My name is John Estridge. Don’t let the photo confuse you, I am not Brad Pitt. Although, at least on this side of the country, we sometimes get confused. I really don’t know if Mr. Pitt has the same problem with people confusing him for me.
I have worked in the journalism field for more than 33 years. I have written full or part time for two dailies and four weeklies as well as some tab publications. I also did some radio news as I have a face for radio.
I was the editor of the Brookville Democrat/American for about 30 years. And was the editor of the Liberty Herald and Union County Review for about 20 years. For the last 20 years, I was editor of all four papers at once. I am a workaholic especially when it comes to writing.
I am blessed the Lord allowed me to labor in a profession I truly loved.
On Jan. 30, 2020, three days after my 63rd birthday, the relatively new owners of the four previously mentioned papers fired me. Two of the three owners told me the papers were going in a new direction.
I like to think of this as the old direction in journalism although the venue is probably the new direction for most of journalism. I write news and sports about the Whitewater Valley, specifically Union and Franklin counties. I write columns and keep this open for others to contribute Letters to the Fired Editor, columns and editorials and anything else they might want to write.
Rules are no libelous statements.
Other than that, have fun. When I was the editor of those four newspapers going in the old direction, I believed very strongly people should be able to say what they want to say about subjects, especially if I did not agree with their opinions.
This is America. We should have the freedom of having our own opinions. We should be able to make learned, maybe passionate defenses of our opinions. I do not want, nor will I allow personal attacks against someone who expresses their opinions.
There was a time, and it has not been that long ago, people could discuss diverse ideas and opinions, shake hands at the end of the discussion and then go share a cup of coffee or a cold refreshing drink.
It is not too late to get back to those times. So, take a deep breath and don’t be afraid to tell me what you think.
One other rule is one has to sign opinions, articles, columns, letters and all that with one’s real name. When it is sent to me, it must include contact information. I will not publish the contact information. I will publish name, and what town, county and/or state one inhabits.
And this is just a suggestion, especially for opinion pieces: Make them short and sweet. Attention spans, for most people, peaked at about 5 years of age chronologically.
The best way to contact me is email: jestridge@yahoo.com. I am planning to get a snail mail address but I procrastinate.
Please send me ideas and feedback and please remember while visiting this: I am technologically challenged. I am learning this as I go. While all three of my biological children became teachers, that gene apparently did not come from me. I am having a hard time teaching myself how to do this blog. I have a sense of humor or something like that so if you want to laugh at some of my mistakes, I am more than OK with that.
Thank you as we head in another direction.
