My all-time favorite journalists (The Top 12)

February 11, 2026February 12, 2026 ~ Randy Seaver ~ Leave a comment

I am a journalist, and I love making lists.

So, it should come as no surprise that I woke up at 3:30 a.m. yesterday with the idea that I should make a Top 12 list of my favorite journalists – people who have inspired me, people I have worked with and even people I have worked for.

It was originally going to be a Top 10 list, but I could think of no-one on this list who should be eliminated as a finalist.

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12.) Marian McCue, The Forecaster

Marian McCue was inducted into the Maine Press Association (MPA) Hall of Fame in 2019

According to a story published in the Portland Press Herald, McCue purchased the former Falmouth Forecaster in 1990 at a time when it was published every two weeks and mailed to residents.

The MPA reportedly described McCue’s tenacious commitment to journalism as “great foresight and a singular journalistic duty, into what would become arguably ‘the’ community newspaper of record for the greater Portland area.”

I have long admired Marian’s work ethic and her commitment to the very best principles of true community journalism.

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11.) Liz Gotthelf, Saco Bay News

When it comes to community journalism, few do it better than my friend Liz Gotthelf, who launched Saco Bay News – a digital media outlet – in 2020, shortly after the daily Journal Tribune forever closed its doors.

A former Tribune reporter, Liz is dedicated to the community where she lives and works. She built Saco Bay News on nothing more than an idea and a desire to keep covering the communities of Biddeford, Saco and Old Orchard Beach.

Liz is a scrappy journalist with a HUGE heart. Her care and commitment to journalism shines through in everything she writes. Liz was knocked to the ground in August 2024 when her husband died suddenly and unexpectedly. She took just a few days off, and then – despite near overwhelming grief – jumped back in the saddle, covering community news and events. How do you spell integrity?

I am lucky to call Liz a friend, and I was proud to work with her for a little more than two years as one of her contributing writers.

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10.) Chris Busby, The Bollard

The Portland-based weekly The Bollard is one of my favorite newspapers. Busby is one of those people who has likely forgotten more about journalism than I will ever learn.

More than 20 years ago, Busby began building the Bollard with his own blood, sweat and tears. The paper reeks with journalistic integrity and offers a no-holds-barred approach to covering local and state government. The Bollard is also where I get my regular fix of Al Diamon’s Politics and Other Mistakes column and Liz Peavey’s weekly column.

The really good news? The Bollard is available online and its print version is available for free throughout southern Maine. I pickup the Bollard at the Hannaford grocery store in Biddeford.

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9.) Barbara Walters, ABC News

Barbara was a true journalism pioneer. She broke the proverbial glass ceiling that held back so many women in the news business, especially in the realm of televised newscasts.

Her legendary career, which started in 1951 at an NBC affiliate station in New York, earned her numerous accolades and awards, often described as one of the most trusted, and dogged reporters of the 20^th Century.

Of course, Walters is best known today for her time as a producer and reporter of NBC’s Today Show and then later becoming the first female co-anchor of a network evening news show with Harry Reasoner on the ABC Evening News.

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8.) David Flood, Mainely Newspapers

David and Carolyn Flood launched the weekly Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier in 1989. They immersed themselves in the community and quickly became a fierce and reputable source of competition to their much larger, daily counterparts, the Journal Tribune and the Portland Press Herald.

Their hard work and commitment to community news paid off. The company expanded into a group of weekly newspapers that included the Scarborough Leader, South Portland Sentry and the Kennebunk Post among others.

David’s business model of not charging for subscriptions proved effective. But David cared more about Biddeford than just becoming the paper of record. He was the principal founder of the Heart of Biddeford.

He was always bullish about the city, especially its downtown area. After selling his publications, he was elected to the Biddeford City Council. Two years ago, he was inducted in the Biddeford Cultural and Heritage Center’s Hall of Fame. He also served briefly as president of the Biddeford-Saco Chamber of Commerce.

