Ben S. Pollock
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Columnist, copy
editor, critic, editorial pages editor, metro editor, page designer, reporter,
wire editor. Journalism instructor. Web editor, content manager. Award-winning
blog.
Education
- University of
Arkansas, Fayetteville. MA: Journalism, secondary emphasis in Creative Writing.
Thesis: "Declines in American Newspaper Humor and Humorous Columns, 1982-2002,"
presented at 27th annual conference of National Society of Newspaper Columnists,
6/03 Tucson.
- Stanford University,
Palo Alto, Calif. AB: Communication -- journalism, secondary major in American
Studies -- policies and institutions. Stanford Daily campus newspaper,
Chaparral humor magazine, KZSU-FM campus radio, Stanford Marching Band.
Employment
2002 - current
-- Wehco Media Inc., Lowell, Springdale and Fayetteville, Ark.:
- Copy
Editor-Page Designer.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Northwest Edition, Lowell. Design 1A and
other news pages, copy edit, proofread. Also book reviews.
- Copy
Editor. Arkansas
Democrat-Gazette Northwest Edition, Springdale. Edited features, news,
special projects; some features reporting, while graduate student.
- Editorial
Pages Editor, interim. Northwest Arkansas Times, Fayetteville.
Wrote all editorials, chaired editorial board, edited letters and columns.
Graduate Teaching
Assistant. University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Instructor, Ethics in Journalism,
Spring 2003 semester. Supervisor of news writing labs of Fundamentals of Journalism,
Fall 2002 and Spring 2003 semesters. Copy editor, accreditation documentation.
The Morning
News of Northwest Arkansas, Springdale:
Associate
Editor/Editorial Pages. Supervised daily and Sunday opinion pages, editing
letters, columns and editorials then proofreading. Wrote editorials.
Washington
County Metro Editor. Supervised reporters and photographers in two newsrooms.
Night metro editor for all newsrooms.
Feature Humor
Columnist. Weekly, throughout both positions. Distributed via Stephens
(ne Donrey) Media Group to its newspapers.
Innkeeper.
Beaver Town Inn & Trading Post, Beaver, Ark. Maintained facility and grounds,
cooked, kept books for five-guestroom bed & breakfast. Ran the gift shop
downstairs.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
(previously, Arkansas Democrat), Little Rock:
Sunday Editor.
Planned, coordinated and supervised Sunday and Monday editions. Also book
reviews.
International
Editor. Responsible for national and world wire news, trained and supervised
assistants. Front-page "In the News" daily column. Occasional show
and book reviews.
Assistant
Wire Editor. Also designed business section, other pages. Also copy editor.
Copy Editor.
Headlines, cutlines, editing of news copy. Also some wire editing, proofreading.
Feature Humor
Columnist. Weekly 1988-90, biweekly 1992 and occasionally before and
after those periods, all while holding above full-time positions. Honored
by Arkansas Press Association and Wehco Media.
Managing
Editor. The
Allen (Texas) American, a suburban Dallas semiweekly.
Supervised staff, editing, page design, proofreading. Also reporter, photographer,
editorial writer and columnist.
News-Texan (now
zoned suburban sections of The Dallas Morning News), Farmers Branch:
Makeup Editor/Proofreader.
Wire editing, page design, liaison for all six papers' editors to central
production-press facility.
Assistant
Editor. Irving Daily News, Editing, page design, helped supervise
staff. Also city hall, police, business, feature reporting. Some photography,
columns. Created regular business page.
Police Reporter.
Irving Daily News. Also city hall, feature reporting.
News
Producer.
KFJM-AM
/ KFJM-FM Public Radio, Grand Forks, N.D. Morning
Edition local anchor, newscaster, reporter, editor and board operator. Trained
and supervised student staff. Sold many stories to The Associated Press.
News Intern.
Southwest Times Record, Fort Smith, Ark.; News Intern. KFPW-AM / KHBS-TV,
Fort Smith.; Summer Assembly Lineman. Whirlpool Corp., Fort Smith; Summer Assembly
Lineman. Rheem-Ruud Corp., Fort Smith.
Affiliations, Avocations, Awards
National Society
of Newspaper Columnists: Best Online Column category, 2009 column contest,
Honorable Mention for essays from 2008 in the blog www.benpollock.com/brick.
National
Society of Newspaper Columnists: Secretary 2007-current (re-elected
06/09), Archivist 05-07. Co-author, "NSNC Guide
to Syndication, 2nd Edition," 2004. Web site redesign liaison, 2006,
interim Web editor, as needed.
Annual scholarship
contest, National Society of Newspaper Columnists Education Foundation: Judge,
humorous columns, 2008-current.
Annual Erma
Bombeck Writing Competition, sponsored by Ohio's Washington-Centerville Public
Library and the University of Dayton: Judge, humorous essays, 2003-
2008.
Toastmasters
International: University of Arkansas at Little Rock chapter charter member;
Competent Toastmaster certificate, 1996.
Webmaster:
Ozark Poets & Writers Collective, 2002-current. Webmaster: Temple
Shalom of Northwest Arkansas, 2004-07. Webmaster: www.benpollock.com,
2002-current.
Society of Professional
Journalists: UA chapter member; Northwest Arkansas chapter charter member;
Arkansas (Little Rock) chapter secretary/newsletter editor, 1987-88;
Dallas chapter board member/newsletter editor 1983-85.
Music:
Bella Vista (Ark.) Recorder Consort, Arkansas Winds community band.
Software Skills
Skilled in NewsEditPro/IQue
as well as Adobe InDesign, QuarkXPress. Proficient in Microsoft Word with skills
in Excel, FrontPage, Publisher, Powerpoint and Access. Web page design and upkeep
using Dreamweaver, and coding in html directly. Run personal blog at www.benpollock.com/brick
on WordPress platform. Well skilled in Quicken, Pages/AppleWorks/ClarisWorks.
e-mail: ben.pollock@stanfordalumni.org
Last updated
07/09/09