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I am a big fan of newspapers in general and local journalism in particular. My reading world took a blow when two friends announced their retirement in the same week.
Fritz Busch is stepping down to a part-time role as staff writer at The Journal in New Ulm. Deb Moldaschel is leaving the Sleepy Eye Herald Dispatch where she has been helping out after a stint as editor.
Fritz and Deb are my age and I've known them as far back as I can see. The age we are is made interesting by seeing how all of us boomers wrangle with this thing called "retirement." Many of my friends are replacing one type of busyness with another.
I begin each day with coffee and yesterday's Journal. Most days I read one or two Fritz stories before I have my toast.
Fritz has been covering events in our area at The Journal for 26 years. He actually worked there 50 years ago while in college. In the interim, he wrote for a magazine in California, was in the Navy, and even had six years at the Herald Dispatch.
Many times, I have been to events that Fritz was covering. I was always curious to see how his take on things compared to my own. Fritz's perspective was usually unique.
Kremi Spengler worked with Fritz for many years. She wrote a wonderful letter/tribute about him:
"Almost never, or perhaps simply never, did I meet a reporter with a more brightly burning passion for news. Fritz is a news hound. No news is uninteresting to him. He simply sniffs out the quirky, the clever, the silly, the sublime."
Deb came to local journalism later in her career. Before becoming editor of the Herald Dispatch, she worked for St. Mary's School, Sleepy Eye Hospital, and the Chamber. In each of those, she promoted our community. The newspaper was an extension of that calling.
My hometown paper has always been part of my life. I appreciated Deb keeping that heritage alive. She wasn't pleased when I told her that I don't get around to reading the Herald Dispatch till Monday because I don't have a yesterday's Journal. I get there eventually.
As you know, these are challenging times for newspapers. The United States has lost over 3,000 newspapers in the last 20 years. That roughly aligns with the Digital Age. Other papers have cut back days. All have reduced staff.
Obviously, loss of ad revenue is the primary driver of these bleak numbers. But there is another less quantifiable factor in newspaper shrinkage and journalism as a whole.
There has been an intentional attempt to discredit "mainstream media." This has come from the right of our political spectrum. That message comes from people with money and power who want to keep both. Controlling the media helps them.
The decline of newspapers has been exactly mirrored by a rise in right wing media. It also coincides with the use of algorithms to constantly reinforce whatever hall of mirrors you are in.
I'll go to bat for mainstream media anytime. A reporter, whether it be for the New York Times or New Ulm's Journal, writes a story covering some event. That has to be vetted by a copy editor and a news editor who will challenge anything that hints at a falsehood.
Finally, it goes to the printed page, where the reading public can pass judgment on it. The reporter's name is right there on top of the article. No hiding behind an internet dark source.
Compare that to a podcaster who can claim the Earth is flat and add several thousand like-minded listeners.
I worry about our collective ability to understand and reflect on anything once we are divided into warring camps. A newspaper is a shared community asset. Historically, it has been a starting point of conversation. "Did you read about the city council meeting last night?"
Back to Fritz and Deb. We all came of age in the '60s and '70s. There was so much going on: Vietnam, the rights movements, leading to Watergate.
Reporters and editors of newspapers and television played key roles. We certainly were divided into factions then but could at least agree with basic facts. We all shared the newspaper and the 6 o'clock news.
I was in high school when Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward uncovered the Watergate scandal. They changed history simply by revealing truth.
At the time, I was a crack reporter for the Sleepy Eye St. Mary's student newspaper, the Spectrum. It was a surprisingly dangerous position.
My sophomore year, I and my buddy Billy Moran authored the column, the Sportlight Spotlight. We were young Sid Hartmans.
That winter the varsity basketball team found itself in a bit of a funk. Bill and I penned a piece where we hinted that a little more effort by the varsity boys would be helpful.
Lunch hours in winter were spent in the auditorium. There were heavy stage curtains hanging on both sides of the gym, which was also the theater. Those varsity boys decided to roll me up in a set of curtains and knock me around.
They were expressing their disapproval of what we had written. Billy was the athletic director's kid, so I bore the brunt of their attack on independent journalism.
Despite that, a few years later, I headed off to college as a journalism major. For a few years, I did some work at the Herald Dispatch. I briefly had a sports column there. It was not called the Sportlight Spotlight since that brought back unpleasant memories in a curtain.
Through a set of twists and turns, I ended up back on the farm. If not for this piece of land, I possibly could have ended up with a career like Fritz's.
So, Fritz and Deb, I wish for you a few moments to enjoy not having to meet a story deadline.
Meanwhile both The Journal and the Herald Dispatch have good young reporters. Hopefully, my breakfast reading will be there long into the future.
-- Randy Krzmarzick farms on the home place west of Sleepy Eye, where he lives with his wife, Pam.