David hired me as a reporter in 1998. He then later promoted me to become the Courier’s editor and then later I became managing editor of all his publications.

I drove David nuts. I gave him plenty of reasons to fire me, but he didn’t. In fact, he gave me a rather long leash, and I think he valued my intense work ethic and my fierce sense of newspaper competition.

I often joke that the Biddeford Gazette is my baby. If that’s true then David and Carolyn Flood are the Gazette’s grandparents.

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7. Jeff Jacoby, Boston Globe

I don’t know a lot about Jeff or his background, but I do love his weekly column, Arguable

It is well-written, often long-winded (a man after my own heart) but always informative, balanced and not afraid of controversy. As an opinion columnist, Jacoby admittedly leans a bit to the political right, which must make him wildly popular with the men and women who work in the Globe’s newsroom.

Don’t get me wrong. Jacoby may lean just a bit to the right, but his analysis is often scorching and always thought-provoking, but always fair and balanced.

I love Jacoby’s column, and that’s reason enough for him to be on this list.

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6.) Jack Beaudoin, Journal Tribune

If you ask people who have lived in Biddeford a long time about who they think was the city’s best reporter, Beaudoin’s name invariably rises to the top.

Jack, a Biddeford native, earned his reputation as an outstanding reporter. He was usually the smartest guy in the room but never acted like it. In fact, he is one of the most self-effacing people I have ever met.

Jack is also the former publisher of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting. Today, he lives in Stonington and describes himself as an “ink-stained wretch.”

You can find his work today at jackbeaudoin.com

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5.) Kelley Bouchard, Portland Press Herald

I think it was 2001 when Kelley and I first met. She had been assigned to cover Biddeford back when the Press Herald had a bureau office on Main Street in Biddeford.

I am lucky to know Kelley as a friend, despite the fact that we were fierce competitors back in the day, when MERC was still burning garbage downtown and dinosaurs could be seen stumbling down Lincoln Street.

Kelley was tough as nails. She never accepted the proverbial talking point memos. She asked hard questions, but she was fair and thorough. Today, she still holds my feet to the fire, often questioning the motives of some of my political posts on social media. I really miss working alongside Kelley. Those days are some of my favorite memories.

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4.) Harry Foote, American Journal

If you’re a journalist over the age of 40 in Maine, it is more than likely that you once worked for Harry Foote, the late founder and publisher of the weekly American Journal, then based in Westbrook.

Harry — always grinning but unrelenting in his push for perfection and “real news,” — probably taught more journalists than the Columbia School of Journalism.

I learned so much from Harry. He was a legend and a force to be reckoned with, just ask former mayors and city councilors from Westbrook.

Harry died in 2012 at the age of 96. In 1990, he received the Maine Press Association’s Journalist of the Year award. In 1999, he was inducted into the Maine Press Association’s Hall of Fame.

I really miss Harry, the chaos of his newsroom, his collection of pencils and the apron he would wear around his waist. I’m one of the lucky ones. I got to work for Harry Foote.

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3.) Mike Wallace, CBS News/ 60 Minutes

It is a well-known fact that journalists in the United States are required by law to pay silent homage and tribute to Mike Wallace before writing or producing every news story.

Wallace is considered a deity by so many of his peers in the world of journalism. He was one of the original four members of the magazine-style television news program, 60 Minutes. He was the definition of investigative journalism. He was loathed by President Richard Nixon.

Why is he on this list? Because he is Mike Wallace, and I am legally required to describe him as one of the greatest journalists of all time.

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2.) Carl Bernstein, Washington Post

Although never as well-known or revered as his Watergate counterpart — Bob Woodward – Carl is a man after my own heart.

He never graduated from college, but he was a brilliant and remarkable reporter. It is rumored that he lied in order to get hired by the Washington Post when he was still in high school. His peers often described him as a manic and tenacious workaholic.

Many people believe that without Bernstein’s rabid and aggressive style of reporting, the Watergate scandal may have never been brought to light. I was 10 years old when Nixon became the first president to resign from office in August 1974. I was glued to the television coverage. It was then that I knew I wanted to be the next Bob Woodward or Carl Bernstein.

