable. Most programs are free to members or for a low cost. Our goal is to have a program each month, and National encourages chapters to have programs on topics such as diversity, ethics, open government and Project Watchdog. If you have ideas for programs please contact one of our program committee chairs: Amanda Womac, Jamie Foster or Michael Grider.
In April 2010, our chapter will be hosting the Region XII conference here in Knoxville. Our regional also includes Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Amanda Womac is chairing that committee, along with organizing our second annual Writing Green environmental reporting workshop. The regional conference and Writing Green workshops will be held the same weekend, April 9-11. Mark your calendars now.
And finally, I would like to thank all the board members, for their support during my first term as president of our chapter. There is a lot to learn and do, but it is all the board members who work so hard that make our chapter successful.

March 2009

As journalists we often hear from our readers and viewers that we focus too much on the bad news and not enough on the good news.
Some days that is probably true. But, we also know bad news sells, and we all must sell our product whether its print or broadcast, in order to stay in business. My circulation manager and I often look at the number of paper sales on certain days and review what was in the headline those days. Most of the time it was the bad news that sold the most number of papers.
This past Monday during a tribute to Paul Harvey, I heard a rebroadcast of one of his shows discussing that very topic. He gave examples of newspapers that tried to print nothing but good news, but soon went out of business. So, people can tell us they want more good news, but they will continue to buy the bad news.
I think it is important to find a balance. In many ways we are the face of our communities, so that means our reporting should be as diverse as the places we live. But as journalists we don’t create the news, we report the news, and some days, just as in our personal lives, there is more bad news, and other days there is more good news.
Speaking of which, is there any good news lately for the media business? Our own reports lately have been filled with news of media companies going bankrupt, newspapers closing, employees being laid off or put on furlough, having their pay cut and getting fewer benefits.
And those of us who are still working, even under less than ideal circumstances, are left thinking, “At least I still have a job.”
Because of all the media attention the news business has been getting, I am getting more and more questions from our readers wanting to know how the newspaper business is going and what is happening with papers around the country. Or people are asking why our paper has fewer pages than it once did. As a result, I have spent a lot of time explaining the correlation between advertising and the amount of space allotted for news. More ads mean more news.
I don’t know how we break this cycle we are in. As more people lose their jobs, there is less money to spend and thus businesses are forced to layoff even more people or even close. It’s important for people to support their local businesses now. This will help save jobs and create more sales tax revenue for our local governments. And, it’s important for journalists to help people and businesses understand the roles they will play in helping our economy recover. A stronger economy is good news we all want to hear.

February 2009

Your SPJ chapter board members are busy planning a variety of programs for the coming months.
Later this month we will be hosting a diversity program to discuss how the media covers race and diversity. This is a timely program with the inauguration of the country’s first black president.
Shortly after President Obama was elected, I wrote a column for our paper and stated I hoped that people did not think just because we had elected a black president that racism no longer exists. Unfortunately, it exists in small towns and large cities across our country. Ideally, we would live in a world where people are not judged by their race, gender, religious beliefs, or ethnicity. The point of my column was that although this was a great historical moment for our country, the work for equality must continue.
The next day I was shocked when a woman called and accused me of being a racist because I had mentioned racism. She also was upset that we had not published more about Obama’s campaign and a picture on him on election night. I explained to her we are a small local paper and that we do not subscribed to the Associated Press, or any other wire service, therefore we cannot publish the photos and articles she had seen in the News Sentinel.  That explanation seemed to somewhat change her opinion that our paper was biased and a McCain supporter.
It is always interesting to learn what our readers (or viewers or listeners) think about our work and I appreciate the opportunity to talk to them about the decision making process that goes into our news coverage. I look forward to hearing from our panelists. The program will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26 at the YMCA Cansler Family Branch.
In April we will again have the opportunity to hear from the public when we team up with National to host a Town Hall Meeting during Ethics in Journalism week.  The topic of the meeting will be media credibility. We have been chosen as one of 12 chapters across the country to host one of the meetings. Victor Hernandez, who works at CNN and is a Poynter Institute Ethics Fellow, will moderate the meeting.
One of the goals of SPJ’s strategic plan is restore the public’s faith in the press by equipping the public with tools to evaluate all forms of journalism and we want to increase the dialogue between the public and the press. The Town Hall meetings will be one was to accomplish that goal. We will be asking all our journalists in East Tennessee to help promote this event.
Front Page Follies
I want to take this opportunity to thank Adina Chumley and Dorothy Bowles for agreeing to chair the Front Page Follies. There has been much discussion during the past several months about what to do about Follies. This is our biggest fundraiser and helps fund the two scholarships we provide to journalism students at UT and Pellissippi State. However, the task of planning the event is a monumental one and we have been concerned about how the economy will affect ticket and auction sales. But the show will go on and we hope you will support this important event. Mark your calendar for July 18.
Visit our Web site, www.estpj.org, for a complete listing and details of upcoming events.
As your president, attend and get involved in the chapter’s activities. While your dues memberships are important to the continuance of SPJ’s work at the national level, your local chapter provides wonderful training and educational opportunities. Most of our events are free or offered at low cost to members. And, we can always use extra hands in the planning process of the events. If you would like to serve on one of our committees or have an idea for a program or fundraiser, please contact me at editor@advocateanddemocrat.com or call (423) 337-7101.

