I’ve been in the Catholic news business since I got out of college, and been writing and working for newspapers even longer than that if you count high school and college days, too. When I came to The Catholic Review in July 2009, I knew that I was joining a great group of journalism and publishing professionals serving the Archdiocese of Baltimore. But every newsroom is different.
We’ve had our hands full in the past year and a half, and it’s only going to get more exciting as we face the changing landscape of American journalism.
That’s what I love about this business – you never know what will come up from one day to the next. A lot of people think that a Catholic newspaper must, by definition, have such a limited scope of coverage, but there is a great variety of news within the church. Over the years, I have covered not only lots of liturgies and ministries but also tons of meetings, sports, business, schools, social services, disasters, and government hearings (which can sometimes be disastrous). I’ve covered popes and priests and lay people. The Catholic press is at its best when we’re telling the stories of the people of God, and The Review does that well.
We’re in the midst of a strategic planning process that is looking at the present and the future, looking at who are readers are and who we’re missing – and how we can deliver the news and information all of them need on whatever platform they want to read it, printed paper or pixels.
This blog started in its new format in order to provide daily coverage of the pilgrimage to the Holy Land. It will now evolve to provide news analysis and musings from my perspective as a Catholic journalist. I hope that you’ll continue to read and comment on this blog and others, including those from staff writers George Matysek Jr. and Matt Palmer, giving you a look at what happens “behind the headlines.”
[This blog entry adapted and updated from a blog post from July 2009.]