For the first time, Newsday Publisher Timothy Knight has spoken to the public about the future of the newspaper. The presentation, made on the morning of April 8, was a great disappointment. There, in front of about 70 people, it became apparent that just when you needed a publisher the most, it was the CEO who showed up at the party.

Granted, it was reassuring to hear the daily is working hard to satisfy advertisers and is looking forward to a clean bill of health from the ABC. It was almost endearing to hear last year described as a bad year for Newsday when, in fact, the daily was home to the largest scandal in newspaper history. Great pride was found in noting that the newspaper had brought home one more Pulitzer, yet no one made mention that the winner, like many of the most talented of the paper's journalists, was no longer at Newsday. There was even talk of a new open communication policy for employees that would help change the culture at Newsday. Funny, but no mention that publishers past had exercised the same programs.

When all was said and done, there was one point that was indisputable: Long Island deserves a great newspaper. It's true.

There's something magical about newspapers. Open a newspaper and it transports you to places you may never see and introduces you to people you may never meet, but having had the opportunity to get acquainted, you're all the better for it. The ins and outs of daily life are chronicled in a manner that may grab your attention, make your blood boil or innocently reach out and touch your heart. Your community is brought closer, and made familiar, through the pages of a newspaper. Your life is fuller for having read a newspaper. Relying on your daily paper to bring the world into focus is an activity that should be coveted, yet you take it for granted. It's then, when you least expect it, that it breaks your heart. Just like that, all trust is gone.

While Newsday should be lauded for covering its own story, it's remiss in visionary leadership to restore the public's trust in what was once a public trust. Make no mistake about it: A newspaper's currency is its credibility. Newsprint and ink is simply its mode of transportation.

What Newsday needs to be talking about is infusing new blood into its newsroom, ridding its pages of those who are rich in attitude yet deprived of talent. It needs to be done quickly, since no self-respecting journalist will stay put on promises that things will eventually sort themselves out. Add to that a new commitment to get the journalists out of the sanctuary of the newspaper's headquarters. Put them into offices on the Main Streets and in the villages, where they can live and breathe the communities they cover. Think of it as insurance: It'smuch harder for journalists to take liberties with the truth when the people they write aboutare standing in the same lines and eating in the same restaurants. Then, do something really radical: Make it a performance-based newsroom, where journalists are held accountable for their work. Set a standard. Now's the time.

In advertising, never before has it been this important to make and to keep promises, large and small. Change the system to allow you to do that. If you can't tell an advertiser when an ad will run, why would they believe you about anything? Especially now?

And then there is the Viewpoints section. Burn it down. Save the salary, newsprint and ink. The section's stormy past has nailed its future shut, and the circulation scandal means you've lost the right to offer opinions on what's right and wrong. Declare that you will bring the section back when all your work is done and trust is restored. The truth is, Long Island needs you to succeed but it won't blindly keep the faith. Nor should it.

Email Jaci Clement at jaci@fairmediacouncil.
www.li-mediawatch.org

www.liwomen.com – Reprinted with Permission
April 2005