For this week’s Media Monday, we’d like you to meet Richard Walker, managing editor at Kitsap News Group.
- How did you find yourself at Kitsap News Group?
I was editor of The Journal of the San Juan Islands, which is also owned by Sound Publishing, and was asked by my company’s editorial director if I would be willing to move to the Kitsap Peninsula to serve as editor of the North Kitsap Herald. I was impressed by the community — ambitious, dynamic, culturally diverse. I later became the group’s managing editor to help restructure our Kitsap newsrooms into one team, the Kitsap News Group.
2. Which of your stories are you most proud of?
I’ve written stories about people who have overcome adverse conditions; I enjoy writing those stories. I’ve written stories that have influenced local government decision-making; I enjoy writing those too. I also enjoy writing stories that help dispel stereotypes and contribute to improved inter-cultural knowledge and understanding.
3. What is your favorite thing about your job?
I am 55 years old, yet I continue to grow and learn as information technology continues to evolve. We are blessed to live in this time; as journalists, we have so many ways to connect people to information.
4. What is your interview style?
Depends on the story or subject. Mostly conversational, but persistent.
5. What do you look for in a story?
Readers want to know, “How am I affected?” “What’s it going to cost me?” “Why should I care?” That’s what I look for.
6. What is your day like at your job?
At 5 a.m., I check my email, read the top stories of the day on three news sites, get a walk in and get ready for work. I listen to KOMO AM 1000 on my short drive to work. I’m in the office between 8-8:30 a.m. I meet with staff members and check in with editors in our other newsrooms. Through the day, I write stories, edit reporters’ stories, and regularly review our news site, KitsapDailyNews.com. We publish stories daily on KitsapDailyNews.com and publish five print newspapers on Friday: Bainbridge Island Review, Central Kitsap Reporter, Kitsap Weekly, North Kitsap Herald, and Port Orchard Independent. We also publish a monthly newspaper, Kingston Community News. Depending on the day of the week, staff members and I paginate pages for our print editions. Our newsroom is a center of constant reporting, writing and consultation. It’s exciting and fun.
7. Who do you most look up to in the journalism industry?
My publisher, Terry Ward, is a student of information technology and is a visionary. He should have that great quote by Robert F. Kennedy displayed in his office: “Some men see things as they are and say, why; I dream things that never were and say, why not.”
8. What is your favorite news outlet?
Lately, The Washington Post.
9. Fill in the blank:
- If I am not reporting, I am…spending time with my family and my black Lab, Mowita.
- If I could interview anyone, it would be…President Obama.
- My favorite thing about Seattle is…my nieces and nephews who live there.
10. What is your guilty pleasure?
Powered paragliding (something my wife, Molly, prefers I not do again).