There was a time in journalism when public editors were fairly common. The public editor — or readers’ advocate or ombudsman, as it was called at some outlets — helped keep news organizations honest, fair and transparent. The public editors would dissect how certain stories were reported and written. They would report on errors and omissions. They would act as a liaison between the news outlet and its customers, asking pertinent questions about an outlet’s coverage. They were the independent bridge between the audience and the newsroom where conversations about standards took place.
Basically, the public editor’s job is to provide oversight over a news organization.
But then something happened. The public editor started to disappear.
The New York Times famously hired a public editor in the wake of the Jayson Blair scandal. But it also infamously stopped having a public editor in 2017 — a decision that many in journalism circles still criticize. ESPN had ombudsmen for a spell, but that job disappeared, too. Of course, there were public editors at other papers before the Times and ESPN, and there continue to be public editors now.
Well, there’s one that I know of. My Poynter colleague Kelly McBride serves as the public editor for NPR. Unless there are a few at smaller papers that I don’t know about, McBride might be the only public editor left in America.
Now there’s one more.
The Dallas Morning News announced Tuesday that it has hired Stephen Buckley as its public editor. Buckley teaches at Duke University, where he is a professor of the practice of journalism and public policy in the Sanford School of Public Policy. He also is the former dean of the Poynter Institute, where he now serves on the board of trustees. Before that, he was a reporter and editor at The Washington Post and Tampa Bay Times.
In a column announcing the hiring of a new public editor, Morning News publisher and president Grant Moise wrote about how the public’s trust in the media has plunged and added, “This reality is deeply troubling to our staff at The Dallas Morning News because we realize that when people don’t trust public institutions and the media (which is intended to hold public institutions accountable), something must change. So, what do you do when trust is missing in a relationship? You address it.”
Moise then wrote, “The more we researched this role, the more we became convinced we wanted to engage an independent public editor to help act as a bridge between the public and our newsroom.”
On Tuesday, I spoke by phone with Buckley about his new role as public editor.
“A really bold, counterintuitive move (by the Morning News),” Buckley told me. “And the motivation is exactly right, which is: the most important issue for our industry is reestablishing trust with the public.”
Buckley sees the Morning News as one of the most important regional news organizations in the country and said he’s honored to be chosen to “be part of this bold experiment.”
Why has the public editor gone away? Primarily, one would guess, it’s because news organizations wanted to cut costs. Other news leaders have claimed that the internet is full of media critics — and readers with social media accounts — who now serve as de facto public editors. That’s hardly a valid excuse, but it is one that is often made.
“We are at a moment in history when bringing back somebody who can be a bridge between the public and the newsroom seems like a really smart thing to do,” Buckley said.
Buckley will be paid by the Morning News but said he will be an independent voice.
“I don’t represent the newsroom and I don’t represent the readers,” Buckley said.
Buckley is sure there will be times when he disagrees with the public on how the Morning News handled a story, just as he is sure will often agree with the readers and their concerns or complaints about how the Morning News performed its job. He said he will be an “honest broker.”
Buckley repeated to me what he told a Morning News editor: “We do work for the public, but we serve the truth.”
In his column, Moise wrote, “There will be times when Stephen defends the journalists and times when Stephen defends you, the reader. I know Stephen will not always agree with our judgment calls, which is okay. We are not perfect, and we don’t get it right 100 percent of the time. It’s my hope that Stephen will help you better understand the role of the media, which will ultimately help you learn you can trust us as your primary source of news.”
The Morning News first reached out to Buckley last year when Dallas District Attorney John Creuzot said he didn’t make comments that were attributed to him in a story about police violence. The paper asked Buckley to do an independent review. Before that review was completed, the reporter resigned. After the review, the Morning News retracted the story.
So now Buckley returns on a more full-time basis. He will continue teaching at Duke, while writing, for now, a once-a-month column for Morning News that starts on May 12.
“But a lot of what I’ll be doing is engaging with the public,” Buckley said. “A lot of what I will be doing is responding to readers’ questions. … I’m not coming into this with a personal agenda and I’m not going to have a personal agenda.”
The Dallas Morning News deserves major credit for this move. It costs money, and it opens the paper up to questions and criticism. But there is also something to be gained: accountability and, in the best-case scenario, trust.
Moise wrote, “In the same way that news organizations rightly believe their role is to hold the powerful accountable, we recognize that we need to be held accountable, too. It’s a two-way street. We want to be different at The News and want you to trust us. However, we know trust is earned, not given. That is why it’s important to me that we take this step for you and others who want a trustworthy news source in North Texas to help you make better decisions and live better lives.”
