In memory of an editor... and a friend.

A memory of a friend..

Getting to know you…      

  The jobs of a journalist and their editor can be stressful to negotiate. When I left the "big city” for rural Minnesota, a friend asked me how could I do it?   

It wasn’t until I had settled in the country for a couple of years that I got interested in the local newspaper.  I was disturbed by its approach to a situation - so I called the editor to complain.  Dick Dalton took my call and after a few minutes he said: Come in and we’ll discuss it.

Many years later…

It’s over 35 years now and we continued “discussing” things! 

One of the funniest episodes happened in his office. We were on opposite sides on some story.  I have no recollection what it was!

But Dick finally said, “Let’s go home and sleep on it and talk about it in the morning.”  

The next day we were back on opposite sides of his desk and Dick announced that he had changed his mind and had taken my position.   The only problem was that I had changed mine to his!

I said, You can’t do that!  Now we’re just as bad off as before!

But another time…

Another time, I got a story that scooped even the big city television stations. I couldn’t believe the information I was given as a small town reporter.  I had explained to world class attorneys and court house employees and the defendant himself, that I was working for a small town newspaper and wanted to give folks the best information I could - and they all helped me!

But the story happened to involve a close friend of the editor.  When the result of the trial was announced I figured I had a front page story.  But it didn’t get there.

When I saw where the editor had placed it, I “lost it”.  I burst into the newspaper early the next morning and saw the editor working at a table.  I exclaimed, “My story should have been on the front page!” 

He didn’t look at me… I could see he seemed sick… and he said, “I know… I just couldn’t do it.”

I stood still. Nothing to say.  It was then I understood the tragic emotionalism you have to endure when you care about the people that your newspaper will write about.

And I learned to care about an editor who helped me fine tune the journalism career I had chosen.

-30- 

(Old journalistic symbol 
to indicate the “end of story”.)

************
My friend and editor
 passed on 
a couple days 
before my column 
was written.