By all accounts, Tucker is a formidable journalist, and it’s a role she takes very seriously.
“As corny as it may sound, I really genuinely believe that a free press is vital to a functioning democracy,” she says. “I don’t know how else people would get the information they need to make informed choices about civic policy. The more complex the world becomes, the more I believe in what I do.”
Named this year’s Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists, Tucker says she is concerned about the sagging subscription numbers for newspapers nationwide, but she says she remains optimistic about the future of print media and has advice for up-and-coming journalists.
“The best information, the best news sources are still print publications. That hasn’t changed,” she says. “Read a lot of good news publications, from Newsweek to The Economist, to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. They offer you the best information and they also teach you how to write well. If you read those publications consistently, you’ll see how those reporters write, how they gather information and master the subject. That’s what all good journalists do.”
— By Tracie Powell
© Copyright 2005 by DiverseEducation.com
