Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 6A —THE MADISON COUNTY (GAl JOURNAL. THURSDAY. JULY 28. 2016
Opinions
Adios amigos
News has to be reported
For those who do not know,
this week will be my last as
a sports editor for MainStreet
Newspapers. On Sunday, I
will depart Atlanta en route to
France, then Spain. I am both
eager and anxious to start a
new chapter in my life, but
I would be remiss if I didn't
reflect on the past three years
of my life and my time at
MainStreet Newspapers.
I will be forever grateful to
Mike Buffington and Ange
la Gary for granting me the
opportunity to work here back
in 2013. I graduated from
the University of Georgia in
December of 2012 and entered
the workforce in a recover
ing and reeling economy.
After rejecting multiple offers
for unpaid internships, Main-
Street News offered me a paid
position where I could use the
skills I learned in college, and
continue to develop as a jour
nalist and person.
In the last three years,
my writing, photography
and interviewing skills have
improved dramatically. I owe
much of my professional prog
ress to Commerce News editor
Mark Beardsley. Mark is an
incredibly proficient journalist
and editor, but more important
ly, he's a kind and thoughtful
person with a great sense of
humor. Fle’s been a great men
tor to me and Commerce is
lucky to have him.
I also want to thank Ben
Munro for having a huge
impact on my quality of work.
Ben doesn't get enough cred
it for the unbelievable job he
does as the sports editor of
the Jackson Herald. He pro
vides Jefferson and Jackson
County with the most in-depth
sports coverage of any high
school in the state - probably
the country. Between writing
stories, taking photos, conduct
ing interviews and the count
less hours he spends on social
media, I’m not sure how he
has time to sleep, much less
take care of his son. He set an
extremely high bar for me to
aspire to, and though I may
not have always reached it, I
appreciate the challenge and
insight a journalist of his cali
ber provided.
All of my coworkers at
MainStreet Newspapers were
extremely helpful and kind to
me during my time here -
from the reporters I worked
with in the newsroom, to the
front desk staff, to the press
room workers. I can’t say
enough about the generosity
and warm attitude of everyone
at Main Street Newspapers.
I also want to thank the
countless coaches, administra
tors and students I’ve worked
with over the years at Com
merce, Banks County, East
Jackson, Jackson County and
Jefferson. I would not have
been able to do my job without
the support of, and commu
nication with the athletic pro
grams, which I cover. I'd like
to give special thanks to Amy
Flint, Tricia Massey, Melanie
Lawhom, Randy Cmmp and
all the other people who made
Guest
column
cameron@
mainstreet
news.com
By Cameron Whitlock
my life easier - by volunteer
ing their time and effort to help
me cover countless events.
I'll admit, when I first start
ed working in Commerce,
there was a part of me that
dreaded being back in a small
town environment. I was even
more distraught when I found
out that I would be covering
Banks County athletics as part
of my regular duties.
Having grown up in Banks
County, I spent much of child
hood and teenage years eager
ly waiting for my chance to
escape. As soon as I graduated
high school in 2007,1jetted off
to the University of Georgia in
Athens and never looked back.
And even though I’ve lived
out the past seven years only
40 some odd miles from my
former home, the university
setting of Athens proved quite
different than that of Homer
- especially when it comes to
a diversity of ideas and people.
But despite my reservations,
I truly enjoyed my time work
ing for MainStreet Newspa
pers. The communities I wrote
for treated me with kindness
and respect. And aside from
a couple of scathing parents
(sorry again if I misspelled
your kids' name), I felt that the
students, coaches and commu
nity members who I came into
contact with appreciated the
work that I put into covering
their teams.
But all things must end and
so must my time here.
And as I plunge forward
into the vast unknown, I can't
help but reflect on the parallels
between the unpredictability in
my life, and the world at large.
An old cliche claims
"change is the only constant.”
But what that statement fails
to mention is that change is
frightening. It’s trading com
fort for uncertainty. It's a step
away from tradition - a relega
tion to wander.
But change is also thrilling.
