New Freep editor: We will remain 'On Guard' - Detroit Free Press

For more than 80 of this newsroom's 184-year history, those words have appeared alongside the Detroit Free Press nameplate. Last week, Publisher Joyce Jenereaux named me executive editor of the Free Press. For me, any discussion of the Free Press' future has to begin and end with those words. On Guard: The words carry an awesome responsibility. This is my mission -- and the mission of all the journalists here at the Free Press. Our newsroom is here to serve Detroit, the metro area and the state of Michigan. I'm passionate about making sure that we keep you informed so you can make smart decisions. I want the Free Press to have your back -- to expose corruption that can hold back our communities. I want to inspire you, challenge you, make you laugh, make you cry -- and, sometimes, make you mad. In essence, as editor of the Free Press, I work for you. In seventh grade, I was incredibly shy and tried to be as invisible as possible as I went from class to class. One day, for reasons that still mystify, I decided to call out a leather-clad, 6-foot, 15-year-old hooligan who had cornered a tiny student in the back of a hallway. I didn't make that kind of mistake again. Source: www.freep.com