NCEW stands stronger than ever.

The 50th anniversary of NCEW comes at a time when we increasingly see reminders that editorials are not the only opinion show in town.

Traditional print and broadcast opinion writers face competition from talk radio, reader-dominated opinion pages, public or civic journalism, the Internet, Sunday talk shows, and Oprah.

My reading of the almost-50-year history of "organized" editorial writing suggests that editorial writers are a resourceful, innovative, scrappy bunch who can be counted on to hang onto the best of the old ways and grab hold of the best of the new.

They've been that way ever since their first get-together in January 1947, at American Press Institute's first seminar for editorial writers at Columbia University in New York City. Realizing now what a breakthrough that session turned out to be - and how much has changed in the field of editorial writing since - is hard for us.

Twenty-six editorial writers showed up at API, but when they got together again just nine months later, an incredible 101 came. That gathering in October 1947 in Washington, D.C., became the first annual conference (now called convention) of NCEW.

Until API's session, editorial writers from across the country had never assembled. One attendee of both meetings described his fellow writers as "anonymous wretches," unknown to each other and largely unknown to their readers.

Publishers and editors had been getting together at lavish conventions for decades, but editorial writers had remained "cloistered" (a description by another API participant) and didn't dare to leave their typewriters. They feared they would be seen as uppity by their bosses, assuming privileges not given to editorial writers.

Once out of the editorial closet, however, no one has been able to push the writers back in. By October 1996, they will have held an unbroken series of 50 annual NCEW conventions, each of which could match the quality of any meeting of their bosses.

By fall 1996, they also will have published 188 issues of the quarterly publication The Masthead (consistently one of the nation's most provocative journalism publications) and three anthologies. That number includes a 40th anniversary edition and this commemorative issue.

Beyond a doubt, over the decades the conventions and The Masthead have advanced the qualifications and the professional confidence of editorial writers. In the meetings and in the quarterly journal, NCEW members also have challenged their editors, their publishers, the owners of their papers, their peers, journalism educators, politicians, and their readers in a fashion that suggests to me that they can meet the challenges ahead.

For the first half of NCEW's life, about all members got for their dues were the convention and four issues per year of the publication. Those who did not attend the convention had only The Masthead, good as it was.

The first gatherings

The early conventions featured hard-working, intimate sessions. Writers listened to notable speakers and toured areas in which they were meeting, but serving as the heart of the convention from the first year were the small group critique sessions. Here, writers shared praise, criticism, and encouragement. The sessions also gave them new ideas.

Hearing writers report the following year that critique suggestions they carried home had convinced their bosses to make changes the writers had been pushing for years was not unusual - then or now.

Media critic Ben H. Bagdikian delivered one of the more memorable critiques in 1965. Eighty-eight NCEW members sent copies of their editorial pages to Bagdikian before the convention.

Reading the editorials convinced Bagdikian that "a new generation of editors is taking over," better educated than their predecessors, less inclined to spout the economic and social orthodoxies of an earlier era, and less likely to "believe the nostalgic fantasies" of the owners of some of their papers. But he expressed disappointment in the number of factual errors in editorials, the scarcity of humor, and too often the "lack of a point of view."

At that same convention, Jonathan Daniels of the Raleigh News and Observer took the writers to task in a speech rifled "The docility of the dignified press." He said that "the personages" who gathered at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City every spring (the publishers and the editors) "are indistinguishable from bankers." Looking over the Saturday night banquet crowd, he added: "You look pretty impressive yourselves."

He urged the writers to shed their stuffed shirts and "sometimes get into the hair one."

Every convention-goer has an unforgettable memory or two. Perhaps the most cited event, at least among old-timers, occurred in Des Moines in 1950, during a talk about farm policy by Senator Eugene Milliken. As Dwight Sargent recalled in a look back at the first 20 years of NCEW, at one point Lauren Soth of the Des Moines Register and Tribune jumped to his feet, pointed his finger at Milliken, and shouted "Nonsense, Senator!"

Another outburst occurred at the 1965 convention during Daniels' speech. As Robert B. Frazier of the Eugene Register-Guard recalled in a Masthead reminiscence about early conventions: "In the middle of Jonathan Daniels' speech, an opinion molder, from somewhere east of the Delaware River, got up and interrupted the talk with a drunken soliloquy. The urbane Daniels replied, 'My good man, every person has a place on a program, and yours is departure.' The fellow did depart, checked out of the hotel by morning, and has never been heard from since."

