When good is good enough
Being a good newspaper is a lot of things. Being printed on paper isn't necessarily one of them. Gerald Boyd, the former managing editor of The New York Times who was caught up in the Jayson Blair business and lost his job as a result, has a wonderful piece about what makes a good newspaper.
A good newspaper is committed to the community, provocative, relevant, transparent, serendipitous and, in its heart of hearts, a member of the family. My favorite line: "They are linchpins for change, not for their own personal gain or to buck the status quo. Instead, they understand their mission: to use all of their collective talent to make the community a better place. To readers, this responsibility is not always obvious. But it flows naturally when newspapers succeed in shining light on real problems."
We hear from people every day who don't want us to be provocative or serendipitous or a member of the family (unless we're the crazy uncle you can't get rid of). They don't buy it when we try to be transparent or say we're committed to the community (committed to the nut house, maybe).
Whatever. I like Boyd's description. A lot. We aren't up to it yet. But we strive toward it.
Comments (1)
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Sorry, I can't resist the "Grand Style Inquisitor" imprisoned in me: what kind of weird mixed metaphor is "linchpins for change"?
How about "paperclips of progress" or "lag bolts of renewal"?
More seriously, I think the N&R does a pretty good job of being a pretty good newspaper.
Posted on November 16, 2004 5:21 PM