Shelter in place. Social distancing. Economic fallout. Virus testing vs. antibody testing.
Just as we’re figuring out the strange new rhythm of telling the stories of our community facing coronavirus – a microscopic menace whose devastating effects have upended life as we know it – we took another body blow.
Mother Nature walloped Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia late Sunday night with severe thunderstorms and ferocious tornadoes packing 145 mph winds that claimed the lives of 11 people and annihilated landscapes, leaving us stunned and grappling with shocking loss.
The loss of life is breathtaking; those families’ grief indescribable. The monstrous storm damaged upwards of 1,000 structures at a preliminary cost between $200 million and $300 million. Tens of thousands have been without power for days, and many lost everything they own.
Talk about kicking us when we’re down.
But these are the moments when newspapers fulfill their unique public service mission: Keeping the public fully informed. It is a cornerstone of our First Amendment core values.
No one else has the responsibility – the obligation – to record what happens in a community. We do. We choose it every day. We write down and photograph and record what we see, hear, feel and touch. Diligently. Objectively. With no goal but to inform our communities. These stories must be told; if reporters aren’t there to bear witness, the voices and faces and human experiences of these tragedies are lost.
Sometimes it is a horrible obligation.
Staff Photo by Sarah Grace Taylor / Times Free Press photojournalist Cody Schmelter covers the devastation of the recent EF 3 tornado that struck the newspaper’s coverage area. 
Reporters Sarah Grace Taylor, Rosana Hughes, Meghan Mangrum, Wyatt Massey, Ben Benton, Mary Fortune, Elizabeth Fite, Patrick Filbin, Mike Pare, Dave Flessner and photographers Robin Rudd, Tim Barber, Cody Schmelter and Troy Stolt fanned out across the county and region to confront the awful and the uplifting: dazed homeowners, grateful to be alive, picking through the little pieces of the lives they knew before Easter night; the hustle of volunteers to offer shelter and supplies; the incredible stories of survival.
“The human element comes across in story and after story. Terror. Bewilderment. Wonder. Faith. Awe. Exhaustion. Hope. We’ve got it all,” TFP news Editor Ricky Young wrote to the staff.
You bet. And readers let us know every day what it means to them.
“You are such a blessing to me. I read every word of the paper. All of you are so appreciated. Thank you for what you do,” one reader from Lookout Mountain, Georgia, said in a voicemail message.
And yes, there are some who have taken us to task for our blanket coverage. They think we should stay away.
To them, I would say this:
This story is deeply personal to many on our staff. They are covering it because they have an obligation to tell the stories of this storm, and they are simultaneously living through it.
Their homes are damaged; they don’t have power. Some of them and many of their family members are displaced. At the same time they are covering this tragedy, they are working carefully, observing social distancing recommendations. That kind of worry, those little seeds of personal stress, add to the inherent pressures of working on constant deadlines.
But every one of them lives to tell your stories. Relentlessly, but also with care and concern.
So yeah, the Times Free Press will continue to focus on tornado recovery and the storm’s human and community impact in Hamilton and the surrounding counties in Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia in coming weeks. We will also continue to provide readers what they need to know about the coronavirus and its evolving, deep, far-reaching impact on residents, businesses, schools and government.
It’s our commitment to you, to telling these stories, to holding government accountable, that is the foundation of the credibility and trust our readers place in us. And that has value.
Well, it should.
We do this important work even though our economic model looks less and less capable of supporting it.
All of us are working like mad to give the best, most up-to-date information about the tornado and coronavirus. We have taken down our paywall so that more people can access our comprehensive, trusted information. Readership has skyrocketed.
In times of a national emergency, natural disasters, major events, etc., removing paywalls is mission critical. It is morally, ethically, professionally right to do so. Essential. Vital.
Readers clamoring for information, explanation and for how to help, all seem to be eager to consume and share what we have to offer. And that means they see value in our product.
But if you value something, shouldn’t you pay for it? Hand sanitizer has value right now. So do toilet paper and face masks. People truly need those things. But I don’t see Target or WalMart giving them away for free. One of our greatest strengths as an industry also is our greatest weakness. We will always, always do what’s right even if it isn’t what’s profitable. If the economic models make that untenable, our communities will be far worse off for it.
In a weak moment, I snapped at a friend who complained about the media hype about COVID-19 and having to “pay” for news. I asked her where she got her information. Her response? Facebook. Any credible sources in her news feed? She didn’t know; she doesn’t look at sources. I told her to use the Times Free Press website for accurate, timely information, then urged her to subscribe. She was taken aback that yes, it costs money to do what we do, and that if she values our product (whether access is open today and not tomorrow), she should show her support with a check.
It is my hope that people like my friend will embrace the value of our mission and will come to support the idea that wide and deep support for a healthy newspaper is how all of our communities will thrive. A strong community has a strong newspaper.
We are making our case right now.
Chris Vass, public editor of the Times Free Press, is president of the Tennessee Press Association. Contact her at cvass@timesfreepress.com.