What I concluded after 50 years in community journalism

I spent a half-century in community journalism, at small-town radio stations and newspapers, and I met thousands of people. The vast majority loved their hometowns and just wanted to do something good for their families and communities.

Oh, I met my share of slick politicians who had an agenda, but I met many more who had a heart to make the world a little better for their efforts.

Many people who get a regular look at the dark side of human nature start to see the dark side as the norm, concluding that people are just bad at their core. There may be some truth there — some of the best people I’ve met agree that we have all sinned and certainly fall short of the glory of God — but every day and everywhere, I have seen people fighting to be the best version of themselves.

My conclusion after 50 years of observation is that the good people outnumber the phonies and the sociopaths, and it’s not even close. We cheer for the success stories, we support those in need, we grieve for the departed, we love our kids and most kids are good kids. I’ve seen my share of creepy and evil people, don’t get me wrong, but they are a tiny fraction of those thousands of people I’ve met.

Episode 2129 — In which I declare a summer of action

I am tired of yielding to the entropy.

I am tired of sitting in this chair wishing I would get out of this chair and move.

Today I will move.

Today I will walk. Soon I will run.

Today, between now and sunset, I will build and dig and plant and work and play.

This earthly vessel will be put to use in the service of God and my fellow humans and the other creatures who inhabit this space.

We are all designed to protect and serve, and we must not delegate those obligations.

I am not a man of few words. I have made a lifetime of crafting words. Today I begin to put words into action, beating swords into plowshares. 

What shall I do first? It hardly matters. There is much to do, so I shall do one of those things that need to be done, and what follows will be in no particular order.

Yes, it would be useful and efficient to make a plan, a to-do list of priorities and protocols, but I don’t need an action plan as much as I need action.

Summer has begun. Let it first be a summer of love — no more irony and mocking, no more anger or hate — no more amorphous promises that won’t be kept. Let it be a summer of action. A summer of growth. A summer to secure the future. A summer of meaning.

And what is that meaning? Need you ask?

A summer to love God. A summer to love my neighbors, and yes, everyone I meet is my neighbor. 

Buggy whip factory closes

CBS News Radio closed the other day, almost a century after it opened. I have more than passing interest, because I spent the first 22 years of my career in radio news. I never “advanced” to the network level, but it was enjoyable work.

Fifty years ago, radio was how local communities got their news. Sixty, 70 and 80 years ago, radio was how the world got its news. These days, well —

Now, you can hear the final CBS News Radio newscasts whenever you like on the CBS News YouTube channel, or the CBS News Instagram or the CBS News Facebook page, all of which are also still reporting the latest news.

Do you hear what I’m saying?

The Studebaker company made fine horse-drawn carriages during the mid to late 1800s. After 50 years they started making automobiles, because they saw that not enough people were using horses anymore to support a carriage company. Studebaker survived another 60 years or so.

It’s sad and nostalgic to see CBS get out of the radio business — but CBS did not get out of the news business.

Times changed, and so did the technology.