Kingman - One Year (professional)
Approaching one year on the job at the Kingman Daily Miner, I’m taking a look back on the start of my journalism career.
When I came to the paper, I was the lowest one on the totem pole of a staff of six reporters, one photographer, three editors and one news assistant. Since then we had two reporters move on to other ventures (one to another newspaper and the other became an elementary teacher).
New staff wasn’t the only thing facing me as my tenure at the paper extended.
Six months into the job, I became the business reporter. That’s right. I am the law enforcement/emergency services and business reporter.
Given little direction on the additional responsibilities, I took what little knowledge I had from working at the Arizona Republic and applied it to my new role. I feel that is one of the few positions out of college that I wasn’t prepared to handle.
A short list of other positions:
• Health
• Science
• Religion
In the last couple of months, I’ve even been able to do copy editing and layout on the Macs with InDesign.
I have touched on at least every beat at the paper (city, county, state, health, sports, education, etc.) beyond my own. I’ve also obtained a better grasp on the law enforcement/emergency services beat.
I took home second place for sustained coverage/series from Western Newspapers for my coverage of a merger between two rural fire districts. Not too shabby. I definitely have better clips this year.
I plan to start a blog of my best/favorite clips linking from the newspaper’s Web site. I hope to have it up by the middle of November and will post the link when I do.
Each posting will allow comments - the first of which will be me in a reporter’s notebook-style concerning each clip.
A big change that I have relished is the move from an afternoon publication to morning. I find myself more motivated when facing a deadline and am definitely out of the office before dinner hours.
Kingman has also given me a different perspective than working at the large-sized Arizona Republic. It’s always enjoyable to get an unexpected call directly from the county sheriff or run into the fire chief at the supermarket.
I’ve learned to further master time management balancing two beats without going over my 37.5 hours. The drawback is I often feel like a chicken with their head cut off and haven’t yet been able to do much enterprise work since the additional beat was added.
Beyond the minimum eight stories a week I’m responsible for, I write a bi-weekly opinion column (which I’ve been remiss with the last month or so) and I also must compile licenses, permits and other listings of that nature (akin to what I had to do as a news assistant).
My editor is passionate about the community and has provided feedback on my work every so often.
Rarely do my stories get cut short, due to the nature of the small paper combined with my terse writing. It has been an adjustment not writing to an inch count, rather just telling the story.
I would like to think I have improved as a reporter and have a better understanding of writing for a daily newspaper. A what are you doing for me now versus a what have you done for me business. It can be at times a love/hate relationship.
How long will I remain at this paper?
I don’t know.
I don’t feel like a big fish in a small pond. However, I am ambitious and want to step it up at a larger paper.
The good news hopefully would be the support from my editor. I still remember him telling me when I took the position that he expects me to come to him in a year or two telling him I got a another position at a bigger paper.
Until then, I’ll just keep chugging away and work on getting some enterprise work done.
In the mean time, I’ve gotten an additional job (for the next month or so).
I’m a football official. I’ve officiated at the Pop Warner, middle school and high school levels.
It’s a fun side job that is keeping me physically active as well.
When I came to the paper, I was the lowest one on the totem pole of a staff of six reporters, one photographer, three editors and one news assistant. Since then we had two reporters move on to other ventures (one to another newspaper and the other became an elementary teacher).
New staff wasn’t the only thing facing me as my tenure at the paper extended.
Six months into the job, I became the business reporter. That’s right. I am the law enforcement/emergency services and business reporter.
Given little direction on the additional responsibilities, I took what little knowledge I had from working at the Arizona Republic and applied it to my new role. I feel that is one of the few positions out of college that I wasn’t prepared to handle.
A short list of other positions:
• Health
• Science
• Religion
In the last couple of months, I’ve even been able to do copy editing and layout on the Macs with InDesign.
I have touched on at least every beat at the paper (city, county, state, health, sports, education, etc.) beyond my own. I’ve also obtained a better grasp on the law enforcement/emergency services beat.
I took home second place for sustained coverage/series from Western Newspapers for my coverage of a merger between two rural fire districts. Not too shabby. I definitely have better clips this year.
I plan to start a blog of my best/favorite clips linking from the newspaper’s Web site. I hope to have it up by the middle of November and will post the link when I do.
Each posting will allow comments - the first of which will be me in a reporter’s notebook-style concerning each clip.
A big change that I have relished is the move from an afternoon publication to morning. I find myself more motivated when facing a deadline and am definitely out of the office before dinner hours.
Kingman has also given me a different perspective than working at the large-sized Arizona Republic. It’s always enjoyable to get an unexpected call directly from the county sheriff or run into the fire chief at the supermarket.
I’ve learned to further master time management balancing two beats without going over my 37.5 hours. The drawback is I often feel like a chicken with their head cut off and haven’t yet been able to do much enterprise work since the additional beat was added.
Beyond the minimum eight stories a week I’m responsible for, I write a bi-weekly opinion column (which I’ve been remiss with the last month or so) and I also must compile licenses, permits and other listings of that nature (akin to what I had to do as a news assistant).
My editor is passionate about the community and has provided feedback on my work every so often.
Rarely do my stories get cut short, due to the nature of the small paper combined with my terse writing. It has been an adjustment not writing to an inch count, rather just telling the story.
I would like to think I have improved as a reporter and have a better understanding of writing for a daily newspaper. A what are you doing for me now versus a what have you done for me business. It can be at times a love/hate relationship.
How long will I remain at this paper?
I don’t know.
I don’t feel like a big fish in a small pond. However, I am ambitious and want to step it up at a larger paper.
The good news hopefully would be the support from my editor. I still remember him telling me when I took the position that he expects me to come to him in a year or two telling him I got a another position at a bigger paper.
Until then, I’ll just keep chugging away and work on getting some enterprise work done.
In the mean time, I’ve gotten an additional job (for the next month or so).
I’m a football official. I’ve officiated at the Pop Warner, middle school and high school levels.
It’s a fun side job that is keeping me physically active as well.