From time to time the editorial writers considered meeting regularly in Washington, D.C., as do some other newspaper groups. But with three exceptions, members have preferred to move around to see what is going on in other parts of the country.

They almost have been to the four corners, from San Diego to Boston, from Tampa to San Francisco. They got cold feet in 1961 after initially deciding to go to Hawaii and ended up in St. Louis. They did get to Honolulu in 1973 and to Canada in 1977 and 1987.

Convention speakers have included H.L. Mencken, President Lyndon Johnson, would-be president George Romney, Vice President Richard Nixon, Senator Barry Goldwater, then-Governor Ronald Reagan, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Senator Albert Gore Sr., and Senator Albert Gore Jr. when he was a candidate for vice president. A highlight of the first convention (then called a conference) came at the White House with President Harry Truman.

And the list of writers who have participated in the conventions or written for The Masthead is impressive. Attending the API session were notables such as Robert H. Estabrook of The Washington Post, James Russell Wiggins of The New York Times (later of The Washington Post), John Cline of the (old) Washington Star, Leslie Moore of The Worcester Telegram and Gazette, and Paul Trescott of the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin.

Among the early convention-goers were Barry Bingham Sr. of The Courier-Journal and Louisville Times, Dwight Sargent of the New York Herald Tribune, Robert Kennedy of the Chicago Sun-Times, Rufus Terral of the St. Louis Post Dispatch, and James J. Kilpatrick of The Richmond News Leader.

No fewer than 16 Pulitzer Prize winners have contributed to The Masthead, and a large but unknown number of them have attended conventions. Over the years, the authors of five editorial writing textbooks have both attended conventions and written for The Masthead.

The professional journal

Volume I, Number 1 of The Masthead appeared in Spring 1949, even though three issues of four or six mimeographed pages had been been published in 1948. In the 185 issues published through Winter 1995, a total of 4,715 articles and pieces of artwork appeared.

Most have been long forgotten but many, if rediscovered, would seem as fresh today as they were when published.

One of my favorite articles concerned the validity of anonymous editorials - a subject still being discussed on some newspapers today. Sam Reynolds of The Missoulian coined the phrase "editorial transubstantiation" to describe the belief (incredible to him) that an unsigned editorial can express the opinion of something so impersonal as a newspaper. It was like the leap of faith, he said, that is involved in believing that bread and wine are transubstantiated into the blood and body of Christ.

In another favorite but entirely different article, Al Southwick of The Worcester Telegram offered advice on how to write an editorial about the world of nature. He appended a charming example titled "Cider - the nectar of October."

The content of The Masthead has changed over the decades, reflecting how editorial writing and NCEW have changed.

During the earliest years, large numbers of articles were directed toward improving the quality of editorials and the editorial pages. The authors were not much concerned about design, columnists, cartoons, or letters. Then in the 1970s, with the arrival of cold type and offset printing, Masthead articles began concentrating more on the mechanics of putting out the editorial page.

Diversity, new technology, and alternatives to traditional editorial pages comprise recent symposiums, as well as articles with appeal to the broadened NCEW membership that now includes broadcast opinion writers, columnists, editorial page editors, and journalism educators in 48 states (all but Nevada and South Dakota) plus Canada, England, Mexico, Norway, and Sweden.

In one aspect, The Masthead has changed little.

Over the decades about one in every six articles has offered advice on how to write editorials on some subject or other. The most written-about subjects have been fairly consistent: international, politics, and humor - the last no doubt as a relief from the other two.

But what has changed is the production of The Masthead. For nearly 30 years, the quarterly publication was typewritten, proofed, and reproduced from material provided by a volunteer editor to Executive Services, operated by Christian and Ruth Nelson. The cover for the spring issue was always green, the summer blue, the fall tan, the winter white, with a few exceptions for special editions.

The original NCEW logo was the only artwork on the cover until the late '60s when a photograph of the officers appeared on the winter issue. The pages were stapled - no artwork inside, of course. As homely as it was, The Masthead was widely regarded as a meaty newspaper journal.

Eventually the need for The Masthead to be printed and become more attractive graphically became clear. Today's members may have difficulty realizing what a risk we ran in going to Ruth to tell her we were going elsewhere for the printing.

Part of the difficulty came because we also relied on Ruth to keep track of the membership and to help run the conventions. Publishing The Masthead helped subsidize these services. Fortunately, she stayed with NCEW until her retirement in 1977. Cora Everett, who was office manager for Executive Services, took over the NCEW account. She was later joined by her daughter Tomi Fontaine. Together with Cora's husband Tom Everett, they established Everett Associates to manage the NCEW/NCEW Foundation headquarters in Rockville, Md.

