by Paula Anderson
Lynn Norment, journalist and newspaper columnist, started her career in journalism at the Commercial Appeal as an intern in the 1970s. Her journey led her to becoming a writer and editor for Ebony magazine. Below is a Q & A from Norment about her experience as a journalist.
Q1: What inspired you to enter the field of journalism?
A: I’ve always had an interest in writing, and that interest turned into passion. In elementary school, I was always reading stories and the newspaper and writing my own stories. In high school, I enjoyed my English classes and looked forward to writing essays, book reports and other such writing projects. I recall that one particular teacher was known for being tough and meticulous. Other students dreaded her class because you could get an “f” if you misspelled a word or had a punctuation mark out of place. I sailed through those classes, even though I was one of – at most – three Black students among a class full of white students (and a white teacher).
During those years, I started experimenting with poetry and short stories. All through my notebooks, I would write short poems and rhymes in the margins to keep my creativity stimulated. Of course, back then, it did not seem out of the ordinary. It was just what I did, and enjoyed doing.
In college I knew I wanted to pursue a journalism degree. I continued writing and did well in composition classes or any classes where I had an opportunity to write. I started taking journalism classes and knew I had found my calling.
Q2: What has been the greatest challenge that you have faced?
A:I was always a shy youth, but by the time I started studying journalism, I learned to work my way past the shyness. To be a journalist, one must ask questions, keep the subject engaged, and at times you must talk your way into situations and locations in the process of getting the job done. One of the biggest challenges occurred on my first day as an intern at the Commercial Appeal newspaper during my last semester at Memphis State. As I was ending my day and the night staff transitioned in, news came in that a man was shooting people in the streets of a neighborhood in South Memphis.
While it may seem common today, it was a very unusual situation in the 1970s, I sat there in the newsroom amazed as teams of reporters and photographers were called and sent out to the scene. Just when I was about to go home for the evening, the night editor barked my name across the newsroom and sent me out to the scene. He told me to knock on doors, talk to neighbors and anyone else I could find. I was still in college and did not know my way around Memphis that well. But I found my way to the scene of the shooting. Police and victims were still there. I walked around the neighborhood and knocked on doors, seeking information on the victims and the shooter. At about 9 pm I called the night desk and gave the editor the information I had gathered. Then I dropped some photographs and other information by the office before going home. The next day I was surprised to find my byline on the front page along with others who had worked on the story.
Q3: Describe working as an editor for a major publication - Ebony?
A:Working as a writer and editor for Ebony magazine was a challenging job, but it had great rewards as well. I feel that the key to my moving up at the publication was coming up with great story ideas. At the beginning, I didn’t have the contacts and had to develop them. At the same time, I did a lot of reading – newspapers, other magazines – and came up with stories for Ebony. As I gained experience, I developed contacts in the music industry, in Hollywood and among my fellow journalists. There were some public relations people who assumed that Ebony would or should do a story on whoever they represented; that was not the case. The truly smart public relations people soon learned how to pitch to me. Ebony needed a special angle that would appeal to Ebony’s unique audience.
As artists moved up in stature and popularity, so did their public relations people. Because I dealt with my interviewees with honesty and fairness, they trusted me and granted me great opportunities. For example, I interviewed Prince a few times. He reached out to me after I had done several stories on him and people he was close to, including his father. He got to know me through my work and eventually wanted to sit down with me himself.
Q4: What lessons have you learned to help you become a better journalist or editor?
One important lesson I’ve learned is to always be prepared for that interview. Do your research. Read everything you can on your subject. Write or type your questions and know them. Know your subject. Whether your interview is scheduled for 10 minutes or an hour, be prepared to keep you subject engaged. They will know if you are prepared. Respect them and their time and you will get a much better interview and future interviews as well.
Another lesson I learned is to save your controversial questions for the end of your interview. If you ask the “Big” question(s) too early, you risk the subject being annoyed and possibly ending the interview. If you get in all your other questions first, you should still have a good story.
Q5: What advice would you share with the next generation of journalists?
A: Do your research. Be fanatical about the facts. Fact check your material. Once I trusted the photographer I was working with on the age of the subject’s child. The photographer was wrong and, consequently, I was wrong. I never did that again. If you are not sure of something, then ask. If I am not sure of a fact or detail, I double checked with the subject or the publicist.
Be a good listener. You never know when information will be revealed that you don’t expect.
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