Trip to UMass was nostalgic and hopeful

May 3, 2022 | G. Michael Dobbs
news@thereminder.com

I had a remarkable experience recently. For the first time in my career, I was asked to speak at a journalism class at a local college. In this case, it was my alma mater, the University of Massachusetts in Amherst.

I actually allowed myself to feel a little proud.

Now, I’ve had the pleasure of speaking on many occasions to various groups, but until recently no one felt that what I could say to a room full of journalists in training was worthwhile.

I’m sure many readers of this column who send me critical emails – as well as some colleagues in the industry – would agree.

I hadn’t been to campus in a very long time, and had to ask to make sure I knew where I was going, as it has changed in many ways. The Student Union has had a complete makeover. The Blue Wall is a food court. I didn’t ask about The Hatch, the cafeteria in the bottom floor of the Student Union.

The Journalism Department is in a beautiful new building, which is quite the difference from 1972 to 1976 when I was on campus. We had a “writing lab” with desks and chairs but no typewriters. We were told to join the staff of The Daily Collegian if we wanted access to university typewriters.

I recounted to the students the upperclassmen I met weren’t very welcoming, and I decided to visit the offices of the Valley Advocate where I received work as a freelancer – my first paid gig as a writer.

Ah, the salad days! I can’t remember if I told them how a $12 check for a story bounced!

The class was attentive and asked solid questions. The instructor – veteran journalist and all-around good person Maureen Turner – had asked me to supply some writing samples and had asked her students to be ready to quiz me.

I went around the room and asked if any had established interest in a particular part of mass communications. There was a hopeful sportswriter, several who wanted to work in TV behind the camera, as well as some who indicated they wanted to write for websites. One student said she wanted work in radio, and then quickly corrected herself and said podcasts.

These days podcasts are indeed the equivalent to classic radio in most ways.
Maureen also asked them to tell me one of their favorite films – she knows me very well – and the answers were very respectable.

I tried to be entertaining as well as informative. One question was about the relationship between a reporter and a source – at the heart of it was a definition of friendship.

I explained that building a relationship built on trust is essential. You can be friendly, but you can’t be friends. Many elected officials mistake a friendly working relationship as something that would protect them in the case of a story popping up that they don’t like. Hopefully, the trust built by mutual respect can protect that working relationship. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t.

I spoke about our format and how a free home-delivered community newspaper with local news has built up an audience of readers – more than 300,000 – and become a dependable medium for advertising. I showed them copies of our 10 editions – 12 before the end of the summer.

I realized that there were a few things I meant to bring up but didn’t. I meant to tell them about the advice given to me and my fellow j-students by Professor Ralph Whitehead.

Whitehead is very smart. He has written for the Columbia Review of Journalism and provided political commentary to various media outlets. He had worked for newspapers in Chicago, where journalism was a bit of a contact sport.

I have long admired him and greatly enjoyed his classes.

Here is what I remember him saying once: the most important interviews you will ever do will be in bars, as the truth can flow a little easier when there is alcohol; if a competing reporter drops a pen or pencil at the press conference, kick it across the floor; and don’t be afraid to use your elbows to keep other reporters from the pay phone when you’re calling in your story.

I realize now there are many problems in this advice from the mid-1970s. There are very few pay phones. Newspapers don’t have re-write folks waiting for phone calls in the field.

And working in a bar is politically incorrect. Heck, I was sternly admonished that I had a bottle of Scotch at my desk, which I thought was necessary equipment for a person with my title. I still do.

The changes in time, technology and technique aside, the core of journalism remains the same, though, from the 1970s to now. We are here to convey information that is accurate and valued.

Between the very bright and competent staff with whom I’m privileged to work every day and my exposure to these thoughtful students, I know journalism is in good hands.

Thanks for the opportunity, Maureen.

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