Caught word that a colleague in the world of journalism would be stepping down from ‘The Birmingham News’ today. I can’t tell you how long Chanda Temple wrote for the paper, nor can I tell you much about her journalistic background before arriving at the paper. But what I can tell you about her is that in a city filled with plenty of bad news she did her best to present the best that Birmingham has to offer.
Chanda’s ink pen at one time or another showcased all the many unique people, places, & events of the city of Birmingham. In a city that’s filled with ‘Murder, Death, Kill, Corruption, Roll Tide’ stories that have a unique identity to them can often fall through the cracks.
Capturing this side of the city is no easy task. In no way am I saying that Chanda Temple was the only writer at ‘The Birmingham News’ that accomplishes this but there aren’t many writers like that in journalism period. Which is what makes her loss so substantial in my opinion.
This digital age in which we live has impacted print journalism immensely. Starting in the fall, ‘The Birmingham News’ will only be printed 3-days a week. I assure you that anyone in this era doing print journalism well, has to do it with a level of love for the area they’re covering that cannot be faked.
We lost a good one Birmingham. We are a talented, gifted and prosperous city and I can only hope that those filling Chanda’s shoes at ‘The Birmingham News’ are just as capable in showcasing to the world the Birmingham that we locals have known about for quite a while. Not the Birmingham that everyone sees on ‘First 48’ or ‘Bait Car’
Wood, Jr.
Good story Roy and truly agree!