Does The George-Anne have an agenda?
A Letter from the Editor-in-Chief
September 10, 2020
Dear Georgia Southern Community,
Everything we do at The George-Anne is based off of our news philosophy.
For those of you that don’t know, news philosophy is, “A set of values the [news organization] uses to emphasize some types of stories instead of other types,” according to Broadcast News Handbook, Fourth Edition.
Ours is simple: keeping our readers informed, holding the powerful accountable and helping our readers understand the world around them. Those three pillars drive our coverage decisions today and every day.
At first glance, it seems that many of you have been enjoying our coverage. Since the last time I wrote to you, August 15, to September 7, we had nearly 140,000 page views, nearly 78,000 users and a majority, nearly 77,000, new visitors.
Why do those numbers matter? The analytics tell us numerous things: 1) we’re reaching audiences we never have before, 2) our readers are reading multiple stories each time they visit our site and 3) our choice in coverage (i.e. the news philosophy) is paying off.
Some of our readers, however, don’t care for our coverage.
I received an email two weeks ago from a high-ranking Georgia Southern official.
The email, sent on a Friday, had multiple questions for me, as editor-in-chief, about our coverage decisions. This is not unusual in the world of news; I’ll be more specific in a moment.
I was going to ignore the email until I read the final line, which, in essence, accused me of having an agenda.
“Do you understand why you are asked if you have an agenda,” wrote the official.
What this high-ranking official was, likely, trying to do was what journalists call, “play the referee.”
Think about playing the ref like this: I’m the ref and the high ranking official is the coach. I threw a flag on the coach’s team who was caught holding. In response, the coach rails into me, the ref, so that next time the coach’s team holds I go easy on him.
Let me be crystal clear: that email was not successful.
Let me also say to you, our readers, and to this official: yes, The George-Anne does have an agenda.
Our agenda is to keep our readers informed, hold the powerful accountable and help our readers understand the world around them.
Our goal, exclusively, is to act as a voice for the voiceless and to level the playing field between powerful university officials and the students whose tuitions pay much of the officials’ salaries.
Know that next time an official ‘holds,’ we’ll be calling a ‘flag.’
We are here for you. We will continue to be here for you. And we’ll always be on the side of the truth.
Stay safe and stay well,
Editor-in-Chief, The George-Anne
News tip? Andy.Cole@thegeorgeanne.com
Lori Guidi • Sep 16, 2020 at 12:20 am
Oh Andy, what a fine young man you are — not that I’m surprised…knew that back
‘On the ranch’. : )
Ned • Sep 12, 2020 at 5:28 am
Well done. Wish you would have printed the email. Y’all are taking it easy on the admins. If you really started digging into what they say they are doing you would find much more… For example, cleaning and sanitization.
Keep it up
Natalie Logue • Sep 11, 2020 at 9:19 am
I have been at Georgia Southern as a student and now as an employee. But I have never read the George-Anne as much as I have in the past few months. Thank you for you constant coverage of difficult topics and your insight into the climate, circumstance, and decision-making of Georgia Southern!
Darrell Doster • Sep 11, 2020 at 6:11 am
Keep doing what yo’re doing George – Anne. The Administration of this institution likes to “preach” about transparency, its refreshing to see someone hold them accountable for what they “preach”!!
Nick • Sep 11, 2020 at 2:05 am
Based. If Southern officials are trying to get you to stop whatever you’re doing then you’re probably on the right track
Becca Michaels • Sep 10, 2020 at 8:00 pm
Thank you. I am a new reader and appreciate your articles.
Nora C Cook • Sep 10, 2020 at 6:44 pm
Yes! I’m proud of the George Anne for not kowtowing to fear tactics. The work the student paper does is important. Information is so key, even if it makes someone unhappy. If all parties involved act with honesty and integrity, we can all benefit.
Kandice • Sep 10, 2020 at 6:40 pm
if you guys actually had an agenda, you would post people’s comments under your articles. instead, you have a process to “approve” comments that only benefit your side.
Amee Adkins • Sep 10, 2020 at 6:01 pm
Well done! Stay true to your values!
Jerry L Cox • Sep 10, 2020 at 5:31 pm
GATA!
Payton Smith • Sep 10, 2020 at 5:13 pm
While I understand and respect highlighting positivity for statistical data, that is not the appropriate stance for a news source. I have to agree with the criticisms. In my opinion, I am consistently checking the George-Anne more often than ever for what the /students/ truly believe. There has been fluff after fluff after fluff, with little to no substantial or relevant information for our community at Georgia Southern. Even though I’m a part of your new ‘clicks,’ I do want to note that I never find the coverage that I’m searching for.
David Sherman • Sep 10, 2020 at 5:05 pm
As an alumnus (’08) I have continued to read the George-Anne for the timely updates and perspectives of current students.
I continue to appreciate the transparency the George-Anne provides and the even handed approach by which it is delivered.
I hope the high ranking official, regardless of their title, grows to appreciate journalistic integrity. And also that the official can now be used as a case study.
Jake Quinn • Sep 10, 2020 at 5:05 pm
Beautiful! Keep on speaking truth to power.
Joseph C Blackstone • Sep 10, 2020 at 5:00 pm
I have enjoyed your articles and think you are doing a great job keeping everyone informed. Good for you for standing your ground against the high ranking official. Keep up the good work.
James Brawner • Sep 10, 2020 at 4:44 pm
Well said, Andy. Keep up the good work.
Noelle • Sep 10, 2020 at 4:41 pm
Speaking of being on the side of truth, let’s talk about what’s going on with the stadium seating for the marching band at football games… *sips tea*
Lawrence Brautigam • Sep 10, 2020 at 12:37 pm
Good for you.
Always out those wanting insider considerations.
Cuz, THAT’S grinding an agenda.