Last Updated: May 26, 1999
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Institute for Journalism Excellence
Getting out and doing again is rejuvenating
By Ed Williams
Elyria, Ohio
Before I received my summer "attachment" from ASNE, I’d never heard
of Elyria, Lorain County or The Chronicle-Telegram. Hadn’t ever been to
Ohio or outside the South, either.
This is written in the newsroom as I near the home stretch of my six-week
assignment as staff writer at The Chronicle-Telegram in northeastern Ohio.
I’d forgotten how much fun it can be, working as a general assignment reporter
on a daily newspaper.
Though I started my career as a reporter, I’ve been a professor of journalism
at Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., since 1983. It’s been good to return
to the "real world" of journalism.
So how did this lifelong Alabamian end up in the Midwest this summer?
In my application to become a Fellow, I wrote that I’d like to be a
reporter at a quality, aggressive, community-oriented newspaper for the
summer.
The Chronicle-Telegram, a 33,000-circulation morning and afternoon daily,
is in a hotly competitive market about 20 miles west of Cleveland, near
Lake Erie. The Morning Journal of Lorain is in the northern part of the
county, and The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, also circulates here.
The reporters at the Chronicle-Telegram hustle to beat the competition,
and the editing and supervision by the metro desk are excellent. Local
coverage is the newspaper’s focus. An editor there told me that "an all-local
front page is the best front page."
I received an assignment the first morning that I arrived here. The
story, on senior citizens who are using the Internet, ran as a Page 1 "centerpiece"
in the Sunday edition.
I interviewed a resident of Elyria United Methodist Village, Maxine
McConnell, who just happened to be celebrating her 84th birthday that day.
I liked her comment, "I’ve seen the arrival of planes, television and radios,
but nothing is as exciting to me as the Internet. I’m just frustrated because
I’m not going to be around to see where it goes."
I used that quote in my lead.
A nice couple, Bob and Eloise Stilgenbauer, both 81, also were sources
for the Internet feature. They invited me into their home at the United
Methodist Village, and Bob Stilgenbauer was eager to show me the pieces
of hand-crafted maple furniture that he made. They were really warm, friendly
people.
That’s been the case with just about everyone I’ve met in the Midwest.
Hospitable, helpful.
Except Midwesterners have kidded me (in a good-natured way) about my
Southern accent. A farmer who I interviewed told me I talked like President
Carter.
I seem to be a novelty in this newsroom of graduates from Ohio universities.
The newsroom librarian was surprised that I didn’t care for NASCAR. A woman
in Elyria asked if I’d give a rebel yell, and was surprised when I said
I didn’t know how.
Really, my only unpleasant experience since I’ve been in Ohio came my
first week in the state, when I went to Columbus to attend a legislative
committee meeting.
I got a $60 ticket for jaywalking in front of the State House. Not a
warning, a real ticket, from two police officers on motorcycles.
Northeast Ohio wasn’t what I expected, geographically. Although Cleveland
is within easy commuting distance to Elyria, Lorain County is far more
rural than I envisioned. It’s one of the most agricultural counties in
the state.
In fact, I wrote an enterprise piece on Ohio’s vanishing farmland, how
urban sprawl is converting the Buckeye State’s prime farmland into non-agricultural
use at a rate of 13 acres an hour. Lorain County is losing some 500 to
1,000 farm acres each year to residential, industrial and commercial development.
I’ve loved driving around the county as I worked on story assignments
and seeing the miles and miles of rich farmland, the silos, the pastures.
The largest Amish population in the United States is just south of the
county.
The Chronicle-Telegram might be considered "overstaffed" by some newspapers.
The editor of the family-owned paper told me that the competitive situation
in this market dictates a large staff. The newsroom has about 35 reporters
and editors, and even includes a full-time columnist.
When I sat in on a weekly staff meeting my first week here, I heard
the metro editor (he’s the age of some of my former students) individually
compliment each reporter, making sure he mentioned each of them by name
and something that each of them had written in the past week.
That impressed me.
When I talk with former students, their biggest complaint isn’t the
pay, but that they hardly ever receive positive feedback.
So, what did I gain from my Ohio adventure?
I’ll try to give my students more positive feedback. I’ll be a better
teacher because of fresh newspaper experience. I’ll have new stories to
share in the classroom. I’ll be a better faculty adviser to our campus
newspaper. I’ve made new friends and newspaper contacts.
But for now, I’ve got to get back to work. I’m on deadline.
Williams, an associate professor at Auburn University in Auburn,
Ala., spent his summer at The Chronicle-Telegram, Elyria, Ohio.
