By Cutter Kilgore
Everything I do for this newspaper I do out in the open. I decided that, when warranted, I would use this editorial space, this pocket of our publication, for unabashed honesty.
There are no secrets or underhanded tactics in my world of writing and reporting for this medium. My ardent goal is to inform and empower Whatcom’s student body through relevant information, enlightening profiles and eye-catching features.
So I was intrigued when Shawn Chantaboune, someone I knew to be a member of student council, approached me and asked me to do an interview with him for the Horizon. He had some things to say about his time on council.
There’s already more than enough political bouts of back and forth games and nasty “he said, she said” tiffs going on in the world, and I have no great desire to include Horizon’s voice in that inane cacophony.
But some interesting insights were raised, including questions about how communication occurs between Whatcom’s student body and its student leadership, that I felt deserved responsible discussion.
So I set out to listen to as many points of view from as many involved parties as possible in a painstaking effort to treat our readers to the kind of fair and balanced article that I expect from my hard-working staff and myself.
I work out in the open with no attempt at secrecy or deception as to my journalistic intent. I honestly and sincerely will share with readers all sides of any issue in every article. I’m committed to accuracy.
I was faced with many unreturned phone calls and unanswered emails from sources I attempted to reach for comment. Still, it’s not too late.
I understand the likelihood that any political debate or critique will cause discussion, and I expect several after-the-fact voices will chime in. Please send those comments to editor@whatcomhorizon.com.
This holds true for any comment, critique or opinion any reader would like to share, political or otherwise. My personal commitment to you, the readers, is that I’m always available. My door is always open, so to speak.
Welcome, all you new and returning students, to another great and exciting academic year at Whatcom! Horizon is back to bring you fresh faces, news, sports, opinions and entertainment from around campus. I’m excited to get started.
