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Patrick Martin, BJ '72

What is your job title? What are your responsibilities?
I'm publisher/editor, which implies all newsroom responsibilities. On the editorial side, I have overall responsibility for news content, and as publisher I oversee all the other departments. I also write a column every week on local events, news, politics, etc., and write news stories as needed.

How did you get your current job?
Eleven years ago, along with five friends, I decided to start a newspaper company, Leader Publications. All of us had at one time been employees of Suburban Journals of St. Louis, and we had reached a point in our careers where we had a fair amount of experience and enough energy to tackle the job. So we gathered our money and, with help from outside investors, started the company in 1994. Prior to starting a newspaper, I worked at the Suburban Journals for 14 years and four years as a freelance writer in St. Louis. There I learned how to market a service and sell it, which was extremely valuable when it came time to start a paper.

What does Leader Publications look like today?
Leader Publications has two weekly newspapers, the Jefferson County Leader (founded in 1994) and the Arnold-Imperial Leader (founded 1995). Our motto is "Once a week but never weakly." The Arnold-Imperial Leader covers those two communities in northern Jefferson County. Our Jefferson County Leader covers seven other towns in the southern part of the county, including Festus. Our paper has received numerous awards from the National Newspaper Association and the Missouri Press Association, primarily for editorial writing, column writing and editorial cartoons. Our cartoonist is a 70-something retired grandma (well, she's not retired as a grandma) who has a sharp wit and an even sharper pen. She and I have collaborated on the editorial page for 10 years. Her name is Judy Dixon, and she's the best. Over the last five years, I've won first place for Best Column four times from Missouri Press Association: three times for Serious Column and this past year for Best Humorous Column. I'm getting funnier in my old age.

What makes you good at your job?
Everyone is good at something. I'm good at getting out of the way and letting talented people do their jobs with minimal interference. I think I picked the right people.

What do you consider to be your greatest professional achievement?
Starting Leader Publications, because starting any new business is a daunting venture, and new business failures are over 90 percent within the first five years. To be there 11 years later means that we've made it. We've created 30 new jobs, we've brought a source of information to the community and to our readers that they wouldn't have had otherwise.

What is the best professional lesson you learned at the J-School?
To be careful and double-check facts. I still remember my teacher and journalist in the J-School, Gary Clark, who had a very dry sense of humor who was a no-nonsense kind of teacher.

What is your favorite J-School memory?
The first time I got my name in the paper. I got to write the lead story in the sports department about the Hearnes Center, which was under construction at the time and was not going to be open in time for basketball season. I botched the story in every way but Clark did not kill me for it, and I was very thankful for that.

What is one thing you wish you had done at Mizzou?
I wish I would've bought Wal-Mart stock. No, I don't have any regrets from Mizzou. When I got out into the real world, I couldn't believe that they would pay me because the Missourian was like a full-time job and I didn't have to go to class anymore. It seemed almost like a reduction in my responsibilities.

What would be your best advice to current students?
Get a job that you enjoy. If you don't enjoy it give your employer a fair run at it. You should have a good idea of whether or not you like the work from going to the J-School. If you're a serious person, or not-so-serious, then you should get into a line of work that fits your personality. I also recommend that students go to the places they are interested in and hang out. Having internships is best because it gives you a chance to see what they're like and gives employers opportunity to see what you're about.

What is something about you that may surprise people?
In my line of work, that I'm a nice guy at heart and not mean at all.

What did you want to be when you were a kid?
From 7th grade on I wanted to be a writer. Sister Suzanne read an essay that I had written and couldn't get through it because she was laughing so much. That was the "Aha!" moment for me.