I sat down to watch the first episode of the new Peacock sitcom The Paper a couple of weeks ago. The streamer had been hyping the show for a while as the “sequel” to the NBC megahit The Office, a show which seems to be able to permanently find an audience. The premise of the new series is that the same documentary crew that filmed the people of Dunder Mifflin in Scranton starting back in 2005 returns to see what has happened to the company 20 years later. In the early minutes of the pilot episode, we learn that Dunder Mifflin was acquired by a toilet paper manufacturer based in Toledo, the setting for the new show.

I don’t know if you’ve ever read the 2006 novel from Max Brooks, World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. Even if you’re not a fan of science fiction or horror, the book—and I’m talking about the book version and not the 2013 Brad Pitt (M-I-Z!) film which is just sort of meh—is an amazingly journalistic telling of what a zombie apocalypse might be like. The protagonist of the novel, a fictional version of Brooks himself, conducts a series of interviews to write the definitive account of humankind’s war with the walking dead. The novel is a series of these interviews, deftly delivering the exposition of what happened in the war, all while giving us characters about whom we can care.

I was in getting a wisdom tooth removed yesterday (I know, most of you got your wisdom teeth out when you were in your 20s, and here I am getting one extracted at age 66—go figure). As I was waiting to speak with the oral surgeon before the procedure, I was looking around his office. Aside from the typical tools of the trade, he also had his diplomas, board certifications and other trainings posted in frames on the wall. That got me thinking about how valuable it is to show people what you know before you tackle something for which they must give you their absolute trust. And while we as journalists aren’t yanking teeth or doing other medical procedures on the people we encounter, we can be performing a pretty invasive task for which we want them to trust us.

Way back when I was a student at the world’s first and best school of journalism, back in the late 1970s, I soon learned it was a rite of passage to master the skills taught in News 105, the basic newswriting course all students had to pass to continue with their journalism education. The course was designed to be tough—very tough—to weed out those without enough skill or commitment to become journalists.

I’m sure we’re all watching what’s going on at CBS News right now. From the appointment of a “bias monitor” to the hiring of Bari Weiss as the first ever editor-in-chief for CBS News, all indications are that the most valuable brand in TV news is about to be dismantled and thrown to the dogs as scraps. Now under the control of billionaire heir David Ellison, this journalism giant has been a thorn in the side of the Trump administration and it appears Ellison plans to do something about that.

My wife and I spent a couple hours last Saturday afternoon at a No Kings rally in Palm Springs—and it seems odd for me just to type that. The event was as much fun as you’d expect a rally in Palm Springs to be. The LGBTQ-friendly nature of the city brought out some displays that probably weren’t as common elsewhere. From two gentleman carrying a sign reading, “No Kings for These Queens” to at least a score of inflatable rainbow unicorns costumes, the sights were well worth the stop to see them.

I used to get a lot of pushback when I was the news director at KOMU-TV, but not for my leadership decisions or my news judgement or my competitive strategies. The thing I got the most grief about was the dress code I put in place. It was seen as too strict, too conservative and too old-fashioned. In fact, it was seen as downright cruel (I have to wear a tie and jacket for a standup in the middle of the summer !?!). But I had my reasons for instituting such a strict code. Remember, almost all of my reporters were under 22 years old—some were still teenagers. A conservative, professional dress code helped them look more mature and belonged on the street with the other, older journalists with whom they were competing.

I was recently recalling a conversation from about 15 years ago with my then-Mizzou colleague Charles Davis (now dean of the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia) after we had aired a story on KOMU-TV about some overtime irregularities inside the Columbia Police Department. We received a lot of grief from the audience for covering the story and I was expressing my exasperation with the negative reaction. Charles did a great job succinctly summing up why our reporting was the right thing to do. He said, “We give the police guns and tell them they can shoot people. That means they deserve extra scrutiny.”

I’m posting a little later than usual this week as my wife and I are in the middle of a driving vacation around Colorado, checking out the vivid fall foliage that I think we’ve captured at its peak. I understand the locals call people like us “leaf peepers”—and I guess I’m fine with that. In my book, Colorado’s combination of brilliant colors set against majestic mountain backdrops beats any other fall displays you’ll find elsewhere in the U.S. (I will fight you, New England and Michigan).

