Excuse me? Say what?

People & Places

It was a nice fall day six months ago or so when I sauntered into a Valencia County business.  An employee quickly asked what I needed, anxious to help.   

As we chatted, a second worker standing nearby, who was with another customer, interjected with a question for me; “Are you a Christian?” Stunned with this out-of-the blue inquiry, I paused for a moment wondering how to respond to this stranger. Do I give an honest response? Chuckle and ignore the question? Say, ‘none of your business’?

After a few seconds of silence, my answer was, “It depends on the day of the week.” A weak attempt at humor to deflect the question, with something of a half-truth mixed in.   

The employee, we’ll call them Chris, not their real name, then followed up; “You work for the News-Bulletin, right?” By then, I was even a bit gun-shy to answer that question, but I responded in the affirmative.  

“Well,” Chris started, “I was just wondering about your…ethics.” The last part of that sentence…wondering…about…your…ethics, seemed to slowly ooze out of Chris’ mouth, apparently realizing they were apparently about to question my integrity. Was the implication that to be a trusted journalist I need to adhere to a certain religion?   

Almost immediately, the customer who was with Chris felt the awkwardness and tried to help. “We just had a nice conversation with someone else about Christianity,” he said. Chris then jumped in, “But he was Catholic.”   

That put a screeching stop to any thought of participating in the conversation.  My teachers at Sacred Heart Elementary School, including Sister Nancy, Sister Bridget and Sister Claude-Ellen, may or may not be surprised to hear that, in some circles, Catholics are not considered 100% Christians.  

As soon as the bill was paid, I headed out, positive it would be my final visit to this establishment. As the doors closed behind, the less than one-minute exchange was destined to hover for months.    

Like many of you, the pride and passion I feel about my profession is real.  Imagine a butcher, a baker, or candlestick maker being questioned about their ethics because of their faith or lack of it? Be it Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Jew or atheist. Has it always been that way?  

My love of journalism started early. The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite was my favorite TV show, even as a pre-teen.  While I flirted with thoughts of being a lawyer or the president, there was little doubt where I was headed.   

My inclination was to be the next Woodward or Bernstein of Watergate fame, but I ended up on the television side of news. Then, and now, some newspaper folks look down on the TV news crowd, calling them “throats” and “suits.”  We considered them jealous.   

My integrity as a journalist was challenged for the first time, ironically, by another journalist. As a fresh-out-of-college small market television sportscaster, I read an Associated Press story about how the Montana State football team would be left out of the playoffs that season. The report later turned out to be true, but I made an error during a newscast by not attributing it to AP.  

A few days later I was awakened by a stern phone call from my boss, Ed Coughlin, telling me to get to work for damage control.  What?  The sports editor of the local newspaper wrote a scathing column about me, with a headline that read something like, “Slow news day? Sportscaster makes up story.”   

Instead of simply calling to ask where the report came from, the editor went straight for the jugular, accusing me of spewing lies. The original “fake news.” Coughlin, a true mentor, came to my defense, putting together a rebuttal that saved me from falling apart.  

For a decade, before it fell apart, I kept a copy of the newspaper column. It was a reminder of how a story can impact people, how I need to seek out facts, be humble. Let’s be clear, I have made plenty of mistakes. However, those miscues were not intentional or designed to push an agenda.    

Every person carries natural biases. After all, how and where we were raised, our parents’ politics and religion likely helped influence us.   

For a large majority in the field of journalism, we work to put aside prejudice and partisanship as we head into the newsroom. We expect and demand that our fellow journalists call us out if something in a story doesn’t seem right.  It’s a system of checks and balances that Washington might take note of.  

During a recent News-Bulletin editorial meeting, we debated the best approach to an article I was writing which had its genesis from a story written nearly a year before.  After some give and take, we agreed to include one controversial quote from the original article for context but not dwell on it. I have been involved in thousands of similar discussions, all in an effort to do right by the public.  

When I first broke out the reporter’s notebook, newsmen and women, along with politicians, clergy, lawyers, teachers and police, were among the most trusted people in America. Our world has flipped on its head since then.  

These days, to be honest, my profession is far from perfect. The internet has complicated things and specific ideologies and beliefs are intentionally played-up by some outlets. As news consumers, we need to work hard to find sources that are trustworthy and not one-sided.  I check in regularly with both right- and left-wing political sites to keep balance. The “news” we read online and on social media is often from someone who has their own interest at heart.   

Journalists are required to ask tough questions and sometimes face uncomfortable situations. It’s part of the job. With that in mind, I’ve decided to return to where this topic started.  Maybe Chris is still working there. Perhaps we can talk about something less controversial than religion. Chris, what do you think of the presidential election?