14th Monthly Milestone Message

This is a column – be prepared for an opinion
Jasmine Pearl tea

Jasmine Pearl tea (dried leaves)

Last week I experienced my first pot of Jasmine Pearl tea. I say “experienced” because it was like watching performance art: dried leaves as tight as tiny ballbearings, doused with boiling water, slowly unfurling into something more akin to seaweed as the clear water turned a pale shade of green. Nice.

I’d sourced the tea from Jeremy Lopatin of Arbor Teas, so I emailed him to say how cool it was to watch the tea transform in my glass pot. He emailed me back and said that among tea enthusiasts, there’s a term for this process: the “agony of the leaves.”

The agony of the leaves. Maybe because of the week The Chronicle spent steeped in controversy, it struck me as a perfect metaphor for other transformations, too. In this monthly milestone message – our 14th for The Chronicle – I’ll touch on a couple of those.

Elections: Are They Over Yet?

We’ve enjoyed some animated comment threads on our articles and columns related to tomorrow’s elections, regarding both the countywide school millage and the city council election in Ann Arbor’s Fourth Ward. [See also Chronicle editor Dave Askins' column regarding two proposed city charter amendments that are on Tuesday's ballot.]

In particular, we’ve taken some heat for the way we responded to the decision by Hatim Elhady – who’s challenging Marcia Higgins in the Ward 4 city council race – to refuse a request for an in-person interview with The Chronicle. Elhady said he would answer our questions only via email. We had asked Judy McGovern, a former Ann Arbor News reporter and colleague of mine, to write the election preview report on a freelance basis.

After declining an on-the-record interview with McGovern, Elhady emailed The Chronicle asking for a different writer to be assigned the story – but still attached the requirement that questions be emailed,  and specifically stated that he would only be willing to talk on the phone if the conversation were off the record. The Ann Arbor Observer had a similar experience.

It’s interesting to me that our position has been characterized by some as essentially “old-fashioned.” We’re told that it’s a new world, with new ideas and new ways of doing things. I agree that these are definitely transformative times, but avoidance is an ancient political ploy. There are simply new tools available to achieve that goal.

But what’s been almost as interesting as the attempted spin by the Elhady campaign is the reaction that some readers had to our decision to publish a column by Judy McGovern about the situation. While many of the comments are based on disagreements with our position on the issue of whether an email “interview” counts as an interview, some readers criticized McGovern’s column because it presented not only a description of her efforts to interview both candidates, but also her opinion about what happened.

The criticism of “bias” in a column reminded me of my years working at the Ann Arbor News. For the last three years of my tenure there, I was in charge of the opinion pages. We published letters to the editor, essays from readers, columns from syndicated writers like George Will and Maureen Dowd, and editorials. (Whenever I talk about my work there, at this point in my narrative I always pause to point out that I was not in the job for either the 2004 Bush endorsement or the 2008 presidential non-endorsement – I hope someday I won’t feel so compelled to make that point, but I’m not  quite there yet.)

My assumption, going into the opinion page job, was that the mission of the News opinion section was clear to readers. The word “opinion” was emblazoned on the top of the pages – it was straightforward, I thought. And editorials are a concept as old as newspapers themselves – surely that was clear?

So I was initially surprised, dismayed and ultimately resigned to receiving regular criticism that the editorials, columns, essays and letters were biased. Some readers weren’t only upset about the opinions expressed, but were critical that the editorials and other op/eds dared to express an opinion at all. It wasn’t fair for the newspaper to express an opinion – even in the opinion section!

I found that criticism puzzling.

And so, when some of our readers levied a similar charge against McGovern and The Chronicle, I had a distinct sense of déjà vu. Here are the ways we explicitly alerted readers the fact that she was writing an opinion piece: 1) by starting the headline with the the word “column,” 2) with her own words – explicitly stating in the lede that she was not writing a straightforward election report, but rather “a column that gives an account of an unusual situation …” 3) by asking McGovern to write the piece in the first-person, 4) by including a column headshot of McGovern, and 5) by slotting it into the “opinion” category. Yet the inclusion of all of these clear signposts – which pointed to the fact that there would be opinions expressed – were for some readers insufficient.

One reader suggested we needed to do even more – perhaps by shading the background a different color to indicate that it wasn’t a news article.

