PRINTMissouri Honor Medalists: Doug Crews
MU recognizes seven journalists with the presentation of the Missouri Honor Medal
Courtesy of Doug Crews
Doug Crews will receive a Missouri Honor Medal Oct. 20.
October 15, 2009 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Doug Crews, Executive Director of the Missouri Press Association
Doug Crews will always have a soft spot in his heart for newspapers. Crews has worked at the Missouri Press Association for 30 years and, as executive director for 19, he is the go-to guy for newspapers in Missouri.
What: Confessions of a Newspaper Enthusiast
Date: Tues., Oct. 20
Time: 3:30-4:45 p.m.
Location: Middlebush Auditorium, MU Campus
How long have you been involved in journalism?
I started working at the hometown newspaper, The Odessan, in Odessa, Mo., my junior and senior year of high school. The editor there allowed me to cover the city council and the school board. That was my first taste of it.
Did you ever work as a reporter?
I worked for newspapers after graduating from college. I worked on four community newspapers in Missouri. I could tell you where they are, but I don’t know if anyone else would know where they are (Union, Lawson, Edina and Fairfax). For a couple of years, my wife and I owned a newspaper in Lawson, Mo., The Lawson Review.
Why did you switch from being a reporter to working for an association?
I took a class from MU professor Bill Bray and got to know him. He told me around graduation time, “Why don’t you go out and get some experience? Work for a newspaper or two, work for yourself, then maybe, someday come back and work here.” For the next six years or so, that’s what I did. Then, one day I got a call from Bill, and he said an opening had come up at the Press Association. I was his assistant for 11 years. I’ve never felt like I’ve been out of the newspaper business.
What does being executive director entail?
Working with a real good staff and working with the Board of Directors. We place advertising here also. We have some scholarships that we give and we provide summer internships at newspapers. We have a better newspaper contest. We have a hall of fame, which was started in 1991. We’re very proud to recognize people who dedicated their lives to newspapers. About half of my year is spent lobbying for the Sunshine Law in Jeff. City. I represent newspapers; I represent open meetings and open records; I represent what I feel is an important piece of democracy and open government. We have a foundation here also. Newspapers and Education is where publishers of newspapers in communities provide newspapers in classrooms in their local schools. Our foundation provides a lot of content for young readers.
What is your favorite thing about journalism?
I like to watch and observe the innovations that are going on right now in the business. I’ve enjoyed watching newspapers and how they’ve evolved in the past 30 to 35 years.
When I was in journalism school at Missouri, the first word processor was delivered to the newsroom over there. Now, we’ve got the Internet and the opportunity for newspapers to grasp that technology. I’m a big believer in print but also to extend the newspaper’s reach through the Internet. It’s been an amazing 35 years in the transition that’s been made.
How were you notified about receiving the Missouri Honor Medal?
I got a letter from the dean, and it sat on my desk. One day, I was clearing through the mail, and I had to read it twice.
What was your reaction?
My reaction is there are probably a thousand other people that ought to be ahead of me here. I’m very appreciative. It’s just a terrific thing, coming from the J-School, coming from my J-School.
Your master class on Oct. 20 is called Confessions of a Newspaper Enthusiast. What will you speak about?
I’m going to talk about community newspapers and the continuing role in the communities of the towns where they’re located. I imagine some people at the J-School have never been introduced to community newspapers. The fact that they’re out there and there’s 12-14,000 of them that provide jobs to people. And many of them are doing OK in today’s economy. I’m a big believer in newspapers, and I’m hoping to paint a picture that some of them haven’t seen about newspapers.
Twitter
Facebook