January 2009

Another year has come to an end. And what a year it was. Dwindling revenue and layoffs made 2008 a difficult year for many in our business. Although this is a time unlike most of us have ever seen, I am confident we will survive. And, what we are learning during this time may make us better journalists.
As I was doing some year-end cleaning and sorting through piles of papers, I found the notes I took  during one of the sessions at the national convention in Atlanta. It was about reinventing journalism.
The presenter was Howard Owens from Gatehouse Media, who made some good points. However, after listening and thinking about his list of ways to reinvent journalism, I have come to the conclusion we  don’t need to reinvent journalism. We need to return to the core of our business. We need to practice good, solid journalism based on fact and produce stories that help people better understand the cities
and towns where they live and those who live there with them.
It is very easy for us to get in a rut of relying on official sources and just reporting what happens in  various meetings without taking the time to really get to the meaning of the story and how it will affect people and their day-to-day lives.
Here is a condensed version of Mr. Owens’ tips for reinventing journalism. Read it, and I think you will see too that this is real journalism, not journalism reinvented.
(The full list is online at www.howardowens.com/2008/ten-things-journalists-can-do-to-reinvent-journalism/.)
  • Stop treating journalism like a competition-Write for our readers, not for awards or scoops. It’s more important to get the story right than to be first.
  • Listen closely to your readers (or viewers)- Cherish their unsolicited praise and don’t write off their criticism (there may be a lesson to learn).
  • Cover the people, not the process-Put emphasis on how things affect real people. Don’t just write about what the mayor or councilman says.
  • Be smarter-You should know more about your beat than anyone else. This allows you to give your stories substance and perspective.
  • Be accurate-Get the facts right and give the story the right approach. Don’t sensationalize just to make the story play better on the front page or so it will be the lead on the 6 o’clock news.
  • Forget the false promise of objectivity -aim to be fair, honest, impartial and accurate.
The Society of Professional Journalists will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2009. So let this be the year we all make a New Year’s resolution to celebrate our heritage and honor our industry by practicing great journalism.

November 2008

We are now in the holiday season, but unfortunately for some of our fellow journalists the days ahead may not look merry and bright. During the past month we received the disheartening news about many of our fellow journalists being laid off here locally and across the nation. This is a trying time for people and businesses, and the media is not immune to the effects of our lagging economy.
When times are slow like this advertising seems to be one of the first things people cut from their budgets. Most people reading this are probably in the news business, but we know without the advertising to pay for the printing of our papers or the airing of our newscasts, we can and will be out of a job.
Fortunately for those of us who work at smaller papers, we have not been hit as bad as our larger counterparts. I’m not an economist so I won’t try to explain all the reasons for that, but I do believe one reason is because smaller papers have stayed more true to our roots.
We are providing the news that no one else can provide. I know larger papers and television stations serve larger markets, therefore their news coverage must include stories from around the region and the nation. I know my readers here in Monroe County are going to buy the Sentinel or watch a Knoxville newscast, but they are going to buy our paper for all the moments in their life that end up clipped and posted on the refrigerator or tucked away in a scrapbook.
Metro papers are realizing the importance of local news and are now focusing more of their efforts in that direction. But, due to the economy, they are trying to do that with fewer people.
In November ETSPJ hosted a program about getting into the freelance business. One of the panelists talked about how the digital age has changed the way we do business and predicted the demise of newspapers.
I have to disagree. Yes, newspapers, like other media businesses, must change the way we think. The same way we have done business for years and years will not work today. But, that does not mean newspapers are becoming extinct. We have survived the invention of radio, the competition of local television and cable TV, and we will survive in the digital age and the Internet. However, we must learn to use the Internet and our own Web sites to support our newspapers, not compete with them.
And, newspapers are not alone in this new venture. Radio and television stations are learning new ways of delivering information too. And, that is what we are in the business to do – deliver information to our readers and viewers – whether that information is news, commentary or entertainment. Our job is to inform.
Let’s start the New Year with hope for brighter days ahead and a renewed sense of why we have chosen to be journalists.

