It’s been a hectic few years for the man who’s leading the news coverage of Colorado’s marijuana legalization and the Aurora movie theater shooting.
Greg Moore, editor of The Denver Post, was at Ohio University on Monday night to discuss with about 175 people, mostly students, what it’s like to be a manager in the news industry.
“Without passion you can’t do good journalism,” Moore said. “I’m agnostic about the platform. I care about the people who are still moving to change things based on the facts they’re given.”
The Denver Post won a “bittersweet” Pulitzer Prize for its five-day Aurora theater shooting package, which didn’t have any errors, Moore said.
Since the shooting happened at almost 1 a.m., the newspaper mainly relied on its website and online tools to communicate the details of the event.
The Denver Post editors gave its Pulitzer Prize money — $10,000 cash, according to Pulitzer’s website — to Aurora shooting victims, Moore said.
“It was nice to hear someone speak so eloquently about journalism, especially to hear from someone so successful still in the (journalism) game right now,” said Joshua Jamerson, local editor at The Post, who moderated the discussion.
Moore also spoke about the publication’s coverage of Colorado’s legalization of marijuana. Moore created a website specific for marijuana coverage, where he appointed a marijuana editor and relies on multimedia and marijuana reviews to attract readers.
The website, www.thecannabist.co, has an embedded map showing readers where they can purchase marijuana.
Moore also serves on the Pulitzer Prize Board, where he helps decide which organizations will receive the award.
It’s a “secret society” of sorts, Moore said.
“It’s a group of very smart people who use words really well and you don’t always win… it’s the greatest debating society I’ve ever been a part of,” Moore said.
Once The Rocky Mountain News closed its doors in February 2009, The Denver Post initially doubled its circulation from 250,000 to about 480,000. Now, Moore’s paper has about a circulation of 200,000.
The Scripps College of Communication, OU’s Society of Professional Journalists and The Post hosted the event.
Moore has also worked at The Plain Dealer in Cleveland and as the managing editor at The Boston Globe.
“He seemed really honest,” said Dottie Kramer, a freshman studying journalism. “As he said, in journalism you have to think about other people first. Maybe I’ve not done it yet, but hopefully soon.”
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This article appeared in print under the headline "Mogul speaks to students"