I finally got swipe access to KOMU-TV this week. Now, you may be saying to yourself “Didn’t Stacey work at KOMU for 28 years? Wasn’t he the news director for most of that time? How can he not have swipe access?” It’s true, I spent nearly three decades in that newsroom. But when I left the news director role in 2014 to start Mizzou’s Documentary Journalism program, we didn’t have swipe access.

It’s bad enough that sometimes we don’t ask the right questions; far worse than that, sometimes we don’t ask any questions at all. Journalists (and retired professors) are the harshest critics when they consume the news. I am no exception. Whether I’m watching a newscast or reading a story online, I have a silent string of criticism running in my head: Where’s the answer to this? Why didn’t they ask that? How could they possibly miss that angle?

I had just sat down to lunch yesterday when I got a text from my elder daughter with two words— “Holy Shit!” and a Reddit link. I followed the link, expecting to see an idiot driver pulling some dumb move on the road or other such video she often sends me. Instead, Reddit served up a video, recorded from a long distance away, of what appeared to be conservative activist Charlie Kirk at an outdoor rally. Suddenly, Kirk jerks back and the crowd begins to scramble.

The answer may be yes—but not for the reason you’re thinking. I’m not sure where I first heard about Ground News. It may have been in an Instagram ad or perhaps on LinkedIn. I think I was intrigued by its offer to “break free from algorithms” and compare news sources. I was less interested in its claim to “read between the lines of media bias,” but I figured it was worth a look.

Fall classes are back in session this week at my institution (MIZ!), as they are at journalism and mass communication programs all over the country. Faculty members have spent the summer preparing new courses and sprucing up existing ones to be ready to teach the students what they need to know to become journalism professionals…

I’ve been lucky to get to travel a lot, both for work and for pleasure. Much of that travel has been internationally, but the vast majority is right here in the United States. There’s nothing I enjoy more than landing in a city to which I’ve never been before, dropping my luggage at the hotel and setting out on foot or using public transit to explore…

As many journalists probably did, I watched the CNN/HBO broadcast back in June of George Clooney’s Good Night and Good Luck play live from Broadway. Touted as a historic telecast, it was a no-brainer for me to tune in, having enjoyed Clooney’s film 20 years ago and being interested in how I would perceive the work in today’s political climate. I’ll leave a complete review for the professionals, but I enjoyed the skill with which the television crew translated the flat nature of a stage production to something that would work for viewers in their living rooms…

...(and I'm going to share them on Substack).

Today is my 66th birthday. Birthdays can be a time of reflection—a time to think about decisions we’ve made and the path we’ve taken through life. I’m lucky as I look back over all those years to say I’m happy with my path. I’ve had a fulfilling career, I love my family and I’m very content in my desert home in California. So on what should I reflect now? It’s gotta be journalism.

Thousands filled three giant venues at South by Southwest Monday morning to hear from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden as he joined the conference live from his hiding place in Russia. Snowden’s appearance at SXSW is seen as a coup, billed as Snowden’s first such appearance since he fled the United States. Politicians, like Kansas Republican Representative Mike Pompeo, called on SXSW to cancel the Snowden appearance. The fact it went on as planned shows not only the festival’s backbone to stand up for content it believes is important, but also gives journalists a good opportunity to hear what amounted to a list of story ideas to keep the Snowden and security stories moving forward…

Whether it was a disinterested cat trying to get some sleep on an oversized pillow, or a college girl in a too-blonde wig, people stepped on feet and threw elbows this weekend at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, all in an attempt to be in a picture with these two icons of media culture. Now, I cannot attest to the authenticity of Grumpy Cat (though he sure did look like the real thing), but I can guarantee that was not the real Khaleesi in that wig—and I saw no dragons around, either…

Arriving in Austin, Texas, for South by Southwest, I was curious about what to expect at the festival. Though I’ve never been before, the combination of music, film and interactive elements has drawn me for a long time. When the chance to represent RJI at the festival came up, I jumped at the chance. Since my plane landed fairly late on Friday, the sessions for the day were pretty much over. So I decided to immerse myself in the festival by walking the streets around the convention center and soaking up the Austin weirdness…