And it’s that anxious excite
ment that’s been the catalyst
for some of civilization's great
est achievements. Sailors in the
age of exploration threw cau
tion to the wind in search of a
new world. Great philosophers
and scientists dared to doubt
their reality, instead, dreaming
of a better one.
I'm no de Gama, no Plato
and definitely no Einstein.
But I admire and am inspired
by their courage, skepticism
and embrace of the unknown.
And in my humble opinion,
courage is the impetus needed
to make sure that inevitable
change is positive change.
Cameron Whitlock was the
sports editor for the Banks
County News and Commerce
News from 2013-2016.
IT
r* m m m m m m m m m m
IT
w w w w w w w w w w
Madison County Little League
**Baseball and Softball Signups**
FOR FALL BALL
Sat., July 30, Aug. 6, Aug. 13 10:00 a.m. - 2:0 0 p.m.
Tues., Aug. 16 & Thurs. Aug. 18 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.
Cost: $50.00 cash or check
$53.00 debit or credit cards
Baseball & Softball ages: 7-16
LOCATION FOR SIGN-UPS:
Madison County Rec. Dept. - Upstairs in Football Building
For Information and online registration:
http: / / www.madisoncountyll.com
Website: www.madisoncountylittleleague.com
Facebook page: Madison County Little League
or call
Roy Combs - VP for Softball - 706-201-8020
Nicole Bridges, VP - 706-340-3308
Jackie Taylor - President - 706-338-7032
f'-f)
LsASa
SAME
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LA
lA
It seems the reaction
by many Barrow Coun
ty residents to the events
involving Ron Saunders
can be summed up with
one word: shock.
The popular former
superintendent of the Bar-
row County School System
is facing serious charges as
outlined in a story on page
1A of our print edition this
week (Page 3A of The
Madison County Journal).
The news broke last week
after our June 20 paper
had already been printed
so we posted the story and
added several updates on
our paper's website.
Certainly I was as sur
prised as anyone about the
news surrounding Saun
ders' eventual arrest. He
faces a long legal road
ahead. It should be noted
that Saunders, like anyone
accused of any crime, is
entitled to his day in court,
whether that leads to some
type of plea bargain or a
full-scale trial, he has that
right under our system
of justice. We all do. We
should never lose sight of
that fact.
One thing as editor of the
publication that I did want
to touch on was a few com
ments about our coverage
of the story. The comments
were almost as predictable
as the sun coming up once
again the following morn
ing, but they were frustrat
ing the same. First, when
we linked the story from
Guest
column
chris@
mainstreet
news.com
Chris Bridges
our website to our paper's
Facebook page, the first
few comments had peo
ple asking if the story was
actually real. "Is this a
joke?” one person asked.
Let me be clear about
one thing right here. This
paper and this company
has never, and will never,
post any type of pretend
story, especially involving
someone's real name and
photo involving an actu
al crime. We have never
done that and why any
one would think we would
have in this case is beyond
me. Yes, the accusations
on the surface were sur
prising. I will be the first
to admit that. Saunders has
been a leader in Barrow
County for years and has
been as respected as any
one.
However, for some
readers, however few in
number, to assume that
we would fabricate a story
goes beyond any reason
able comprehension.
Second, there were a
couple of comments post
ed to our website attacking
us for even reporting the
story. One comment read:
“Once again the local fish
wrap is digging into the
private affairs of people.
Ruining a man’s name
before he has a chance to
give his side in a court of
law. Whatever it takes to
sell a few papers.”
Mike Buffington,
co-publisher of MainStreet
Newspapers responded to
those comments: “Allega
tions that someone stole
public and private funds
from a public agency is
not ‘digging into the pri
vate affairs of people.' As
with all arrests, the person
charged will have their day
in court to give their side
of the story. In the mean
time, we will cover this
issue regardless of who it
is and we will report the
outcome when the issue
has been adjudicated.”
Despite the thinking of
some, newspapers don't
actually throw a party
when a community figure
like Saunders faces trouble
with the law. In terms of
our working relationship
with him, it had always
been very positive.
Even after his retire
ment as superintendent,
Saunders was often very
complimentary of the Bar-
row paper and of myself.
Therefore, we would have
no reason to fabricate
a story about him or to
rejoice now that he faces
serious legal issues.