Since 1988, The Masthead has been professionally produced by Armour&Armour in Nashville, which submitted the best competitive bid to the Ad Hoc Masthead Review Committee in 1987. (New members may not realize that "Armour&Armour" refers to Joan Armour and Christopher Armour, the wife and son of NCEW life member and former president Lloyd Armour.) The firm's principals - Joan and Christopher, along with Jan Stinson - have extensive experience in journalism and in publication of periodicals.

The firm designs the publication, giving the volunteer editor more time to devote to content. The Masthead today retains the same high quality it had when every page contained nothing but typewritten characters.

Review, reform, activism

As the years went by, the conventions attracted more and more participants - and became more expensive. While critiques remained a vital part of the convention, the programs began to focus on big-name speakers, recreational excursions, and hosted cocktail parties.

In San Diego in 1968 the free drinks, an evening cruise, and speeches by an admiral and Governor Ronald Reagan with several of his entourage led to a controversy about the acceptance of freebies. The following year, in Indianapolis, a revolt regarding the nomination process led to the appointment of a Review Committee, charged with taking a look at the convention and the organization.

The Review Committee recommended getting back to basics at the conventions and democratizing the organization. Until then, an inner clique had controlled nominations for officers - with one person nominated for each position and the four main officers assured of advancement up the ladder.

The committee proposed putting up two candidates for secretary and for each board position. Automatic advancement beyond secretary was not changed. The changes were adopted.

The Review Committee also suggested tightening the Statement of Principles, especially relating to conflicts of interest. It also advised the organization to speak out on issues of concern to the newspaper business.

This rethinking of NCEW's role did not take place in a vacuum. The San Diego convention came a couple of months after the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where Vietnam War and civil rights protesters had demonstrated. Some of the concerns identified by the Review Committee later surfaced in new forms during the Watergate hearings in 1973.

Members of NCEW prided themselves that the group was not a "resoluting organization." They liked going to conventions, sharing and debating ideas with each other, without having to vote or reach a consensus - unlike editorial board meetings back home. They resisted having the organization speak out.

But in the spirit of the times, NCEW eventually did speak out - briefly. In 1974 the organization's first public statement (by the executive board) expressed concern about testimony in the Watergate hearings that a nationally syndicated columnist had received money from the Republicans (for writing speeches for Martha Mitchell, wife of the attorney general) without informing his syndicate or his newspaper subscribers. In filing a complaint against the columnist, NCEW became the first newspaper organization to deal with the now-defunct National News Council. The Council found in NCEW's favor.

That same year NCEW also called attention to potential conflicts of interest among other columnists. As a result of pressure from NCEW, major syndicates agreed to notify newspaper editors when conflicts of interest arose among their columnists and when readers had legitimate complaints about what the columnists have written. (But 20 years later, as an article in The Masthead reported, a recheck of the syndicates found that they had lapsed into their old patterns.)

NCEW also expressed concern when it learned in the 1970s that the CIA was using journalists as spies. Recent news reports indicate the CIA would like to continue to do so.

The radicalism of the late 1960s and the idealism of the Watergate era faded, and so did NCEW's flirtation with speaking out.

New directions

NCEW did not stop trying to open new frontiers. The group found other ways to help members.

President Richard Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had not been back long from their opening gambit in China before NCEW officers began knocking on Beijing's door, trying to arrange a tour for members. Repeated annual efforts finally paid off in 1980. The trip was so successful that the organization began to sponsor a tour abroad each year.

The idea of regional editorial writing conferences at first was viewed with apprehension since some felt they might draw participation away from the national convention. For a while several regions held meetings, which did not seem to affect convention attendance, but regionals seem to have peaked and waned.

Members may exchange copies of their editorial pages to share ideas through the "Page Exchange." Other member services today include providing a mentoring link between new members and experienced NCEW members, and offering critique services for newspaper and broadcast editorial operations.

For several years The Masthead has carried a series of "special reports" dealing with current issues - subjects like syndicated columnists, editorial page readership, and the job newspapers are doing in commenting on international issues.

In conjunction with the College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, NCEW offered a series of seminars on timely foreign and domestic issues from 1982 to 1993. The Knight Center for Specialized Journalism now sponsors the December seminar.

Together with the National Broadcast Editorial Association and the National Association of Black Journalists, NCEW established the Ida B. Wells Award for exceptional service in hiring and training minorities. The award is given in alternate years at the NCEW convention.

