The tea: My New Year’s intentions

For my first ‘tea’ column of this semester, and my first one as The Daily Helmsman’s Editor-in-Chief, I thought I would share what my intentions are for this semester.

I set New Year’s intentions, not New Year’s resolutions. People set resolutions from feeling as if they lack something, such as not getting enough exercise or not eating well, which are all based on negative perceptions of one’s self. To me, the term “intention†is more plastic and forgiving than a resolution.

Anyway, one of my intentions for this year is to be a good Editor-in-Chief for the University of Memphis’ campus newspaper. I view my role as that of an educator. To the people under my purview, who help make this publication possible, I am a junior professor of journalism, in a way. I am here to facilitate another avenue of learning they do not gain from their regular professors. I am facilitating an environment that has more immediacy to it than what the regular classroom designates.

I am also an educator to the readers of the Helmsman. I am overseeing the dissemination of campus news to its constituents. While other local papers may cover things involving this university, no one is as close or as hyperlocal as our publication.

 I can promise we will cover the things UofM students care about because I am a UofM student myself. I only have the best intentions at heart, which includes telling the truth.

Truth is a fragile thing. People will imply that “in today’s world,†clearly referencing the Trump era we are all living in, the truth is under attack like never before. Be that as it may, I would argue that if it is under such a high threat now, then it always has been. If anything, now it is plainly obvious which problems need addressing. 

Barring my personal political opinions, I do appreciate how people now cannot avoid the truth without lying. We all know people’s true colors and how they have a death grip on the way things were. The world has changed, but it always changes. We have to change with it or vanish into obscurity.

Time’s 2018 Person of the Year were the guardians of the truth, meaning journalists like Jamal Khashoggi and those who worked at the Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland, now dead from a mass shooting on June 28, 2018. These people paid the ultimate price to protect and tell the truth. 

I admire these people and their courage. History looks fondly on those who simply told the truth and who were unafraid because they knew they were in the right. We remember those who stand boldly in the face of the opposition, no matter how strong it appears.

While we may not expose rampant corruption of our government this semester, we may face controversy. I have been at the Helmsman since May 2016, and I have seen many times when we ruffled people’s feathers the wrong way. I want everyone to know I will always take responsibility for my actions, and I will always take everyone’s thoughts and opinions on board as I chart a course on the sea of news this semester will bring. That includes everyone reading this right now. If you have anything to share with me, good, bad or ugly, at any point this semester, my email is nicholaslingerfelt@gmail.com.

And that’s the tea on that.