HAGATñA — A bachelor’s pad in Mangilao reflects a professor in residence.
Stacks of students’ paper on the settee, computer printouts, note pads and some college books on the table speak of the kind of life Guam Variety columnist and university professor John Wittmayer leads.
“Journalism is a very hard field to be in. You have to run around and talk to a lot of people whom you have to get information from and who may not want to talk to you. You have to work under a deadline and you don’t get paid much for it,” Wittmayer said.
His hard work has paid off, however.
Wittmayer bagged the Best Editorial/Column award at the Micronesia Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists 2001 Professional Achievement and Performance Awards presented recently at the Hilton Guam Resort & Spa.
Wittmayer’s entry, “Don’t Substitute Slogans for Thought,” bested two other entries submitted by the Pacific Daily News.
“(This award) is a nice recognition. It’s always good to get some kind of recognition. You’ll never know…if anybody appreciates your work or not,” he said.
Wittmayer gives his opinion on topics that ranges from education to government issues.
“(I get my ideas) from current news. The others are things that I’ve been thinking about for a long time,” Wittmayer said, adding that he does not like yellow journalism.
“There’s a temptation to (do yellow journalism). You’re trained in the media to make things exciting and you try to attempt to try to make things more exciting than they really are sometimes, but you just have to focus on telling the truth about it. In the long run, people will respect you a lot more if you don’t sensationalize or exaggerate,” Wittmayer said.
Readers find his columns educational as well as enlightening.
“I read his columns because they’re straightforward. I learn a lot about current events from him,” said Ernesto Soriano.
“I especially like the way he analyzes the problems in education on Guam,” Tamuning resident Epifania Torres said.
Wittmayer does not need much inspiration to write his columns, although he practices yoga to help him meditate. For recreation, Wittmayer works on his yard, goes swimming, walks on the beach and snorkels.
“I just write about anything. I read the papers. I listen to the public radio a lot. I talk to people,” Wittmayer said. A communications and journalism professor at the University of Guam, Wittmayer has been a Guam Variety columnist for over two years.
Wittmayer has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of North Dakota, a master’s degree in communications from the North Dakota State University, and a secondary teaching certificate from the San Francisco State University.
Wittmayer, who did stints as sports writer and editor of Bismarck Tribune in North Dakota, hopes to write for international readers someday.
“I’ve always had that ambition to try to syndicate my column,’ he said.
