Apr 7, 2007

Staff Writer Not Afraid to Ask Questions

Don’t know much about agriculture.

I think that’s from a song or something. Whatever. The point is, I don’t know much about fruits and vegetables.

Yet.

I know I like fruits and vegetables. I’ve always been a banana man. I like to tear them into chunks and put them on my cereal. Sorry, too much information.

Anyway, when I started writing for weekly newspapers about four and a half years ago, I didn’t know anything about municipal governments or how they worked. Sure, I took political science classes at Michigan State University, where I got my journalism degree, but I didn’t retain much.

As my middle school gym teacher used to say, I learned about local government from the greatest teacher in the world: experience.

I had to write stories about small-town politics, so I had to learn how it worked, and fast. The best way to do that was to throw myself into the mix. I went to city council meetings, listened to mayors, interviewed city managers, talked to irate residents and observed how business and government interact. I came to appreciate the complexity of our political system. I also learned that politics has as much to do with people and personalities as it does with laws and legislation.

I plan to approach agricultural journalism the same way: By throwing myself into the mix and learning as quickly as possible. That’s what’s great about journalism; you learn how everything works.

So here I am, writing for The Vegetable Growers News and The Fruit Growers News, and here you are, reading what I write. Feel free to get in touch with me, and don’t be surprised if I end up calling you, looking for information. Just remember to start from the beginning, and speak slowly. I’ll try to make it as painless as possible.

E-mail Milkovich at [email protected].