In 1981, Reese Cleghorn spearheaded the establishment of the NCEW Foundation to "conduct, sponsor, and support educational programs and projects in the field of journalism." The Foundation annually salutes a journalism educator who recruits and trains minority students through the Barry Bingham Sr. Fellowship. It also provides scholarships for students to attend NCEW's annual convention, funds research studies, and sponsors professional meetings and educational workshops such as the Minority Writers Seminar to attract experienced minority writers into opinion writing.

Twenty-some years after the first steps toward democratizing NCEW's elections, members voted in 1994 to allow absentee ballots beginning with the 1995 election of officers. This extended the vote to all members, not just the convention-goers.

And NCEW enjoys a lively and growing presence on the Internet and the information superhighway, with both a Web page and a network of intra-NCEW correspondence by e-mail.

The point is that NCEW and its members have experimented with a lot of ideas, projects, and programs over the years. Concepts have been adopted, adapted, and abandoned to meet changing times and interests.

But in the most important sense of all, NCEW has not changed. For nearly 50 years, it has provided a support group, a conscience, and a poke-in-the-rear for opinion writers. Today, as an organization it is as healthy in membership, leadership, and staff support as it has ever been.

The challenge now is to draw upon the wisdom and ingenuity of its members to preserve, protect, and promote the well-being and the integrity of the opinion function in the revolution now taking place in the media. How we respond will determine whether we keep our jobs writing opinions (for whatever medium) or lose out to the babble of the Internet.

On the basis of my assessment of NCEW's history, I'm betting on the editorial writers.

Masthead editors

1948 Richard West, The Dallas News

1949-50 Rufus Terral, St. Louis Post-Dispatch 

1951-52 James J. Kilpatrick, The Richmond News Leader

1952-53 Vermont C. Royster, The Wall Street Journal

1953-55 Richard D. Peters, The New York Times

1955-56 Robert E. Kennedy, Chicago Sun-Times

1956-59 Millard C. Browned, Buffalo Evening News

1959-60 Clifford E. Carpenter, Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, N.Y.

1960-62 James A. Clendinen, The Tampa Tribune

1962-64 William D. Snider, The Greensboro Daily News and Record

1964-65 Martin N. Perry, The Wichita Beacon

1965-68 Calvin W. Mayne, The Rochester Times-Union

1968-69 Robert B. Frazier, The Eugene Register-Guard

1970 Sig Gissler, The Milwaukee Journal

1971-72 Desmond Stone, Democrat & Chronicle, Rochester, N.Y.

1973-75 Richard B. Childs, The Flint Journal 

1976-77 Ann Lloyd Merriman, The Richmond News Leader

1978-79 Aubrey Bowie, The Greenville News, Greenville, S.C.

1980-81 Robert T. Pittman, St. Petersburg Times 

1982 George Neavoll, Wichita Eagle-Beacon

1983-84 Jerry F. Dhonau, Arkansas Gazetter, Little Rock

1985-86 Mark Stuart, The Record, Hackensack, N.J.

1987-88 Gene Owens, The Roanoke Times & World-News

1989-90 John Taylor, The News Journal, Wilmington, Del.

1991-93 Sue Ryon, The Milwaukee Journal

1994-95 Keith Runyon, The Courier-Journal, Louisville

1996- Fred Fiske, The Post-Standard, Syracuse

Life members

The following distinguished members received Life Membership in NCEW for exceptional service.