If you enjoy good books, check out Bernstein’s memoir, Chasing History: A Kid In The Newsroom.

Drum roll please . . .

And now —- my all-time favorite journalist:

Hunter S. Thompson, Rolling Stone

Quite simply, the late Hunter S. Thompson is my hero, my idol and all sorts of other things. He is the founder and creator of Gonzo-style journalism.

He broke all the rules of traditional journalism. A heavy drinker and smoker, he also experimented with drugs, including hallucinogens. He was a prominent leader of the counter-cultural movement that swept across America during the late 1960s and the early 1970s.

His landmark book — Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas — was well received and required reading for rebellious teenagers who wanted nothing more than to piss off their parents.

Hunter’s career started back in the days when people like Jack Kerouac and Alan Ginsberg were gaining traction in literary circles, creating what became the Beat Generation and a legion of self-described “beatniks” who desperately wanted to follow in their footsteps.

Thompson was simultaneously brilliant and self-destructive. He didn’t take criticism well, unless it was from someone he respected and also loathed like Truman Capote.

I really believe that I was born 30 years too late, I like to think that maybe Hunter and I would be friends. We both served in the U.S. Air Force.

Perhaps no writer influenced me more than Thompson. I tried to use a Gonzo-style approach when writing my weekly All Along the Watchtower column for the Courier.

If you want another great book recommendation, check out Outlaw Journalist: The Life and Times of Hunter S. Thompson by William McKeen.

And that’s a wrap.

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My sincere apologies to everyone on this list. I really do respect your work, and I do – unlike Chris Busby – care about how other journalists perceive my work.

I had a lot of fun writing this. I hope you enjoyed reading it.

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Randy Seaver is a hack journalist living in Biddeford. He is the editor and founder of the Biddeford Gazette, a non-profit digital news publication that focuses on the city of Biddeford.

Randy has been annoying other journalists and editors since 1981 when he did a brief stint as an unpaid student intern at the former Journal Tribune, a daily newspaper based in Biddeford.

He regularly writes about politics, journalism and his own struggles with mental illness at Lessons in Mediocrity | Outlaw Journalist

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Goodbye Stranger

September 22, 2013September 22, 2013 ~ Randy Seaver ~ 1 Comment

I want to scream.

In a world chock full of culprits that are partially responsible for everything from the “dumbing down of America” to the nomination of Mitt Romney and the advent of Twitter, it’s become increasingly difficult for me to stomach the banality associated with blaming “the media.”

While media criticism is important and necessary, a lot of people who blame “the media” have no idea what they are talking about.

Instead, blaming “the media” has become a catch-all phrase and a convenient target for those who want to ignore two very much larger problems: laziness and stupidity.

There is no question that media has changed, but I challenge you to define the word in its present-day context.

Sure, we can turn to the dictionary and find this: media: (noun) 1.) plural form of medium; 2.) the main means of mass communication (esp. television, radio, newspapers, and the Internet) regarded collectively.

Media, whether it’s a daily newspaper, the evening television news, a blog or something that a “friend” posts on his Facebook page, is multi-faceted, multi-layered and increasingly accessible to every person on the planet.

That’s not necessarily a good thing.

Blaming the media is sort of like blaming your reflection in the mirror for having that fifth margarita or being late to work. Too often, blaming the media is just a convenient form of mental masturbation that serves no good purpose except helping you sleep better at night.

The good ol’ days?

The opening pages of the book Leaving Readers Behind: The Corporate Age of Newspapering contains this stunning contrast of two very different media mission statements:

This is the Journalist’s Creed written by Walter Williams in 1914: I believe in the professionalism of journalism. I believe that the public journal is a public trust; that all connected with it are, to the full measure of their responsibility, trustees for the public; that acceptance of lesser service than the public service is a betrayal of this trust.”

