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Transcript from "The Red & Black"

Q The Red & Black at that time was a different paper from what it is today. What were some of the other things The Red & Black did that we don't see in student papers anymore?

TJ: Even though it was under the supervision of the college of journalism and Dan Kitchens was at the side to us, we had unbelievable freedom. I reported on the state of married housing. Married housing had rats and bug infestations. Married housing was unbelievable and that created a firestorm administrative office. I reported on the absolute number of potholes that were around the campus--huge potholes that had not been filled. We were digging in all kind of investigative pieces and nobody as far as I know out of the President's Office or Dean Drewry's office said, "You can't do that!" We had tremendous...I think Dan Kitchens took a lot of flack for us as the advisor, but not once...I served as reporter, managing editor, editor and business manager. Never was I told...and also we were also selling a lot of advertising at that point and we were covering our expenses. Nobody was having to subsidize us. I was the business manager, so I knew how much...in fact, I was accused of putting too many ads in the paper, because we could sell to Foster's Jewelry and every single...Uly Gunn, all of the advertisers...the drive-ins, the motion picture theatres all around...we were, in my opinion, better than the Athens Banner Herald, I hate to say that, but at the time in terms of campus news, as we should have been.

Q: Were you weekly at the time or bi-weekly?

TJ: Weekly and went to bi-weekly. I actually believe we could have gotten to daily, but it would have strained the printing presses. It would have strained all of us. I actually was going to bed at night....Don Rountree and I were together and I would go to bed at night some nights at 2. We saw the sun come up several times and then go to class.