(*) M. Carl Andrews, The Roanoke World-News, May 1, 1971

Lloyd R. Armour, The Tennessean, August 15, 1988

Robert T. Barnard, The Courier-Journal/Louisville Times, June 9, 1986

Creed C. Black, Knight Foundation, August 15, 1989

Warren G. Bovee, Marquette University, July 21, 1994

(*) Harry E. Boyd, The Cedar Rapids Gazette, March 2, 1972

(*) Millard C. Browne, Buffalo Evening News, April 25, 1980

(*) Clifford E. Carpenter, Democrat & Chronicle, October 1, 1969

Van A. Cavett, The Morning Call, April 8, 1995

Richard B. Childs, The Flint Journal, April 20, 1979

Reese Cleghorn, University of Maryland, April 23, 1990

(*) James A. Clendinen, The Tampa Tribune, June 9, 1986

(*) Ralph Coghlan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 14, 1956

(*) Will C. Conrad, The Milwaukee Journal, October 4, 1967

Gilbert Cranberg, University of Iowa, February 18, 1983

(*) Frank H. Crane, The Indianapolis Star, April 25, 1980

Brian W. Dickinson, Providence Journal Bulletin, August 12, 1993

Wilbur E. Elston, The Detroit News, October 17, 1978

Robert H. Estabrook, The Washington Post, November 11, 1964

(*) David V. Felts, Decatur Herald, October 4, 1967

Willis S. Harrison, Philadelphia Bulletin, August 15, 1988

W. Lawrie Joslin, Calgary Herald, July 21, 1994

(*) Robert E. Kennedy, The Chicago Sun-Times, October 9, 1973

James J. Kilpatrick Washington Star Syndicate, October 9, 1973

(*) Curtis D. MacDougall Northwestern University, September 30, 1970

(*) Calvin W. Mayne The Times-Union, October 9, 1973

(*) Paul McKalip, Tucson Citizen, March 2, 1984

Ann Lloyd Merriman, The Richmond News Leader, April 23, 1990

Leslie Moore, Worcester Telegram & Gazette, April 19, 1959

Robert T. Pittman, St. Petersburg Times, August 25, 1991

(*) Paul Ringler, The Milwaukee Journal, May 6, 1972

(*) Donovan M. Richardson, Christian Science Monitor, March 25, 1962

(*) Vermont C. Royster, The Wall Street Journal, November 14, 1972

Kenneth F. Rystrom Jr, Virginia Polytechnical Institute and State University, April 13, 1992

Dwight E. Sargent, Nieman Foundation, Harvard University, November 11, 1964

LeRoy E. Smith, The Buffalo News, March 2, 1984

William D. Snider, Greensboro News and Record, February 18, 1983

Lauren K. Soth, Des Moines Register and Tribune, May 1, 1976

Desmond Stone, Democrat & Chronicle, May 10, 1985

Clarke M. Thomas, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, February 18, 1983

(*) Paul Trescott, Philadelphia Bulletin, October 2, 1963

(*) Charles J. Wellner, Lockport Union-Sun & Journal, May 1, 1976

* Deceased

RELATED ARTICLE: January 1947: The API 26

American Press Institute furnished this attendance list for the 1947 editorial writing seminar that led to the first NCEW conference the following fall.

Russell Briney, associate editor, Courier Journal

John H. Cline, chief editorial writer, The Evening Star

Bryan W. Collier, editor, Columbus Ledger

Fred Colvig, editor of editorial page, The Denver Post

Carl Ek, reporter/copy reader, The Herald-News

Robert Estabrook, editorial writer, The Washington Post; editor/publisher, The Lakeville Journal

Marshall Field Jr., reporter, The Chicago Sun

Thomas Wm. Hagan, editor of editorial page, Miami Daily News

Carleton A. Harkrader, editorial director, Bristol Herald Courier & Bulletin

Frank N. Hawkins, chief editorial writer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Daniel Hull, reporter, Waterbury Republican & American

Wilson M. Lowry, associate editor, Dayton Daily News 

Kenneth McArdle, editorial writer, San Francisco Chronicle 

Robert B. McCracken, managing editor, Corpus Christi Caller-Times 

Richard G. Miller, editorial writer, Oklahoma City Times

Leslie Moore, chief editorial writer, Worcester Evening Gazette 

John D. Pennekamp, associate editor, The Miami Herald

George W. Potter, chief editorial writer, Providence Journal-Bulletin

Irving Ramsdell, editorial writer, The Los Angeles Times 

H. Clay Tate, editor, The Daily Pantagraph

Paul H. Trescott, editorial writer, Philadelphia Evening Bulletin

Richard West, editorial writer, The Dallas Morning News

James Russell Wiggins, assistant to the publisher, The New York Times

Keith Wilson, editorial writer, The World Herald

William K. Wyant, editorial writer, The Atlanta Journal

Ross R. Zollinger, chief editorial writer, The Austin American-Statesman 

RELATED ARTICLE: Still wise advice: Get out of the office

The Sage of Baltimore addressed the first gathering of editorialists in 1947, Here are excerpts.

Gentlemen, I should really apologize. I came over here under a misapprehension. I didn't know you were having a solemn meeting. I thought it was a sort of a round-table and that everybody would horn in.

If an old editorial writer who long ago reformed may be permitted to advise his present superiors, I should say that the thing you want to discuss in this organization is the fundamental thing - that is: Why have editorials at all?

An editorial, to have any rationale at all, should say something. It should take a line.

An editorial writer has only one excuse for existence: that he has a positive opinion about a subject on which he is well informed, on which he knows more than the average man.

