Growing up alongside the country
Summing up any period of time is a dangerous undertaking as could be seen by the numerous over-generalizations and tired cliches that littered coverage of the 10th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. That said, I'll plow right into the same minefield in looking back at the first five years of the Warsaw Business Journal.
Summing up the life of a newspaper is especially difficult because a paper, or at least a good one, is a constantly changing animal that takes on a life of its own. I think this is especially true of the WBJ. The paper has changed enormously during its infancy, and in doing so has mirrored a constantly evolving city, society and nation.
In the WBJ's early days we were crammed into a ramshackle office a block away from plac Konstytucji. In hindsight it was a romantic setting for a start-up newspaper that many of us now look back on fondly. But I wouldn't want to be back there. At the same time, the plac itself has changed, losing the kiosks that marked the first stage of the city's transition to a free-market economy. I'll miss those too, but I agree a facelift is needed.
I think it would be fair to say that the paper has grown up alongside Poland with both approaching, if not maturity, at least a later stage of adolescence. Throughout this growth process the one constant at the paper has been what at times seemed to be a never-ending series of small battles: to improve the paper, to break news, to add greater depth and insight to our stories and above all to preserve our independence and integrity. That last bit has been the greatest battle, from beating back advertisers who want favorable coverage or who simply can't understand why they can't buy a story, to our refusal to take part in the nefarious practice of allowing sources to authorize quotes.
Surprisingly, after fighting these battles as editor for the past two years, I've come to the conclusion that such skirmishes are not as unique to Central Europe as one would assume. Just a month ago, the Los Angeles Times was rocked by an ethical scandal that resulted in reporters going on a byline strike and the paper's former publisher breaking a long silence about its operations to publicly castigate the current publisher and the chief executive of the paper's parent company. So it seems Poland isn't that different from the rest of the world. And it shows that even in a democracy as old as the United States with a grand tradition of a free press, the battle must be fought every day. So too must we all continue to fight it here as Poland continues to grow into a mature democracy.
On a more personal note, I will have to watch the daily battles from afar as I have now stepped down as editor of the WBJ and will be leaving Poland to return to the United States. I leave as one who is enormously bullish on Poland's future and confident that if through nothing but sheer grit and determination, Poles will make this market work. I would like to thank all the staff of the WBJ who have built this into a fine paper, as well as the readers and advertisers who have supported us through thick and thin.
David Reilly came to Warsaw in March 1996 as managing editor of the WBJ, and went on to take over as editor in September 1997 until stepping down this October.
