Elliott Brack is to 1960s Georgia newspapers what the hit AMC television show "Mad Men" is to New York advertising agencies of the same era. Provocative, stylized and ruthlessly competitive in an ego-driven world.
If there was an Emmy Award for real-life characters, Brack would be the lifetime achievement recipient. Because some 40 years later, he's still shaking things up and making headlines – literally.
Brack is old school journalism in a new world of newspapers that compete with online publications, social media and bloggers. He's in-your-face politics with all the polish and charm of a well-schooled Southern gentleman.
"Journalism has changed dramatically over the years, but it's still just putting out a good story," says the 74 year-old award-winning newspaperman who began his career in 1962 at the Wayne County Press in Jesup, Georgia and went on to work in editorial and management positions at the Gwinnett Daily News, The Marietta Daily Journal and The Atlanta Journal Constitution. Along the way, he served as the president of the Georgia Press Association and as an associate professor of journalism at the University of Georgia.
As many daily newspapers across the state have consolidated or closed their presses, Brack presses on with own twice-weekly online forum that he describes as a higher-level, moderated discussion on politics and the world at hand.
"Nostalgia? You're not going to get that out of me. It's about what's happening right now," he says, "I've broken some good stories over the years, but they all pale. It's the continuum that counts."
But with the election season upon us, it leaves Brack scratching his head as to why The Atlanta Journal Constitution and other major U.S. dailies ever stopped endorsing political candidates.
"It's because they're chicken. Today's newspapers are run by CPAs that don't understand the heritage of newspapers," says the 74 year-old Brack, true to his well-known, colorful character. "But mostly because it takes an editorial board four to five weeks to interview all the city, county and statewide candidates. It comes down to manpower."
To facilitate what he feels is imperative to pre-election discussion – not to mention educating the public about the candidates and issues – this year Brack interviewed an impressive 71 political candidates for 30 minutes each. He's got several more to go.
"I got mad as the devil when I found out the AJC was no longer going to endorse candidates," he says. "Back then, The Atlanta Journal was considered to lean right and The Atlanta Constitution leaned left. When they combined in the early 90s, you couldn't tell how they leaned – sometimes they endorsed a Republican and sometimes they endorsed a Democrat – but they were always a progressive and forward-thinking newspaper and carried Atlanta through the Civil Rights."
Did a newspaper's endorsement impact the outcome of elections? Brack says not at the level of senator or governor, but definitely at the lower levels. "Some voters thought an endorsement was a candidate's kiss of death," he says. "And sometimes the newspaper was dead wrong – like when they endorsed Richard Nixon or Ronald Reagan."
As for Brack's brand of politics, he is a self-described liberal who tries to be straight forward about who is the best candidate. He urges voters to learn about the issues and the candidates in their district, make notes and take them into the ballot box. With politics so much wider than they used to be, ballots have become so complicated that in many instances, voting "for" an issue means voting "no" on the ballot.
He's asked all of the candidates he's interviewed recently to answer five questions. Their answers, Brack's endorsements and the thinking behind his endorsements are posted on his online forum.
Although Elliott Brack is a modern-day thinker, he represents the golden age of newspapers in Georgia. An hour spent talking with him is indeed an education on the state of local and state politics. But it's also a glimpse into a bygone era when candidates could not buy their way to media exposure and victory. It was a simpler, less complicated time when one could honestly say to their neighbor, "may the best man win."
Elliott Brand publishes www.gwinnettforum.com, a twice-weekly online publication. He is also the author and publisher of an 850-page historical book titled "Gwinnett: A Little Above Atlanta." For more information, visit www.elliottbrack.com