And yet all he has to say is what you could hear in any barber shop - not from the customers but from the barbers!

I have known many editorial writers who met all of the specifications except one: they didn't know anything!

Literary men don't make good editorial writers. I have been a literary man myself for many years, and I will testify to that very gladly.

A literary man is concerned with manner. What he says is of very little importance; it is how he says it. An editorial writer is concerned with what he has to say, and with what information he has.

I am stopping in one minute, but I want to drop one idea for your future consideration: No editorial writer ought to be permitted to sit in an editorial room for month after month and year after year, contemplating his umbilicus. He ought to go out and meet people.

You have good men, as I said before, working at writing editorials. But it is a psychological fact that must be obvious - even to an editor - that a good man doesn't like to write anonymously, and presumably at the dictation of a publisher. Most publishers are far too dumb to have any ideas on editorial page problems. But nevertheless, whether they are really too dumb or merely negligent, most newspapermen look on them with loathing and contempt - and I believe justly so. I have known a few exceptions, but I must say it would be hard for me to name them.

I say the thing to do is to put your editorial writers to learning something first. Let them master a subject. Let them investigate it. Let them go out and act as a reporter; but let them - instead of writing for the first page, where their expression of opinion is limited - write for the editorial page, where they can express opinions. Give them the utmost freedom, but insist that they find out something before they do it.

And then - let them sign it! I don't care if you sign "John Smith" to an article; it seems more important to most people than if it is anonymous. And also, it seems a great deal more important to John Smith, and he is going to be careful with it.

I read editorials every day that, as an old hand, convinced me of one thing: the man writing them didn't like his job, was hurrying to get home or to get out, and banged them off at the quickest pace possible. He had no ideas, and he didn't express any. He merely stated what were the prevailing ideas, juggled on the point of his nose for a minute, and went home. That is not editorial writing that is worth printing.

We are spending an enormous amount of money on editorial pages in the United States, and we are getting practically nothing from most of them.

One of the speakers was telling you of his efforts to read [your editorials]. He said he couldn't do it. I don't blame him. Neither can the reader.

The editorial page has one aim. That is to appeal to the more intelligent reader in his more intelligent mood. In order to do that, you have got to prepare your people with the thing I have spoken of: sound information at first hand - not read in the New Republic, but seen.

If I had my way, no editorial writer would be allowed to stay in the office more than one continuous week. I would send him out, if only to cover a police court, so that he would get some contact with the human race. I would send him out whenever there was a big story running in the country and we had to have an opinion about it. I would let him come in with an opinion. His opinion might not be agreed to by everyone with authority, but on the whole it would.

RELATED ARTICLE: Bob Estabrook recalls

When NCEW was conceived at the first American Press Institute seminar for editorial writers at Columbia University in January 1947, then came to life at a meeting in Washington that fall, I don't suppose any of us foresaw that the tiny infant would have become such a vigorous, thriving adult 50 years later.

All can take pride in its continuing stimulus to conscience and quality and in the sense of professionalism it has cultivated among editorial writers both on newspapers and in broadcasting.

NCEW founding member and life member Robert Estabrook was NCEW's first treasurer in 1947 and chair (president) in 1950-51.

RELATED ARTICLE: Highlights from 50 years

1947 January 20-February 14: First seminar for editorial writers is held at American Press Institute, Columbia University, New York City.

October 16-18: First NCEW meeting is held, as a consequence of API seminar, at Statler Hotel, Washington, D.C. Executive Services Inc. in Washington D.C. becomes NCEW's mailing address and headquarters.

1948 February 1: First issue of The Masthead appears in mimeographed form.

November 18-20: Small critique groups become part of convention program at Brown Hotel, Louisville.

1949 The Masthead is converted to a larger version, reproduced on direct-image plates at The Courier-Journal in Louisville, stapled, and with a cover.

October 22: First constitution and first Statement of Principles are adopted during the convention at Hotel New Yorker, New York City.

1950 Under Masthead Project No. 1, NCEW sponsors its first survey of editorial writers.

1953 Spring issue of The Masthead becomes the first to be produced in Washington by Executive Services, using direct-image offset plates.

1955 Editorial page exchange begins - each member is encouraged to send pages daily to other members.

1956 Ralph Coghlan of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is named first life member.

1960 NCEW conducts its first survey of editorial writing courses offered in colleges and universities.

1962 NCEW becomes associate member of American Council on Education for Journalism.

1965 Title of presiding officer is changed from chair to president; terms of officers and board members, which formerly ran from convention to convention, are changed to a calendar-year basis.

