Advenutures in journalism
Terry Collins has covered stories on everything from stolen potatoes to killer bees to bus strikes.
For Collins, general assignment reporter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, every story is an adventure.
“I cover the good, the bad and the ugly,” Collins told University of Iowa Journalism and Mass Communication students during his visit as a Professional in Residence.
Collins, (B.A. 1992; M.A. 1995), credited his UI J-
MC professors for his success as a versatile professional journalist.
“There’s no one person who can claim full credit for my success,” Collins said. “Everyone’s had a hand in some capacity in helping me.”
Collins singled out Professor Stephen Bloom as an especially influential mentor who gave students a “reality check” in class by emphasizing the way the professional journalism world works.
“[Bloom] built a sense of competitiveness,” Collins said, but also noted that during his schooling he did not learn the “intangibles” — including patience, persistence and the ability to gracefully accept rejection — that only come about with real-world journalism experience.
“There’s a long line of great journalists from Iowa and I just want to be a part of it,” Collins said.
As a student at the UI, Collins gained journalistic experience through involvement with campus organizations such as The Daily Iowan, Quill and Scroll and the National Association of Black Journalists.
“I tried to soak up journalism here [at Iowa] wherever it was,” Collins said.
As a minority student, Collins was initially apprehensive about joining the DI staff because he worried he would not fit in.
His ability to be both an objective journalist and a voice for black students was tested in 1993 when a syndicated cartoon depicting a black man being hanged by the Ku Klux Klan was printed in the DI. Outraged, the UI’s minority population blamed Collins for allowing the cartoon to be printed.
“The minority students only saw the stark image,” Collins said. “I understood why [the editors] ran it but there was a good message within the cartoon that was lost.
“You realize the impact you have as a journalist,” he said. “It tested my strength and leadership skills; if I was a lesser man, it could have been the end of my journalism career.”
Collins did not resign. Instead, he used the DI as an outlet to explain to the UI student population why he believed the cartoon had significance and was rightfully printed.
Currently, Collins covers stories that range from playful, lighthearted features to tough minority issues that many Minneapolis residents face every day. Collins said he enjoys the diversity of general assignment reporting because it allows him to write about a little bit of everything.
And when faced with a topic with which he has little knowledge?
“Ask, ask, ask,” Collins said.
