Illinois Valley News

Been awhile since ye olde publisher reminisced about his experiences in the wonderful world of news.

But my memory was stirred because of an e-mail I receive almost daily. It“s known as the “919 Newsletter,“ referring to those of us who not only worked for the no-longer-existent San Diego Evening Tribune in Downtown San Diego, but also including other former employees of the Union-Tribune Publishing Co.

Fellow named Jack Reber compiles the newsletter using items we “members“ send, as well as his own recollections. When I worked for the U-T from 1963 to “69, I was lucky. Lucky first off, to have been hired as what were then known as copy boys, or informally, “copy kids.“ Today, if they still exist, they“re called copy clerks.

I also was lucky to be able to show some writing ability, and was put on the editorial training program. Then I was lucky to work day and night shifts (not simultaneously), which broadened my experiences.

And finally, in a really fortuitous situation, I was assigned to various outlying U-T bureaus in Escondido, Oceanside, La Mesa and Chula Vista. That was great because the bosses were at least 20 or 30 miles away. Bureau reporters were pretty much on their own, and we also were allowed to take our own photos for breaking news or for other news stories and features.

Being a general assignment reporter was eye-opening. You would cover city councils, ship launchings, water district boards, structure and brush fires, car crashes, cat shows, dog shows, aircraft crashes, U.S. Navy ships coming home, people trapped or lost in various spots, and all sorts of the so-called “human interest“ stories.

You know, people who collect fire trucks, ride their horses in parades as a career; people who shagged balls and bought oranges for Babe Ruth, men who actually drove stage coaches, blind surfers, military changes of command, a medic who removed a live grenade from a wounded soldier, and on and on. There is never a lack of such stories.

As a newsman, I know that the “major media“ have taken justified criticism because we find “reporters“ who don“t report. They use their jobs as platforms for their views. That“s not reporting.

And, of course, we at this newspaper take our own bits of flak at times. It“s all in the course of what we do, although at lllinois Valley News, as at most weekly newspapers and some dailies, we try/we strive to present news fairly. Obviously, we“re not going to please everyone all the time. That“s OK, because we each know our own hearts and minds.

So we press on.

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