1967 The first Masthead anthology is published.

1969 A revolt among the membership takes place at business meeting at Indianapolis convention, when members support a nomination from the floor for treasurer - then the first elective officer's position. (Until then, nominating committee offered only a single slate of officers from treasurer through president, although nominations from the floor could be made.) A Review Committee is appointed to address the grievances aired at the meeting.

1970 The membership in Boston approves bylaw changes proposed by the Review Committee to re-order sequence of officers (formerly treasurer, secretary, vice president, president) to secretary, treasurer, vice president, and president. Lloyd Armour of The Tennessean in Nashville thus becomes the only officer to serve two terms as treasurer. Hereafter Nominating Committee would offer two candidates for secretary.

1973 The first convention outside the continental United States is held in Honolulu.

1975 NCEW adopts a revised Statement of Principles at its Philadelphia convention.

The first printed issue of The Masthead is published in the fall.

1976 NCEW distributes its survey of journalism school curricula, "Editorial writing courses: Why and how," to journalism schools and departments.

1977 First meeting to be held in another nation convenes at Calgary, Alberta.

Second Masthead anthology is published.

NCEW contracts with Cora Everett for a new headquarters operation.

Regional critiques, or conferences - although previously held on an infrequent basis - become a continuing NCEW program.

First meeting with representatives of National Association of Black Journalists is held in Philadelphia to set up a continuing program on minority hiring.

1978 First outreach program offering written critiques to non-members begins.

The first continuing student critiques program is held at the Detroit convention.

The Joint Committee on Minority Editorialists is founded with National Association of Black journalists and National Broadcast Editorial Association.

The Journalism Education Committee updates its 1960 survey with a report titled "How colleges and universities teach editorial writing, 1960-1978."

1979 President of NBEA is made an ex officio member of NCEW's board.

NCEW becomes one of 12 major journalism organizations to found the First Amendment Congress.

NCEW becomes affiliated with the Association for Education in Journalism Council of Affiliates.

1980 NCEW dues are placed on a graduated scale based on newspaper circulation.

The number of at-large board members is increased from three to six, each to serve no more than a two-year term.

First NCEW foreign tour goes to People's Republic of China.

1981 NCEW Foundation is established.

NCEW trip goes to Middle East.

Associate (academic) members gain full voting rights.

Ann Lloyd Merriman becomes first woman to serve as NCEW president.

NCEW's Journalism Education Committee publishes a sequel to its 1976 report on journalism school curricula, "How editorial writing is taught."

1982 NCEW members go to Eastern Europe.

First NCEW/University of Maryland College of Journalism seminar is funded by Gannett Foundation.

First convention departing from fall schedule meets in June in Chicago. (NCEW returns to fall schedule in 1985 with September meeting in Colorado Springs.)

Editorial Excellence Volume I, representing various editorial approaches and techniques, is published.

1983 First Ida B. Wells Award presented through the JCOME program is awarded to Allen Neuharth, president and chair of Gannett.

President of NCEW Foundation becomes ex officio member of NCEW's executive board.

NCEW dues are reduced for third and subsequent members from the same newspaper.

NCEW trip goes to the Soviet Union.

1984 First joint convention with NBEA is held at Washington, D.C., Hilton.

Day-to-day responsibility for NCEW's finances is transferred from treasurer to headquarters.

First Southwest professional seminar is held at University of Texas in Austin.

NCEW trip to Mexico, Central America, and Cuba.

1986 NCEW members take trip to South Africa.

NCEW sends letter of protest to Soviet Ambassador Yuri V. Dubrinin over arrest of journalist Nicholas Daniloff. Commemorative edition of The Masthead is published for NCEW's 40th annual convention.

1987 Third Masthead anthology is published.

NCEW sponsors trip to China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

1988 Armour&Armour comes on board for Masthead production.

NCEW members take trip to Argentina, Chile, and Peru.

NCEW writer-in-residence program begins.

1989 NCEW amends bylaws to admit broadcast editorial writers.

NCEW sponsors trip to Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Indonesia.

1990 First Barry Bingham Sr. Fellowship awarded by NCEW Foundation to Dr. James E. Hawkins, Florida A&M University

NCEW holds editorial seminar on the global marketplace, Washington University, St. Louis

First NCEW op-ed conference held in Syracuse, N.Y. Joint NCEW/NBEA conference held in Orlando, Fla.

NCEW takes two trips to Eastern Europe and U.S.S.R.

