AUJRNL 4970
Tuscaloosa News Column
By Emily Shoffit
In the name of journalism, I gathered all the bias that I had against Tuscaloosa and its crimson-bleeding dwellers to step foot behind enemy bylines. I had only been to the city once for sport and while I enjoyed my time, fellow members of the Auburn family shared stories that would make any Tiger afraid to leave The Plains.
​
But I was determined.
​
Tossing myself into the belly of the beast, I found U.S. Highway 82 Alabama and headed north from Auburn on my Community Journalism Road Trip. I traveled through the country for about three hours before hitting a wall of shopping malls and buildings occupied by dry cleaners and payday loan businesses. Traveling through, feeling lost even though I had Google Maps directing me, I found the Tuscaloosa News.​
It was one of the largest news buildings I’d seen. I traveled there in the name of community journalism, with some knowledge of the newspaper’s coverage of the tornadoes in 2011, but I thought surely this particular newspaper was far too big to embody a sense of ‘community.’ I was wrong.
​
In my short time there I learned about the role the Tuscaloosa News had on those days of devastation in 2011. I learned that the staff at the News put journalism first during a time that affected themselves and their families.
​
I learned that the Tuscaloosa News also helps other community newspapers by printing local papers from around the area. Finally, I learned that the size of the News reflects the size of their coverage area. Every day, they serve 10 counties by reporting the activities and actions of citizens and government.
​
My initial impression of the Tuscaloosa News was that it might be too large to have a true sense of community. But I learned that the dedicated staff here has a deep passion for their surrounding area and their audience.
​
Also, this particular Auburn student found out Tuscaloosa isn’t as bad as I thought.