Heads Up: If my posts go ‘missing in action” during these interesting times
Published: September 18th, 2020
August 2020: Patrick B. McGuigan. Photo by Rachel McGuigan (daughter-in-law)
Patrick B. McGuigan is publisher and editor of The City Sentinel newspaper, an independent publication based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
CapitolBeatOK, an independent news online news organization based in Oklahoma City, was founded in 2009.
After a 12-year hitch at The Oklahoman, the Sooner State’s largest newspaper, Pat McGuigan spent time with Tulsa Today (including a stint as capital editor). The independent news organization is based Oklahoma’s second largest city under the leadership of David Arnett. McGuigan regular uses Tulsa Today’s posts in daily aggregation.
British sprinter Harold Abrahams was portrayed, memorably, by the late Ben Cross in the Academy Award-winning film, “Chariots of Fire.” Abrahams was an Olympic champion in 1924, and a leading figure in world sports organizations for his entire life. His life motto – “I believe in the pursuit of excellence, and I’ll carry the future with me” – was a highlight of the film. Wikipedia photo.
NOTE: This essay is adapted from a post that appeared the evening of Constitution Day (September 17) on the facebook pages for CapitolBeatOK and The City Sentinel newspaper.
Oklahoma City – Should one or another of the Facebook pages with which I am affiliated go “missing in action,” I have no intention of changing my approach to my chosen profession — journalism as the first draft of history. Same with the ‘twittersphere,’ where many frequent readers reside.
Check out the websites CapitolBeatOK.com and City-Sentinel.com if we are not in other, more familiar places, in the days ahead. In Oklahoma City, the newspaper of which I am publisher (The City Sentinel) is available around the city in a wide range of racks and available for purchase at a few convenience stores or book sellers.
My first journalism writing award, for sports news, came when I was in high school at Bishop McGuinness in Oklahoma City. I wrote for The O’Collegian during my college years in Stillwater, and had essays printed in every corner of the United States and in foreign newspapers during my tenure in Washington, D.C. 1980-1990. That pattern continued during my twelve years at The Oklahoman, 1990-2002.
In the last 18 years, while devoting much of my professional time to teaching and during a brief stint in state government, I continued to write for a variety of publications, including Tulsa Today, Watchdog.org, The City Sentinel newspaper and CapitolBeatOK.com. I am grateful to Sooner Politics, which regularly posts CapitolBeatOK’s stories and other reports.
A perhaps allegorical or even legendary story is that the Mandarin symbol for “crisis” is also the symbol for “opportunity.”
And Oscar Wilde allegedly proclaimed there was an ancient Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.”
Crisis. Opportunity. Interesting Times.
Sounds like we’re there, regardless of who gets credit for the sequence of events or the original source of the wisdom.
Reliable readers and certain friends: I won’t go away, and I hope you don’t either.
Believing in the pursuit of excellence, as did the Olympic sprinter Harold Abrahams, I remain –
Your humble servant,
– Patrick B. McGuigan