Ten Minutes with Clarke Thomas

Pittsburgh also lost a great individual this year, with the passing of Clarke Thomas, former Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editor. I have been so busy this year that I missed the passing of Thomas, one of Pittsburgh’s finest journalists. Clarke was a thoughtful and even-handed writer and sharp journalist whose editorials, and editorial judgment, enhanced the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s pages for many years. He also was kind enough to answer some questions that I posed for him a few years back, for my how-to on print journalism (which is not yet published).
Chris Potter had a nice send-off for Clarke in the Pittsburgh City Paper a while back, which is worth reading.
I am posting Clarke's answers to my questions, though I plan to use the material for my book, because it’s great stuff and it’s my way of offering a small homage to this kind and decent individual who helped to make our city the great place that it is.
For folks interested in what it takes to be a journalist, and why the profession is worth pursuing, this Q/A will be especially meaningful.
Barnestormin: What things should an aspiring print journalist bear in mind while she begins to learn the craft?
Thomas: Brush up on spelling and other grammar essentials. Read, read, read newspapers and magazines to learn about ledes and other “hooks” to get the reader’s attention. If you are still in high school, work on your student newspaper or magazine. And get guidance on a college with a good journalism school.
Barnestormin: What qualities are most important in a person who wants to be a good journalist?
Thomas: Curiosity. Willingness to learn about subjects that are not your specialty—or even especial interest. Elements of courtesy so people will be willing to open up to you. The ability to write grammatically correct and readable sentences.
Barnestormin: What does it take to create a good op-ed?
Thomas: Thanks to the plethora of syndicated columns available, all of the necessary ingredients are there. One must seek variety on the page on any given day. Good newspapers are willing to run columns that express views opposed to those of the paper’s editorial policy. This builds trust among readers, not to mention serves to attract a broader range of readers. Finally, good papers seek local opinion, either by calling on local persons knowledgeable about a given subject, or—in some cases—asking the writer of a good letter to expand and expound.
Barnestormin: What qualities do good op-eds have?
Thomas: Variety. Articles appealing to different readers, especially those who may not agree with the newspaper’s editorial policy as manifested on the editorial page itself. Again, referring to a point in question 3 above, readers like to see articles on local subjects and by local people, particularly including from “ordinary” readers, that is, not always just the local experts. Often the best humorous (and engagingly sentimental) articles come from local writers.
Barnestormin: Do you have any thoughts on how things are changing in the media business, and what it might mean to future journalists?
Thomas: The impact of the Internet clearly is challenging and changing the business. Newspapers now are giving away their product via the Internet. Some way must be found to obtain revenue from the Internet. Note: Future journalists may need to point more in the direction of the Internet—whatever that means in terms of career preparation.
Barnestormin: Is objectivity in journalism overrated?
Thomas: No and yes. No, in the sense that people in general think they want stories to go straight down the middle. Yes, in the sense that people say they want “the truth,” meaning a story that presents their point of view and not that of others, i.e., not really objective. Journalism right now is in a bind on this issue and not just because politicians and other leaders in society like to blame the media for everything that goes wrong in their realm. “I did nothing wrong. The media distorted what I said…or did.” Print journalism is in a particular quandary because its usefulness for instant news has been pre-empted by broadcast journalism and now by the Internet. By the time I pick up a newspaper in the morning, I’ve already heard or seen on TV or the Internet most of its headlined stories. Therefore, the print media’s hope for the future increasingly will lie with analysis and explaining the “why,” rather than just the “what” of breaking news. Yet analysis calls for subjectivity, the very element that brings cries of “distortion” from critics. Journalism now is even being criticized for the “he said/she said” type of coverage that constituted objectivity in the past. Critics say, “If you know something from one side is wrong, why do you repeat it in the name of ‘balance’?” One answer certainly is to be more diligent about affixing the label of “analysis” to such articles to inform the reader that that is the purpose of the article.
Barnestormin: Why is journalism a craft worth pursuing?
Thomas: These will sound like clichés but aren’t. Service to humankind. Knowledge is power and journalism spreads that power beyond just the powerful. Second, speaking of power, quite frankly, being a journalist is the only way most of us have a chance at power in affecting and effecting events. Other than being elected to office or being a high ranking corporate official, most of us would never attain that power opportunity. People, especially journalists, don’t like to talk about power because it sounds aggrandizing. But the phrase, “power of the press,” is not to be dismissed. If this makes one uncomfortable, go back to the “service to humankind” reasons.
Barnestormin: What do you like about journalism?
Thomas: For the reasons described in Question 7 above. But also because you are working with a wonderfully motivated, highly intelligent group of people in the exciting cauldron of a news room or an editorial writers’ section. There is a constant synergy of excitement, particularly when you get a hot tip for a story or obtain a “scoop” over rivals. You are in both a business atmosphere (a newspaper must make money to survive) and a non-business atmosphere (like governmental and nonprofit agencies, there is more to it than making money) (sympathetic to the role of government in society but also a constant watchdog). Journalism is a profession where most days you can go home feeling “I did something today that mattered.”
Barnestormin:Will newspapers survive, in your opinion?
Thomas: This takes us back to Question 5. I think the best hope is that as people find themselves flooded with information from so many sources, they will realize they need something that makes sense out of that plethora of facts, figures, and opinions. And something in a form that they can read at leisure and can clip out (without having to use print-outs). Having said that, I go back again to Question 5 and the point that newspapers have to get past of just giving away for free their valuable output and find a way of making the money needed to stay in business.
Barnestormin: Who is a good model for aspiring journalists to pattern themselves after, and why?
Thomas: I would watch for the bylines of writers whose work you find both enlightening and interesting and read them not just for the content but for the ways they find to express themselves. One tip that may surprise you: James Reston, the great New York Times reporter and columnist, started off as a sports writer. He called that a great experience for writing because you are essentially writing the same story over and over (who is going to win, who won and the score, and why did that person or team win). To avoid boredom, a sports writer therefore has to be clever in creating analogies, metaphors, etc., to make the same old story fresh for the reader.