Based on my past experience as opinion page editor, however, we could have attached a red, bold-faced, all-caps [WARNING, OPINION CONTAINED IN NEXT SENTENCE, READ WITH APPROPRIATE CAUTION] in front of each isolated opinion in McGovern’s column, and it wouldn’t have prevented the criticism we’ve heard – that an opinion was presented as if it were something other than an opinion.

Why Should We Care? Living the Agony

In their dried form, the jasmine tea “pearls” are easy to manage and to recognize for what they are.  By “manage” I mean counting them, making piles or little miniature pyramids out them, putting them back into their bag with their clear label: “Jasmine Pearl,” or whatever else a creative mind might want to undertake with these little green dried balls. But that’s not what tea is for – it’s for brewing and drinking. And once hot water gets dumped onto those leaves, they’re a complete disaster for counting, stacking or anything else.

boiling water dumped onto tea

Boiling water poured over Jasmine Pearl tea leaves.

Without the aid of a package label, that hot green liquid with leaves floating around in it might not be recognizable as Jasmine Pearl tea – except to a tea aficionado. And if those tea leaves are strained out of the hot liquid, it might not be recognizable to some people as tea at all. Maybe it’s dishwater.

So how are consumers of hot drinks supposed to figure out what they’re drinking? Taste and smell, sure. But if you see it being prepared, and you know where it came from, you’ve got an advantage. We strive at The Chronicle to make clear where a story comes from, why we’re publishing it at all, and why we’re publishing it at a particular time. For much of our coverage, that background is baked right in: We’re publishing a report about city or county government, because a public body just met and here’s what happened there.

So where do stories come from in general?

This topic came up at a forum hosted last month in Ann Arbor by the Poynter Institute, a nonprofit that provides training and other resources for journalists. It was a small group of local media types, bloggers and others from the community. The event – titled “What Now?” – was designed to discuss what the world might look like in a community that has lost its traditional daily newspaper.

Part of that discussion looked at how institutions like local governments and schools are finding ways to reach their “audience” directly, in the absence of coverage from a news organization. The Ann Arbor Public Schools, for example, has launched a newsletter for the community – its inaugural edition came out today. Another example: People can sign up for email alerts from the city of Ann Arbor, on topics ranging from notices of crime to public meetings. They’re sending out information directly, that in the past people might have expected to find in the local newspaper.

There’s no need to have the middleman of traditional media, if these organizations can disseminate their information directly to people who want or need it … right?

But some participants in the forum expressed concern about the blurring of lines between traditional media, blogs and PR – this is a pretty common complaint. The forum’s moderator, Poynter’s Kelly McBride, also pointed out the growing phenomenon of people getting their news and information from social media sites, like Facebook and Twitter. If it’s really important, people figure it’ll show up on Twitter somewhere – that’s one approach to staying informed.

In the face of these trends, media users are being asked to bear a burden for sorting out what’s important versus what’s trivial, what’s worth reading in its entirety and what can be dismissed – just like newspaper readers have always been asked to do. I don’t think that sorting through what are now perhaps unfamiliar forms of media requires some set of advanced, new skills – though we’re learning new “guideposts,” for sure. Weighing the information we receive, evaluating its source, discerning its intent, drawing conclusions based on context and experience – all that is an old-fashioned set of basic critical thinking skills.

When guideposts are there that can help people parse what they are reading or listening to or viewing, they should be used. If a hot greenish liquid is served in a teacup on a saucer, there’s a good chance it’s tea.

If the server gives you a peek at the process of that liquid’s preparation, and you’re able to watch as Jasmine Pearls unfurl themselves into a weedy tangle, then you can be sure it’s tea. Maybe not your cup. But still tea.

About the writer: Mary Morgan is publisher of The Ann Arbor Chronicle.

13 Comments

  1. By Vivienne Armentrout
    November 2, 2009 at 7:01 pm | permalink

    I’m fascinated that so many of your milestone columns have used comestibles as a metaphor.

    I’m about to launch into making my own vinegar. I’ll have to share that experience with you. Hint: it requires the use of a rather disgusting-looking mass and ends up with a fine liquid that is one of the essential ingredients in worldwide cuisine.

  2. November 2, 2009 at 10:12 pm | permalink

    Mary, this article was just beautifully written (like your others, of course, but I loved the tea thing).

