Mike Scogin

President, Georgetown Newspapers, Inc. and Publisher and Editor of the Georgetown News-graphic, Georgetown, Kentucky First job in news: When I was about 10 years old, I approached Bob Morrissette, who owned The Atmore Advance in Alabama. I provided some trivia fillers he used in the newspaper. Eventually, I held every job available at the Advance, from sweeping floors to the publisher. It was a great start. What are some of the most important lessons you have learned while working in news? As a reporter, I learned to find the right people and listen. The best news stories I covered came because I listened to someone. As a publisher, I have learned to surround myself with good people and stay out of their way. I have been blessed to work with some incredibly talented people now and over the years. When you reflect on your career to date, what brings you the greatest sense of accomplishment? Looking back, I guess my greatest accomplishment comes from two areas. One is when something changes for the better because of something you wrote, but I am most proud when people I have worked with reach a goal or realize a dream. I feel incredibly proud if I had a small part, but I enjoy seeing people happy and enjoying what they do. What are your predictions for where news publishing/news media is heading? Journalism is not going away. It is too important to our society. I believe journalism is a calling. It is not easy, but I believe the profession is noble if done well and ethically. How people obtain the news may change, but I believe in newspapers and newspapers will be around for a long time. I believe a lot presented as “news” or “journalism” is bogus. Broadcasts are presented as news shows when they are nothing more than commentary. Some articles published clearly have a bias — which is different from an article that presents facts and backs those facts up with good, reliable sources. Commentary is fine and necessary, but it must be presented for what it is. It has become so common, many in the public cannot always discern the difference between news and commentary.