However, it is the job of
a newspaper, even local,
home-based community
ones, to print the news as
it is. Reporting the news
“without fear or favor”
should be the motto of
every print publication.
Admittedly, there are
some publications who
back off the tough stories
if the person involved is a
family member, classmate,
friend or respected com
munity leader. That has
never been the case with
the Barrow Journal.
As mentioned previous
ly, it's not that we relish
in reporting bad news.
Despite what some think,
bad news does not auto
matically sell newspa
pers. People get tired of
bad news. For us, we’ve
always had a good balance
of good and the not-so-
good although certainly
the bad will often stay with
you longer than the good.
It's human nature.
Saunders will have
his day in court. If he’s
cleared, we’ll report that.
If he ends up with punish
ment for his alleged deeds,
we’ll report that as well.
It’s the way it must be,
regardless of our person
al feelings toward him or
anyone else.
Chris Bridges is editor
of the Barrow Journal, a
sister publication of The
Madison County Jour
nal You can reach him at
cbridges @ barrowjournal.
com.
Brown...
contimied from page 5A
have people running to the
polls in droves voting for
Trump simply because he’s
not Hillary. You'll have
people voting for Hillary
because she’s not Trump.
It’s truly sad that this is the
best that America can pro
duce to be our next leader.
Libertarian Gary Johnson
doesn't stand much of a
chance because this election
is going to end up being two
very angry sides trying to
derail one another.
What we have is a very
angry nation at this point.
I’d like to hope that it can be
salvaged but there is just an
incredible amount of hate.
We can't compromise. We
might hear but we don’t lis
ten. We have anger in every
faction of this country. We
have angry people who are
fed up and want answers and
accountability.
I think every one of us
is rightfully angry. We have
a right to be angry at the
FBI and Hillary Clinton. We
have a right to be angry that
police officers have stepped
beyond their authority and
are not always held account
able. We have a right to be
angry that Trump is the best
the GOP could find. We have
a right to be angry with the
politicians who sit in D.C.
not speaking for their con
stituents. We have a right to
be angry that extremists are
killing Americans.
No one will say that these
angers coming from both
sides of this spectrum aren’t
justified. What’s not justified
is the violence. We all have
very real anger, and I can’t
blame anyone for feeling
angry even if I don't agree
with your stance. The anger
proves you are probably fed
up with the same things that
I am, but we differ on the
solution.
I wish there was some
thing hopeful and uplifting
to say, but I can’t find the
words. We are living in an
angry time and neither side
wants to budge. We have to
find away to work out our
issues calm and rationally,
but I don’t see that being an
option at this point. I don’t
have the answers. I don’t
pretend to. All I know is
that I'm tired. May we all
find peace and a glimmer of
hope because we desperately
need it.
Jessica Brown is the staff
photographer for the Barrow
Journal, a sister publication
of The Madison County
Journal. You can reach her
at picsbyjessical@gmail.
com.
Registration Dates:
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Classes begin August 15
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for fall classes
at our
location
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Classes offered
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Amy Demers Lee, owner and main instructor
CPR certified Staff
/ \
JOANN COMPTON
HONORED BY
1 st FRANKLIN CORPORATION
FOR 30 YEARS OF SERVICE
"JoAnn Compton receiving her service award
from Ben F. Cheek IV, Chairman"
(L-R) Sharon Langford, Regional Operations Director; Derrick
Blalock, Branch Manager Commerce; JoAnn Compton; Ronnie
Morrow, VP North GA Division; Ben F. cheek, IV, Chairman
Commerce, GA - JoAnn Compton, Senior
Customer Service Representative for 1 st
Franklin Financial's Commerce office,
was recognized for 30 years of service
with the company on July 7, 2016. Ms.
Compton joined the company on July 7,
1986. She resides in Commerce, GA.
1 st Franklin Financial Corporation has
been in the consumer finance business
since 1941. The business is headquar
tered in Toccoa, Georgia and operates
through 282 branch loan offices located
in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Missis
sippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
The Commerce office is located at 40101
Hwy. 441 South; phone 706-335-3191.
J