First, I would like to describe my job, then I’d like to do it. Those of you familiar with the first part, feel free to jump ahead, just past that list near the end of the column.
I am The Cavalier Daily’s ombudsman. Many news organizations — not enough, in my opinion — have such a position, though some call it “public editor” or “public representative” or even “complaints review executive.” My job includes reviewing The Cavalier Daily’s work and commenting on the good and the bad I find there. I also welcome questions and complaints from readers. I do my best to find out what went wrong, if something did, and to explain to readers and staff what I have found. I also try to explain how news operations work, both in theory and in practice. Sometimes I wander into media criticism in a more general way, but my focus is The Cavalier Daily.
My qualifications include about 30 years in the business — more like 36 if you include my student journalism years. I have written and edited for daily newspapers, community newspapers, alternative newspapers and regional magazines. I have worked in radio and online. I also advised another university’s newspaper before I started working with The Cavalier Daily. But I am not an advisor in the way that is sometimes meant when the word it used in connection with a student publication. I am not on the faculty or staff of the University. I do not review copy before it is published. I do not do any editing or offer any pre-publication advice to editors, reporters or photojournalists at The Cavalier Daily. The Cavalier Daily is an independent, student-run publication. Its leaders have seen fit to hire an ombudsman to do the things I described — an outsider intended to keep themselves honest and to be a liaison between The Cavalier Daily and its readers. The editors and I certainly do not agree on all points of journalism all the time, but they have the courage, honesty and humility — a rare enough commodity — to invite someone to critique their work in a public fashion. They invite you to do that, too, of course. Letters to the Editor and online comments are the most common ways readers engage The Cavalier Daily and its staff, and those are sometimes the beginnings of my work. But I also invite you to contact me directly if you have questions or complaints about The Cavalier Daily’s coverage.
I am not a member of The Organization of News Ombudsmen, but here is that organization’s mission statement, explaining what an ombudsman is and what an ombudsman is supposed to do:
1. The news ombudsman is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the quality of journalism by encouraging respectful and truthful discourse about journalism’s practices and purposes.
2. The news ombudsman’s primary objective is to promote transparency within his/her news organization.
3. The ombudsman works to protect press freedom and promote responsible, high-quality journalism.
4. Part of the ombudsman’s role is to receive and investigate complaints about news reporting on behalf of members of the public.
5. The ombudsman recommends the most suitable course of action to resolve issues raised in complaints.
6. The ombudsman is an independent officer acting in the best interests of news consumers.
7. The ombudsman strives to remain completely neutral and fair.
8. The ombudsman refrains from engaging in any activity that could create a conflict of interest.
9. The ombudsman explains the roles and obligations of journalism to the public.
10. The ombudsman acts as a mediator between the expectations of the public and the responsibilities of journalists.
I will do my best to fulfill that mission for this news organization.
The forced resignation and subsequent reinstating of University President Teresa A. Sullivan was obviously a huge story for The Cavalier Daily’s primary readers, but it was also big news across Virginia and the country. Covering something like that is difficult for a student news organization under the best of circumstances. The middle of the summer, when much of the student community — and much of The Cavalier Daily’s staff — is far from Grounds is not the best of circumstances. But The Cavalier Daily did an impressive job. The staff’s dedication and enterprise bested the professional press more than once. I was nowhere near Grounds when the story broke and then engulfed the community, yet The Cavalier Daily kept me informed about what was happening through stories and tweets. It gave me background information by publishing Board of Visitors’ email conversations. It was a dogged and enlightening performance. I read accounts in other publications, but I rarely learned anything there The Cavalier Daily had not already told me. I have been on the staff of a local publication when out-of-town media descend on a story, and I know what a challenge that is.
The immediate crisis is over and the big-deal media have largely moved on, but the issues that created the summer’s turmoil and the issues it created are not resolved. I look forward to learning how The Cavalier Daily will continue to tell us about that.
Tim Thornton is the ombudsman for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at ombud@cavalierdaily.com.
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