1991 NCEW and NBEA merge.

NCEW sets membership goal at 600 (currently 560).

1992 NCEW takes trip to Middle East.

NCEW takes trip to South Africa.

NCEW allows transferable memberships.

1993 The Masthead begins accepting underwriting.

NCEW offers writing critiques at National Association of Black Journalists' convention in Houston.

NCEW takes trip to Mexico and Cuba.

John S. and James L. Knight Foundation supports seminar for editorial writers at University of Maryland.

1994 NCEW holds technology seminar, co-sponsored by Florida Conference of Editorial Writers, in Miami.

NCEW takes trip to China and Hong Kong.

NCEW participates in Unity '94 convention in Atlanta, offering writing critiques and staffing a booth at the Job Fair.

NCEW decides to allow absentee voting for officers beginning in 1995.

1995 Membership passes the 600 mark.

1996 NCEW sponsors New Hampshire presidential primary trip.

NCEW approves syndicate sales booths for Baltimore convention.

NCEW sponsors trip to Bosnia and Croatia.

NCEW Foundation holds its first seminar for minority writers.

RELATED ARTICLE: What I like best about NCEW

Problems and solutions offered by other editors and writers. Its informal camaraderie: non-competitiveness, mutual helpfulness, and understanding.

"Hand-holding" through publications, conventions.

Physical reminder that other people share my problems.

Sharing information. Ethics discussions. Professionalism.

Good information and interesting views in The Masthead.

Readership surveys.

The other members: conversations with them for professional reasons and fun.

The people - all interesting - who attend the meetings. Seeing how other folks do the job.

The great people, the immense knowledge pool, and the friendly attitude toward all editorial people.

Hearing what's new and innovative in the trade.

Trying to find budget to attend convention.

Friendships.

The camaraderie, the collegiality, the critiques, the exchange of ideas.

The membership (mostly), foreign trips, The Masthead.

Critique programs.

All my working years, I appreciated that NCEW was a working convention, unlike others I attended. The critique sessions and special topic sessions are valuable.

The Masthead, The Masthead, The Masthead, The Masthead. (No kidding, a repeat winner.)

The sense of professional commitment it brought to editorials.

Free-thinking people willing to offer advice and caring about the opinion page.

Laid-back, collegial approach to professionalism; the traditional editorial writer's tolerance for opposing points of view.

That it fights for the cause of better editorial pages and broadcast opinion.

Fred's piano skills.

From membership survey

RELATED ARTICLE: What I'd like to see more of from NCEW

Practical realism on the battlefield.

Networking.

How-to or "tip" newsletter.

Regional seminars/workshops.

Support for journalism education.

More criticism of corporate chain journalism.

More diversity of ideas on programs - i.e., even out liberals/conservatives.

News about members; innovations on their pages.

In terms of programs and help, I'm satisfied. If it could figure a way to shake up publishers to realize the importance of editorial pages, well then....

Discussion at conventions and in The Masthead of cutting-edge cultural stuff. Not computers, but thoughts of first-rate thinkers about the changes happening in our culture and the meaning thereof. This is what troubles our readers - and what we should write more about. Why is crime down? Why are welfare rolls and abortion rates down? What's going on here? Why?

Shared experience in meeting job challenges such as pursuing public issues that the news staff doesn't think are important; how far ahead of the rest of the paper should you run; how to keep editorial boards from turning into personality gridlock on key issues.

Lower dues.

More programs outside of the convention, for those who can't attend.

Electronic reference.

Quick critiques.

More attention to editorial writing and less on

Internet mania.

More regional sessions dealing with specific concerns of various locales within the U.S., Canada, and Latin America.

Better membership representation in The Masthead.

More examination of the editorial section as a public forum, with the equivalent of an agenda, an organized discussion and, in particular, the use of signed editorials.

Advice on quick and easy, reliable research sources, especially on the Internet.

More assistance to editorial page editors of smaller papers, especially those that are under-staffed.

More basics in editorial and op-ed design and more access for copy editors to meet. I like to know who else does my job.

Less thumb-sucking, more practical articles in The Masthead.

More stuff about reinventing editorial page, along the lines of the St. Paul experience, on the NCEW home page.

Regional critiques organized in a way that makes it inexpensive to give other staff writers exposure to this extremely valuable feedback.

Larger Masthead - more examples of editorials.

From membership survey

NCEW life member Ken Rystrom is professor of communication studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg. Before leaving the newspaper field, he was editorial page editor of The Columbian in Vancouver, Wash.