October 2008

Our chapter and district had a good representation at the SPJ National Convention held Sept. 4-6 in Atlanta.
Representing our chapter were Jean Ash, Georgiana Vines, Kristi Nelson Bumpus, Jamie  Bumpus, John Huotari, Amanda Womac, Elenora Edwards and I.
Our chapter won a Circle of Excellence Award for diversity programming and was a finalist in  the competition for best small chapter.
We also cheered on Jean Ash as she received the Howard S. Dubin Outstanding Professional Member award for all her years of service to SPJ. I  know Jean has been a big help to me since I joined the board, and I appreciate all her hard work.
The convention in Atlanta was the first SPJ convention I have attended. I enjoyed getting to meet new people and seeing a lot of the people I met earlier this year at the Scripps Leadership Institute. There’s a lot of energy and excitement at the convention, and I recommend you attend  if you get the chance.
Most of the education sessions I attended were about how the media are evolving. When I decided I wanted to be a journalist I knew I wanted to work at a newspaper and dedicated much  of my education to learning about print journalism. Fortunately, my school, UNC-Asheville,  offered a degree in mass communications and I had the opportunity also to learn about video production. Of course, I did not know then that 16 years later I would be making videos and posting them on my newspaper’s Web site.
In one of the sessions, a newspaper reporter told how he used Twitter to write a story about the release of the iPhone. The reporter could only be in one place at one time the day of the release, so he had people at different stores sending him messages about how long the lines were at the store, if people were getting grumpy standing in line, if they had water to drink and if the store was running out of phones. It enabled him to do “man on the street” reporting without really being on the street. In today’s world of layoffs and fewer people doing more work, it is important we learn how to use all this technology efficiently and effectively.
Speaking of Twitter, it was a hot topic in several sessions. Some of us would look at each other questioningly and shrug, having heard of Twitter but not sure exactly what it is or how to use it. We came back home thinking we probably need to offer a workshop about the latest technology and the online social/networking communities. We’ll keep you posted.
As a traditional print person, I struggled with the questions most newspaper people are asking.
If we post everything online, will people still buy our paper? Do we put all our stories online or  just part of them? Do we charge for content online? At my newspaper, we have nswered some of those questions, but there are new ones every day, and we continue to learn and experiment.
I think the important thing for us to remember is that we are in the business of providing information, whether we do that in print, on television, on the radio, online or a combination of ways. We must remain dedicated to providing the people in our communities accurate, timely information about issues that affect their lives.
Mia Rhodarmer is general manager and editor of the Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater.

September 2008

I had the opportunity to represent our chapter at the Ted Scripps Leadership Institute June 6-8 in Indianapolis.
Fifty chapter leaders from all corners of the country attended. We even had someone there from Hawaii.
The price of gas was an ice-breaker and topic of many conversations. I didn’t hear how much gas was in Hawaii, but they are paying $6 a gallon for milk! We spent our first afternoon getting to know each other through a variety of activities such as giving an “elevator” speech about why we are SPJ members and an SPJ trivia contest.
Friday evening we went duck pin bowling. For those of you unfamiliar with this sport, it is similar to regular bowling, except the balls are smaller and the pins are heavier, but you wear the same goofy shoes.
Saturday was a challenging and inspiring day. Our classes started at 8:30 with several hours spent learning about different leadership styles. Although, we were cautioned not to “pigeon-hole” people into a certain leadership style category, it was difficult not to recognize the traits of people I know at work, in SPJ and other organizations. But, that knowledge will be helpful when communicating with different people.
That afternoon we spent time brainstorming about programs, fundraisers and membership recruitment and retention. Our President John Huotari and Membership Chairman John Becker were mentioned for their successful membership recruitment techniques.
We ended our classes in time to watch the heart-breaking Belmont Stakes.
SPJ President Clint Brewer was the guest speaker at our dinner Saturday night. He and other SPJ officers spent time answering questions from the crowd. Following dinner, my roommate and I spent the evening walking along the canal in downtown Indianapolis. It is an amazing example of downtown revitalization with apartments, restaurants, museums and historical exhibits along the walk. You can even ride in a gondola along the canal.
Before departing Sunday morning, we spent some more time sharing ideas and discussing issues that chapters face.
One common issue that many of the chapters have is that a core group of people ends up doing a lot of the work, which leads to burn out. In the coming year we hope to get more of our members involved in planning and producing our programs and events. This is your chapter, so let us know if you have ideas about ways the chapter can better serve you.
While at the Leadership Institute I met a lot of nice people with the common goal of making our chapters better and serving our fellow journalists. I returned home with new ideas for programs and fundraisers and hope you will be a part of them.
[updated 1/25/10]
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