When the I's don't have it

During the first week of school each year at South, I give my students a list of "bad words" I do not want to see in their papers or writing prompts. The list includes "I think," "I believe," "In my opinion," "I don't think," and "I don't believe."
Though there are some sterling examples in American speeches and literature of people using those words, for the most part they do nothing but weaken writing.
"Nobody cares what you think," I tell the students, which always brings righteous indignation from a few. I pick one student and use his or her name to make my point, reciting two sentences.
"I think John is a good student."
"John is a good student."
"When you say, 'I think,' you are indicating you have some doubt that John is a good student," I tell them.
"When you leave those two words out, you make it sound as if there is no doubt he is a good student. It's still an opinion, but it sounds like undisputed fact.
Some catch on immediately. Others continue saying, "How can I say what I think if I can't say 'I think?' " " Sadly, one or two obstinately continue using the words throughout the year, weakening their writing each time.
I am reminded of the "I think" lesson each time I read some of the columns in area newspapers. It is not an easy job writing a newspaper column. I did it for more than 20 years and I wrote some that were terrible. During that time, I wrote more than 1,000 Sports Talk columns, most of which were profiles of high school athletes. When I was at the Lamar Democrat, I wrote a humor column called "The Inside Corner," which usually focused on some item on the news. Some of them are almost unbearable to read now. A few hold up pretty well, even after more than 16 years. The columns I enjoyed the most came after I became editor at The Carthage Press. Some were profiles of people connected to news stories, others offered fresh takes on news stories or opinions. For the most part, the personal pronoun I was not featured unless I was relating an experience connected with a news story.
So when readers have commented recently on some of the columns that are running in Joplin-area newspapers, for the most part I am in complete agreement. The Dave Barrys and Erma Bombecks are few and far between. For the most part, I do not want to read about columnists' home lives, their children, etc, unless they are connected to some local news story.
I also do not want to read about columnists mightily struggling on what to put in their columns. (And when that happens on the second or third column, it leads you to believe the newspaper might be wise to find some other use for that space.)
Part of the problem comes from newspaper editors and publishers who believe columns should be used to introduce the readers to the reporters. While there is some merit to that, if a reporter writes enough columns, the reader will learn about the reporter's personality and what the reporter values through the choice of topics and how the columnist writes about them.
Unfortunately, too many reporters fall into the trap of writing about their home lives and over the past 20 years I have only see one columnist in this area, Nancy Hughes of the Lamar Press, who did this effectively.
Of the local columnists, Bruce Vonder Haar of the Joplin Daily and Michael Davison of the Globe are writing solid sports columns on a regular basis. The only other Globe columnist I look forward to reading on a regular basis is Ed Simpson. Many times I do not agree with him, but he usually writes about topics that interest me.
I have had no problems with John Hacker's columns for the Daily, though some of my readers have. Telling readers just what goes into putting out a new newspaper offers some insight into just what a chore John and his crew are tackling every day as they battle the firmly entrenched Globe.
There are some fine niche columns in area newspapers, covering everything from genealogy to car care to library services. Those are fine for reaching a limited number of readers.
Marvin VanGilder at The Carthage Press has written an absorbing column on area history for years and also writes another column in which he comments on current affairs.
What kind of columnist should area papers be using? The Globe would be better off reducing the frequency of Mike Pound's column and finding two alternating columnists, one who can dig into the personal side of events in the local news and another who can comment forcefully on those same stories.
The Daily could use a steady dose of the kind of feature Michelle Pippin did recently on the late Jamison Alexander, the Joplin High School student who was killed in a hit-and-run accident.
Signature columnists bring the reader back day after day, or in the case of weeklies, week after week. Right now, no such columnist is featured on the pages of area newspapers.