Retired editor reflects on 2 decades at Buffalo News

In 1999, I knew I was ready for a new challenge after working at the Binghamton newspaper for 12 years. I had applied to be the editorial page editor in Portland, Maine, but that didn’t work out. So when I saw in a trade magazine that The Buffalo News was looking for an editorial editor, I applied. The job sounded interesting, and I had friends and family in Toronto.

But there was one problem: I was dealing with a wave of “Oh no, not Buffalo” fever. You know what I mean, because it was everywhere at the time, from late-night comedians to my own acquaintances. “Why would you want to go to Buffalo? The Rust Belt. The urban blight. And all that snow.”

In fact, I was lucky. As I write this, I am wrapping up a 47-year career in journalism, more than half of it in Buffalo, a city I quickly grew to love. Here’s what I discovered in my first few months here: The criticisms were true. The rust is obvious. It’s called the Rust Belt for a reason. And we all know the winter weather. It was all true.

It just wasn’t the whole truth.

I didn’t know the beauty of Delaware Park, or that Frederick Law Olmsted was its creator. I didn’t know the old wealth of this city, still visible along streets like Delaware Avenue and the three magnificent parkways that lead into the park. And most of all, I didn’t know how hardy, kind, and generous the people of this city and region are. I quickly learned that this is a special place.

Nor did I know that I was joining a quality newspaper, staffed by professionals who knew their stuff and were committed to doing a good job for the readers who relied on them for information. My previous two jobs were at newspaper companies, and while The News was then part of Warren Buffet’s sprawling business empire, it was, for all intents and purposes, a stand-alone operation.

It was something different and, for about three weeks, more than a little confusing. I kept wondering what was so special about this place. There were reporters, editors, photographers and staff, just like any other, but it wasn’t the same. Then I realized: It’s like working for a newspaper. My colleagues at the previous two newspapers were just as committed and just as hardworking and those newsrooms were great places to work, but the atmosphere here was different. It was liberating. I never forgot it.

I am retiring after nearly 25 years here, the last six as editorial page editor. I didn’t come here with the intention of ending my career at the News, but I am grateful to have done so. It has been one of the privileges of my life to work in this office with these colleagues and in this city. There are too many people to thank, so I will resist the urge to name Jerry Goldberg, Mike Connelly, Margaret Sullivan, Warren Colville and a hundred others.

One final thought. In these divisive times, there are those who would deny the existence of facts or norms. Some of them hope to pave the way for whatever misconduct they condone. Among the primary targets of these misguided efforts are the fact-based media, or what critics like to call the “mainstream media.” Very well. I wear that label proudly.

Sure, we make mistakes, but we are the ones who are committed to correcting them. And while no one can be perfectly objective, we have a professional duty to do our best. Every journalist I know takes this seriously. Newspapers have internal systems in place to address them. This is not what you see in the media that is not based on facts, and we all know who that is.

Editorial writing is a special part of journalism. If there was a professional calling in my life, this was it. I loved working here and tried to make a difference to the community that adopted me. I hope I succeeded in doing so.