    And Vivienne is being polite…it looks like afterbirth. I’ve never seen real live afterbirth, but I’ve had vinegar mother and it’s kinda funky…it’s kind of like a sourdough starter in that you share bits with your friends.

    Enough about vinegar! Congrats on another great month! xxoo

  3. November 2, 2009 at 10:57 pm | permalink

    Although not an A2 resident, I’ll be rooting for Elhady to lose Tuesday to see his “strategy” repudiated.

  4. November 3, 2009 at 7:13 am | permalink

    Congrats on another great milestone and I’ve been out of the country for a week so I have much to catch up on in the A2C…first I have to go vote.

    Looks like you have been doing your best to keep people accountable. Interesting development and I can’t wait to read it.

  5. By Leah Gunn
    November 3, 2009 at 7:15 am | permalink

    Mary and Dave – you are a real asset to this community, and I am happy to see that you are doing well enough to employ some free lancers. Judy McGovern and John U. Bacon are interesting to read, and what would we do without Del Dunbar? Keep up the good work.

  6. By Vivienne Armentrout
    November 3, 2009 at 7:52 am | permalink

    My metaphor may have been misunderstood; on rereading it I didn’t like it much. I was trying to say that Mary took a confusing, upsetting situation and refined it to a delicate conclusion. It is too bad that the McGovern column blew up and the comments got so unGenerous – like Mr. Carty’s.

  7. November 3, 2009 at 8:45 am | permalink

    Either way, Vivienne, you taught me a new word: comestibles I had to look that one up :)

    Just think Mary & Dave, one day you’ll be writing your 14th *year* update…!!! :)

  8. November 3, 2009 at 2:53 pm | permalink

    Congrats on another month of growth. Controversy is further evidence you’re relevant. I continue to appreciate being better informed about my community than I was before The Chronicle came online.

  9. By Steve T
    November 3, 2009 at 4:15 pm | permalink

    Very well put. You continue to bring the rigor of traditional journalism to the new medium. Hope the trend catches on. Reading the comments on Judy’s piece show it will unfortunately be an uphill battle.

    Steve

    P.S. I drink a green tea at work called “Gunpowder” that, before the leaves “agonize,” they look exactly like mouse turds. I tell gullible coworkers that I collect them in the stairwells.

  10. November 3, 2009 at 4:21 pm | permalink

    Mary,

    Let me first say you did a great job with the news and opinion coverage this month. I read lots of it and enjoyed it all.

    But you should not be surprised (or stressed!) about the reception of this opinion piece. The traditional news categorization of opinion doesn’t work very well any more. For better or worse, publishing opinion pieces *is* a political act.

    Rightly or wrongly, readers draw conclusions about your political stance from the “vector sum” of your opinion pieces. (And I might add that they ignore all the ones that they already agree with ;-) Like it or not, accept it or not, your publication is a political actor in the community.

    keep on truckin’!

    Fred

  11. By Petee
    November 3, 2009 at 6:09 pm | permalink

    Those leaves really would have been in agony! In the event that Mr. Lopatin didn’t let you know, you’re likely to get a much tastier jasmine tea from less-than boiling water. I’d start at 180 degrees for your pearls. Vary to your taste, but at 212 you’re probably cooking rather than steeping.

  12. By Rebecca Lopez Kriss
    November 3, 2009 at 9:11 pm | permalink

    Mary, I have to say I agree with Fred Zimmerman. His sentiment mirrors my own.

    I love the Chronicle for its no-nonsense reporting by talented writers. And I get plenty of opinions in the comments, usually by a diverse set of informed constituents.

    Please stick to your tag line, “it’s like being there.” Your publication provides a necessary service by providing the background and information necessary for diligent citizens to make informed decisions (without having our lives run by the civic calendar!)

    Let the opinions hash it out in the comments section and stick to what you’re good at. ;-)

    Sincerely,

    Rebecca

  13. By Barbara Levin Bergman
    November 4, 2009 at 8:07 am | permalink

    A column!

    That’s what Tom Friedman writes, David Brooks writes and what you, Mary and Dave write so well. We all read columns. We all expect to find opinions in columns. That’s why we read them and that’s why various forms media continue to publish them.

    Long live your media. Long live your informative and thoughtful columns.