Sunset Saga: Editor's Journal

»More entries on the upper right hand column »

Prologue: A way of life

I witnessed things in San Diego money couldn't buy.

That's one of the great benefits of being with the media: having access.

The access was not only to events, but to sources of information and to an incredibly responsive audience. I had never before seen such dedicated readers as there were in San Diego.

Consistent readership is not maintained without effort and I was grateful to always have a tremendous supporting cast, great personalities of strong character; a staff to rely on. I continually recruited personnel, the favorite part of my job, and kept up what I termed a "program" at the newspaper group. This program gave birth to an abundance of very skilled journalists, many who have gone on to advance their careers. Some continue with the company today.

I would tell them, "The positions here don't pay much, we offer nothing but opportunity, but we stress fundamentals so you can accurately describe what you are trying to accomplish as a professional journalist when you interview with another editor for your next job." I always believed our little papers were well-respected in San Diego. In fact, we had one of the largest news-gathering organizations around. "This is a showcase for up-and-coming journalists in Southern California," I would say. That was my claim, anyway, and it was mostly true. This was where you got your start in San Diego.

Fortunately for me, talented journalists, and people of all types from all over the world, were always moving to San Diego because of the great climate and recreational opportunities. My journalism program had little to do with it.

Like I always say: you can fool some of the people some of the time. I just tried to keep it up as long as possible.

However, I will mention one thing about my efforts in keeping the "program" alive for so long: there is definitely something to be said for leadership.

The management skills needed as an editor are difficult to attain and very few teach the kind of leadership required. I always remind people that you can't wing-it when it comes to management. But I often found myself flying by the seat of the pants. I thrived on chaos. I once heard that the Chinese word for chaos is the same as it is for opportunity. I don't know if that's true, but I like to believe it is.

I prefer to shoot-from-the-hip. After all, desperate times require unusual solutions. I have never been given the same budget as the New York Times, but the readers don't care. I found myself applying "guerrilla tactics" to publishing; and with great success.

I earned the role of editor-journalist years ago. It just seemed natural. I had the basics down, sure, but I was mostly interested in the action: the gathering of facts, uncovering sources, investigation. How you use that information is the key. How well you write the article, well, that's simply a matter of talent and language skill. Let the word-nerds and bookworms sort out the rest.

Too bad my underlings, thirsting for a solid role model, didn't find my unconventional methods too reassuring. Some probably hated the kind of inconsistencies brought about by my type of management.

I had advice for those people: Grow up!

Unlike politicians, the bane of society, I don't make it my business to tell lies for a living. I get paid to find the truth and print the truth. Those of us in the newsroom, although we may not have shared common backgrounds, all shared a dedication to this type of grass-roots journalism. It's the thing that kept us together and bred respect for one another. It was a belief; almost a religion to us.

Even back then I realized the importance of portraying these magnificent journalists covering intriguing events in this most unique place. San Diego may be the most laid-back city in the world, but that doesn't stop the news from happening.

News is a 24-hour-a-day life and I'm an editor, stress is my business.

That's why working for a small, independent newspaper group is more than a job, it's a lifestyle.