By Bobby Tingle

 

Glenn and I sat in his office discussing truth.

Glenn was a newspaper journalist who knew first hand how difficult it was to get the truth.  In his role as a reporter, he knew the right questions to ask. He had no problem asking the questions.  He had the ability to comprehend answers. He had the ability to report that which he comprehended.

But, according to Glenn, sometimes the answer did not match the evidence.  Sometimes the answers he received were lies, it seemed. Or, the truth could be told, with key facts left out, clouding the perception of the truth.

As I challenged Glenn on a particular point, I emphasized my perspective as the basis for truth.

“I am a conservative Christian,” I said.

“Well, I am a liberal Christian,” he responded.

Glenn wisely pointed out to me the existence of variation of thought within seemingly common worldviews.  He and I shared a Christian worldview. But he and I often had totally different perceptions.

It was very unwise of me to challenge Glenn.  I was bold and brash. I essentially told him he was wrong.

He was also my boss.  Gratefully, he was gracious and didn’t hold a grudge.

Glenn also stood by his word.

He related a story once about a large man, the father of a young man in the community.  The young man got into trouble with the police. The event was recorded in the newspaper for which Glenn was the publisher.  Glenn was a big guy too, but the father was just as big and he was angry. He objected to his son’s name being published in the newspaper chronicling his brush with the law.

Glenn was, I believe, genuinely scared.  Glenn offered to put his own son’s name on the front page of the newspaper if ever he was caught in a similar act.

Little did Glenn know he would be given the opportunity to fulfill his promise soon thereafter.  And he did.

If you poke around town and ask questions of people ‘in the know’ you often get a smile and a wink and not much else for an answer.

But, as I read The Orange Leader in print and online at www.orangeleader.com , I see a good reflection of the community.

The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth can be elusive.

But you can get a good feel for a community if you look around and include the wide variety of people and activities.

Orange Leader Editor Dawn Burleigh and Sports Editor Van Wade do a good job of painting with a broad brush as they paint the pages of their print and digital pallets.

Sometimes I read stories and wonder.  How did Dawn know about that? If you ask her, you realize news seems to pursue her while she pursues the news.

I always enjoy her ‘off the beaten path’ reports.  They tell the story.

Wade is similarly pursued by the news.  He is also a statistician.

Numbers can tell a story people want to know.

(For the record, Wade and I picked winners of all the NCAA Football bowl games to see who knew college football best.  Neither of us is feeling very optimistic. But through nineteen contests we are tied at 11 wins and 8 loses each. If I win I will report it.  If I lose I will probably report it. So far we are doing much better than we expected.)

Wade gets a broad array of reports from coaches, friends, and family for just about every sport at every age level you can imagine.

Burleigh and Wade are focused on the Greater Orange Area.  If you have news send them an email or a text or pick up the phone and call them.  Nothing is too trivial.

When you do, tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Let’s make truth less elusive and we promise to make every effort to share it in print and online.

 

Bobby Tingle is the publisher of The Orange Leader.  You can reach him at bobby.tingle@orangeleader.com.