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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (April 10, 1992)
Public craves news, former editor says Quinn Newsman gives journalists advice By Kristine Long Staff Reporter The former editor in chief of USA Today said Thursday afternoon that the public’s appetite for news and information never was satisfied. John Collins Quinn said the USA public wanted all the news it could get — “when it wants it, where it wants it, how it wants it and it is willing to pay the price to get it.” “(The public) wants the bad and the sad news along with the good and the glad. It wants to enjoy the best of the news, and it wants to learn how to cope with the rest of it.” Quinn, deputy chairman of The Freedom Forum, spoke about his *» • experiences in the newspaper busi ness to about 200 people in Avery Hall. The Freedom Forum is a finan cially independent, nonpartisan, inter national organization dedicated to free press, free speech and free spirit for all people. His Copple/Hearst lecture was titled, “The Press Has Nothing to Fear But The Press Itself.” The public, Quinn said, knows how to “mix and match” the media to fit its lifestyle. Although it may seem that the public is angry at the media, he said, that is not the case. Instead, the public is fed up with journalists who are rude and abrasive. Quinn’s journalistic experience stretches back to 1943 when he started as a copy boy at the Providence (R.I.) Journal-Bulletin. He worked his way up to the top, and when USA Today was founded in 1982, he was its lead • - it (The public) wants the bad and the sad news along with the good and the glad. It wants to enjoy the best of the news, and it wants to learn how fo cope with the rest of it. Quinn, deputy chairman of The Freedom Forum -99 - planning editor. Thursday he shared his experiences through a series of lessons offered to help journalists improve their craft. The public needs “all the thorough reporting, thorough questioning and aggressive digging that the media can deliver,” he said. But the public does not need jour nalists who are rude and arrogant, Quinn said. As journalists, he said, “we still lit must do what we have to do, but we must pay attention to how we do it.” Quinn said that in the fast world of changing technology, journalists must remember their main responsibility: informing the public. Journalists in all areas — print, television and advertising — must come together to get “all the facts our audience deserves and needs as this complicated world requires today,” he said. rormer editor agrees with Ashe coverage By Sean Green Senior Reporter USA Today editors made the right decision when they pursued a story that tennis great Arthur Ashe had AIDS, the newspaper’s former editor in chief said Thursday. John Collins Quinn, who was on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus Thursday to deliver a speech, said that although he did not want to second-guess USA Today’s decision to pursue the story, he thought it was the right thing to do. On Wednesday, Ashe, 48, acknowl edged that he has had AIDS since 1988 and that he became infected with the virus five years ago from a blood transfusion, according to the Associated Press. Ashe disclosed his condition after a reporter from USA Today called him Tuesday. He said someone called the newspaper and told them about Quinn says USA Today made good news call his condition, forcing the newspaper to decide whether to pursue the story. Although Ashe had been trying to keep his condition from the public, Quinn said USA Today was right to pursue the story. “I’m a firm believer that the best judge of a news call is the editor handling the story at the time,” he said. “I think it’s the kind of call that a good editor must make, in terms of his news readership.” Ashe is a key figure to USA Today readers, Quinn said, and the public spotlight on private concerns goes with die territory. “In our free society, a public fig ure has to expect that his private concerns will wind up in the public sector,” he said. “It’s a tough issue, and it’s terrible to have one’s own grief displayed in public.” Quinn described Ashe’s condition as a tragedy waiting to happen and said the story would have come out eventually. However, he said, the publicity surrounding Ashe’s contraction of the virus may be portrayed in a less sen sational manner because it was handled well. “There were two very statesmen like decisions made when this rumor surfaced,” he said. “(Gene) Policinski was not reckless and wailed until he had the whole story, and Ashe went public right away and didn’t stone wall.” Policinski is managing editor for sports at USA Today. Because the story was handled well and probably will not be sensational ized, Quinn said, it offers an alterna tive to the kind of sensationalism that some members of the media have usedjcovering other stories. “I think the coverage of this story and the Magic Johnson story is the flip side of the way (Mike) Tyson’s and (William) Kennedy’s stories were covered,” he said. One reason Ashe gave for not going public was to prevent his wife and five-year-old daughter from problems that might have arisen if he went public with his condition. Quinn said the probability that Ashe’s family would be put in the media spotlight was unfortunate, but should not have changed me editor s decision. “It is important to be sympathetic,” he said. “But without being hard hearted, you have to ride with both the triumphs and tragedies. “You can’t just report the good things.” Quinn said Ashe’s announcement renewed criticism that the press was telling too many indelicate things. “If the press sets itself up as the ambassador of social niceness, the news doesn’t mean anything,” he said. “You can’t keep secrets. Once you start down that road, it never ends.” Quinn also said he agreed with USA Today’s decision to let readers know why they made the decision to follow the Ashe story. “I would have clearly explained the decision to the readers and told them what elements were involved in making it, just as USA Today did this morning,” he said. i The new Apple* Macintosh* Classic* II In addition to its built-in capabilities, the computer makes it easier for you to juggle Macintosh Classic II can be equipped with up classes, activities, projects, and term papers— t0 10 megabytes of RAM, so you II be able to and still find time for what makes college run several applications at once and work life real life. with large amounts of data. It’s a complete and affordable Macintosh If y°u already own a Macintosh Classic, Classic system that’s ready to help you get and want the speed and flexibility of a your work finished fast. It’s a snap to set up Macintosh Classic II, ask us about an and use. 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