Looks like I get an A in Journalism 300

April 11, 2007 | 2:13 pm

Judging by some of the responses to previous speakers on their class blog, I was a bit intimidated heading into a Journalism 300 class at UMass on Monday. I mean, this is a tough crowd:

Grabbeâ€™s explanation for his termination from the Waterbury Republican of Conn., the Greenfield Recorder of Mass., and the Valley Advocate, also of Mass., was that “I was kind of a primadonna. I thought I was better than everybody elseâ€¦ I was kind of a jerk.”

Well, Journalism 300 student Becky agreed with Grabbe and pointed out, “You kind of still are.” Grabbe had an air of arrogance about him as he passed around a number of feature stories he had written.

But the early entries on my visit are in, and I seem to have done okay. The following are excerpts from some of the responses students wrote on my talk (and, I’ll admit it — it’s a bit self-aggrandizing for me to put it up here, but I really enjoyed getting a glimpse at how different journalism education is today):

Upon Dave’s arrival to class, I could tell he would be a very laid back yet passionate journalist. I actually rode the elevator with him on my way to class. He looked like your typical blue-collar guy who you could sit back with at the bar and watch the game. He’s your average Joe with a whopper of a story to tell.

* Copeland is the kind of person I truly respect. He has gone beyond judging Gonanâ€™s actions based on his own view of morality and has come to understand what Gonan views of morality of life- his own belief of what is right or wrong through their personal relationship.

* Personally, I thought Copeland was the best speaker our class has seen so far. He was very friendly and interesting. He grabbed the attention of our class, how could he not?

* David Copeland visited our class last week, providing the most interesting and entertaining visit weâ€™ve had all semester. Copeland is a really personable guy and made listening to him a wonderful experience.

* Copeland was very modest about his accomplishment, claiming that dumb luck had a large role in the making of the book. My impression was that while Copeland got a few fortune breaks, his persistence combined with his thoroughness in checking every lead put him in the position to get lucky. As Copeland said. “Sometimes you have to make your own luck.”

*
Copeland, from the beginning of the class, was quite worried about the responses he would get following his appearance. He handled himself with dignity and class. He was certainly well prepared for tough questions and answered most with ease. Plus Copeland is a big Red Sox fan, so heâ€™s pretty ok in my book.

There are still some students who haven’t submitted responses — I just hope they’re not Yankee fans.

Tags: Bloodandvolume, Umass