We in The Baltimore Sun newsroom got word a few weeks ago that our former editor, John S. Carroll, was seriously ill, with a grim prognosis. On Sunday, returning from the editing conference in Toronto, I read of his death at age 73.
To the many tributes, such as the obituary in The Sun and David Folkenflik's reminiscences, I would like to add a few remarks, because I, like many others, was shaped in my career by John Carroll.
Upon his return to The Sun as editor, John worked to elevate the quality of the paper.* He was pleased with an in-house newsletter on writing and editing, Publish and Be Damned, and he sent out a memo to the staff in 1994 that began "I've asked John McIntyre to lead an effort to improve the quality of writing and editing in the paper."**
The sessions I conducted for the staff were the beginning of the workshops that I later conducted for the American Copy Editors Society's national conferences and for newspapers and other publications around the United States and Canada. What reputation I have beyond the newsroom of The Sun is largely due to opportunities that John Carroll made possible.
He also understood the importance and value of copy editors. He encouraged my participation in the American Copy Editors Society. The flush revenues of the 1990s also made it possible for him to expand the staff, and he allowed me to hire the first of a series of exceptionally smart and able copy editors, many of whom were subsequently promoted at the paper, and many who have also gone on from The Sun to The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times, and other positions of substantial responsibility.
John understood copy editors because, in addition to being a reporter of great skill, he was also the sharpest of editors. I once saw the text of a major article that he took into his own hands, and the focus, tightness, and polish of the article that came out of his office showed that he knew what he was doing.
All the obituary tributes to him are accurate. He was smart, courtly in demeanor and conduct, intellectually curious, and witty. He was also tough-minded, steel beneath the courtliness. When he set his face against someone, that someone did not prosper. When he determined to win Pulitzer Prizes for his papers, he navigated the political dimension of the Pulitzer process with skill.
A few years ago, he asked me to read and comment on a proposal for a book on his time as editor of the Lexington Herald-Leader and his conflict with the president of the University of Kentucky. I read the proposal and sample chapter, which were sharp and ably carpentered, sent them back to him, and waited for publication.
Now, it appears, we will never see his book.
John Carroll had the good fortune to shape the direction of two major newspapers, and in doing so he molded the professional lives of scores of journalists. I am one of the many, and for the chances he gave me I honor his memory.
*This did not sit well with everyone on the staff, and some of the local talent expressed displeasure when John began bringing in outside talent, particularly from The Philadelphia Inquirer, where he had previously worked.
**Again, enthusiasm was somewhat less than universal. I recall in particular one reporter who sat through an entire workshop ostentatiously updating her calendar or address book. As Dr. Johnson wrote, "We are more pained by ignorance than delighted by instruction."