Op-ed: Confessions of a community newspaper editor

By Vanesa Brashier, publisher of Bluebonnet News

I love my readers. I really do. I probably need to say that right up front because some of you are going to recognize yourselves in this column. Please understand that I’m saying all of this with love — and after years of occasionally staring at a Facebook comment and wondering whether “Are you kidding me?” is an appropriate response from a newspaper editor.

There are things I say to readers, and then there are things I would like to say to readers. Most of the time, good judgment wins. Today, I thought it would be funny to share a few of the responses that never make it past my keyboard. Until today!

First, I should probably clear up something I don’t think everyone realizes: Bluebonnet News is me. There’s no bustling newsroom with reporters waiting for assignments. Occasionally, I am fortunate to have articles contributed by Cynthia Silva, who writes for El Amanecer, but the day-to-day operation of Bluebonnet News is yours truly.

Before starting Bluebonnet News, I worked for many years as a print newspaper editor and digital news editor for Houston Community Newspapers and the Houston Chronicle. I loved journalism, but especially community journalism. I believe people deserve to know what’s happening where they live, what their elected officials are doing and where their tax dollars are going. I cared enough about that to start Bluebonnet News.

So there’s no media conglomerate behind this operation. There’s no corporate office or executive board. There’s not even a company Christmas party, which seems particularly unfair since I would be both the boss and Employee of the Year.

I joke all the time about “how mean my boss is to make me work on weekends and nights,” but who should I blame?

Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s talk about roads.

Any time I post an article about Liberty County commissioners spending money, somebody inevitably asks, “What about my road?” It doesn’t matter what the county is buying. Law enforcement equipment? “Fix my road!” Computers? “Fix my road!” Courthouse repairs? “Fix my road!”

Friends, I report on Commissioners Court. I am not Commissioners Court. I cannot authorize your road repair, dispatch a road crew or move money around in the county budget. My influence over county road construction is approximately the same as my influence over the weather.

And yes, before somebody who knows me points it out, I actually own a rather large tractor. It generally stays at my son-in-law’s house these days because I managed to injure myself a couple of years ago getting off said tractor. Apparently, getting OFF the tractor was the dangerous part. I plan to be back on it by this time next year, brush-hogging my pastures, but I will not be driving it down the highways to fix county roads. It’s a tractor, not a road grader.

Then there are the people who read a headline and immediately head to the comments with questions. I’ll write that an event is Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at a particular location with free admission, and the comments begin: “What day?” “What time?” “Where is it?” “How much does it cost?”

Y’all, unless I have made a mistake, the information you want is in the article.

The headline isn’t the whole story. All those words underneath it aren’t decoration. Some of them contain useful information. Occasionally, they contain the exact answer to the question you’re about to ask.

Another favorite is, “Why isn’t Bluebonnet News reporting on this?” The answer is usually pretty simple: because Bluebonnet News is one person, and I can’t cover everything. On a typical day, I write two or three news articles, and each week I also produce a podcast. Somewhere in between, I’m answering messages, following up on news tips, building ads, updating the website, talking to sources and trying to figure out what needs my attention next.

I wish I could cover every city council meeting, school event, wreck, fundraiser, ribbon cutting, crime, county issue and community event that happens across the area, but unless somebody figures out how to clone me — and, oh please, no. I have enough trouble dealing with myself.

So if you message me and ask, “Why aren’t you covering this?” please don’t assume it’s because I don’t think it’s important. I may not know about it. I may already be working on three other stories. I may be recording a podcast, or I may have simply reached the point in the day when one human being has done all one human being can do.

That’s also why I appreciate your news tips. If there’s something you think Bluebonnet News should know about, send it to me. My email is editor@bluebonnetnews.com. Just remember that sending me a tip and dispatching a reporter aren’t quite the same thing.

I still have to find the reporter. She’s usually sitting at my desk.

Then there’s “Who cares?” Apparently, you do. At least a little. You stopped scrolling, read the headline, opened the comments, typed “Who cares?” and hit enter. That’s quite a bit of effort for complete apathy.

And let’s not forget “Slow news day?” That one usually arrives after I’ve spent hours answering messages, making phone calls, writing stories, editing press releases, talking to officials and suddenly realizing it’s 3 p.m. and I haven’t eaten lunch or had water. Yes, terribly slow. Maybe tomorrow I’ll work on organizing my receipts. My accountant would be grateful.

But for all my teasing, I wouldn’t trade my readers for the world. I really do appreciate you, even the ones who criticize me. I think criticism can be helpful when it comes from the right place. I try to use it to improve.

Bluebonnet News depends on you and is for you! You send me tips and photos. You tell me what’s happening in your neighborhoods. Sometimes a simple message from a reader turns into an important story, and sometimes you point me toward something I never would have known about otherwise. That’s what community journalism is supposed to be.

So keep commenting. Keep sending tips. Keep asking questions. You can even keep telling me about your roads. I’ll keep writing all the articles I humanly can, asking questions and trying to keep you informed.

Just remember: I report the news. I don’t control the county budget, I can’t dispatch a road crew and, despite owning what I believe is a fairly impressive tractor, I’m not coming to grade your road.

And before you ask what time the festival starts, please read paragraph two.

I’m begging you.