Many journalists, at some point in their careers, have had an “Ah-hah!” moment -- a sudden realization about the impact of their work or the work of their colleagues. Many of the journalists interviewed for the WNN report provided a single anecdote about an event that helped them understand and appreciate the power and purpose of journalism. We are sharing those epiphanies here.
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Mike Arnholt
Executive Editor, The Fayetteville Observer Fayetteville, NC
After reading correspondence from the parents of American soldiers whose stories were told in The Observer, Mike Arnholt knew his newspaper was fulfilling its mission. The newspaper had filled a vacuum in the parents’ lives. |
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Charles Broadwell
Publisher, The Fayetteville Observer Fayetteville, NC
The power and purpose of journalism was clarified for Charles Broadwell after he undertook a year-long series of oral histories for his newspaper in 1999-2000. “It was year like no other for me,” says Broadwell. |
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Meg Martin
Online Editor, The Roanoke Times Roanoke, Va.
Meg Martin’s first hands-on day in The Roanoke Times newsroom was April 16, 2007, when tragedy struck, just a few miles away, at Virginian Tech. Based on what she observed among her newspaper colleagues, she learned, “I had come to the right place.” |
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Carole Tarrant
Editor, The Roanoke Times Roanoke, Va.
Carole Tarrant remembers the day tragedy struck at Virginia Tech, and during that fateful week, she tried to make certain the 33 victims who lost their lives were remembered and mourned by the community. |
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Debra C. (Debbie) Meade
President and Publisher, The Roanoke Times Roanoke, Va.
Debbie Meade says the power and appeal of her newspaper was clarified for her on 9/11 when she was offering free Extra editions of The Times to a public hungry for knowledge. |
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William Parschalk
Online Web Editor, The Afro-American Balimore, Md.
William Parschalk learned in his teenage years how news that “is relevant to people” could move through a community after it has been published. |
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Talibah Chikwendu
Executive Editor, The Afro-American Balimore, Md.
As a young reporter, Talibah Chikwendu wrote a story about an elderly woman having difficulty getting her medical insurance. Afterward, when the woman’s daughter thanked Chikwendu for her report, she understood how journalism could affect people’s lives. |
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John J. Oliver
Chairman of the Board & Publisher, The Afro-American Balimore, Md.
John J. “Jake” Oliver, Jr. grew up in a newspaper family. As a very young child he didn’t understand why his family’s newspaper was called “The Afro”, until a front-page picture clarified the issue for him. |
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Darel La Prade
Senior VP of New Media, Delaware State News Dover, Del.
Darel La Prade had his journalism epiphany while he was editing a weekly newspaper on the outer banks of North Carolina, and one day a problem walked into his door that his newspaper could help solve. |
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Andrew West
Managing Editor, Delaware State News Dover, Del.
Andrew West learned that when he was asking questions for his newspaper he could validly say: “I represent the public and I want answers.” |
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Ed Dulin
President and Publisher, Delaware State News Dover, Del.
Ed Dulin has been with The News since 1970, but he is still impressed by the fact that the newspaper produces a “brand new product every day.” |
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Sean Oates
Web Editor , The Record Woodland Park, N.J.
Sean Oates had his epiphany in the multimedia age when his newspaper documented regional pollution in words, sounds, still pictures and video (“Toxic Legacy Project,” a joint project with The Record and northjersey.com). It “changed the status quo by shedding light” on a problem, says Oates. |
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Frank Scandale
Editor, The Record Woodland Park, N.J.
Frank Scandale was a young reporter working at The Daily Journal, Elizabeth, N.J., when he discovered that -- for a reporter -- there is no such thing as a “free lunch.” |
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Stephen A. Borg
Publisher, North Jersey Media Group Woodland Park, N.J.
Stephen Borg grew up in a newspaper family. He believes his newspapers make a difference in Northern New Jersey, but he is still baffled by the two-thirds of his community who do not subscribe to The (Bergen) Record. |
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Peter Phipps
Managing Editor for New Media, The Providence Journal Providence, R.I.
Peter Phipps was a young journalist at an Ohio newspaper when he thought he had a great story, but he forgot to ask the one question he needed to nail it. |
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Tom Heslin
Sr. VP & Executive Editor, The Providence Journal Providence, R.I.
Tom Heslin was working for a Maine weekly in his first newspaper job when he learned to look at the people behind the news in order to tell the most compelling story. |
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Howard Sutton
Publisher, The Providence Journal Providence, R.I.
Howard Sutton, an employee of the Providence Journal since 1973 is impressed daily by the complex product that his colleagues produce. |
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Timothy Dwyer
Executive Editor, The Day New London, Conn.
Timothy Dwyer was a young reporter in Boston when a homeless couple made news and the community responded after their story was told in the newspaper. |
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Gary Farrugia
Publisher, The Day New London, Conn.
Gary Farrugia was a news editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer when a senator died in a helicopter crash and the reporting of the accident left an indelible impression on at least one reader. |
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Bennie DiNardo
Deputy Managing Editor, Multimedia, The Boston Globe Boston, Mass.
Bennie DiNardo was a young reporter, still learning his craft, when all the elements of a story came together for him for the first time and he discovered “how journalism works.” |