Half a century ago, in 1973, I entered the news business as a reporter for a small weekly paper in Missouri. And now, it’s time to leave the party. I will continue my reporting here at Ag Insider through the end of the current Congressional session, at which time Ag Insider will be put to bed one last time. The final edition will go out Monday, December 23.
I’ve been fortunate to enjoy almost all of my time in journalism and particularly to spend so many years, since 1988, writing full-time about food and agriculture.
The past decade at FERN has been stimulating and rewarding. I was given free rein to write a newsletter five days a week, rather a change in perspective after decades of deadline reporting in Washington. I wrote what I knew as best as I could. Years ago, when I became a member of the DC ag pack, my friend Sonja Hillgren said any story containing the words “food,” “farm,” or “farmer” was fair game and to look broadly at the world. Our copy-editing software says I’ve written more than 10,000 stories, including the daily hits, for FERN in trying to do that.
I appreciate the readership of the newsletter. FERN is unique in its role as a nonprofit independent news organization covering food, agriculture and the environment. Please support it.
As a reporter, I’ve spent years quoting other people to sharpen a story. Frank Howard, the hard-slugging star of the Washington Senators, was a coach after his big-league days. “Boys, in this game you never play as long as you want to or as well as you want to,” he told some minor leaguers. “When it’s over, no one can bring it back for you. It’s a short road we run in this business. So run hard.”