And this is the Statement of Strategic Intent issued by Knight Ridder Newspaper Corp. in 1991: We stand for excellent service to customers and communities, a fair, respectful and learning environment for all our employees and a strong return for our shareholders. This responsibility is shared by each of us in Knight Ridder, regardless of title or function.”

So it seems easy to be cynical about the so-called “mainstream media” or as Rush Limbaugh describes it: “the drive-by media.”

Oh, how we long for the good days of journalism; the fair and balanced reporting and the loyalty of preserving the public trust. Too bad it’s gone right?

Wrong.

We are surrounded and inundated with loads of good journalism and a diversity of media that is unparalleled and will be surpassed in its diversity in less than 15 minutes.

Before you moan about the demise of media, or the sentimental loss of the warm and fuzzy images of Walter Cronkite and the proverbial grumpy editor such as Ben Bradlee, chew on this: Why haven’t you switched the channel?

Try it, you’ll like it

Better yet, what’s stopping you from being the media? It’s probably the same four things that stop most media endeavors: Money, Time, Resources and Audience.

Sure, go ahead and bitch about advertiser supported media, but how are you going to pay your reporters? For those of you who will predictably point to examples such as “listener supported” public broadcasting, you may have missed those corporate announcements at the beginning of each segment.

Without corporate and taxpayer subsidies, National Public Radio would be nothing more than a distant memory because the vast and overwhelming majority of its listeners don’t dig very deep into their own pockets.

Yeah, and state-sponsored media is a sure-fire way to ensure credibility and a lack of bias. I mean, really . . . what would could possibly go wrong if we let the government report to us about the government?

I find it annoying that the bulk of those who bitch about the media have spent zero hours in a newsroom nor ever required to sit through three hours of a planning board meeting while earning slightly more than minimum wage.

Pull back the curtain

Of course, no one loves to talk more about the media than the media. They are a narcissistic lot, full of righteous indignation. I know this because many of my friends and former colleagues still work in the media. God bless them.

These folks are professionals, but they are no different from anyone else and subject to all sorts of the very same pressures you will find in any other profession: gossip, bias, greed, competition and ego.

A few weeks ago, I found myself on the phone with one of the editors at the Portland Press Herald. I was calling on behalf of one of my clients and asking for a favor.

The editor was a bit pissed off about my intrusion, and he didn’t try very hard to mask his annoyance: “Randy, you used to be a journalist, how can you ask me a question like that?”

Surprisingly, he accepted my honest response. “I’m not a journalist anymore, and you know damn well my current occupation requires me to ask the question even though I know you are going to refuse my request.”

That honest exchange led to a compromise we could both live with: he did not budge and I accepted his decision.

Where’s the good media?

As I said before, we are surrounded by some excellent examples of journalism. A couple of weeks ago, I picked up a copy of the Southern Forecaster newspaper. That free, weekly newspaper was chock-full of solid community-based reporting.

There was an in-depth, comprehensive story about growing tensions between the Scarborough Rod & Gun Club and a group of neighbors who chose to build their homes near the club. It was a universal story about the themes of gentrification and it made me think about the tension in my own community between those who use the Biddeford Airport and their residential neighbors.

Another front-page story examined the plight of the South Portland City Council in light of a recent court decision that would allow municipal employees to serve on municipal boards and committees. Again, the same dynamic is an issue in my own community.

The Forecaster group of newspapers is one of the few remaining Maine-owned media outlets, and its staff seems to understand the importance of digging deep and solid reporting. Mo Mehlsak is the editor of the Forecaster. I remember him from his days as the city editor at the Journal Tribune. He is a newspaperman’s newspaper man: tough, intelligent and insightful. I never had the pleasure of working with him, but I have admired his work for nearly 20 years. He is obviously grooming an exceptional staff of reporters.

Speaking of the Journal Tribune, Tammy Wells has been covering York County issues longer than anyone else. She offers her readers a ton of institutional memory and insight.

When it comes to unbiased reporting and a willingness to cover stories in-depth, check out the work of my former colleague, Kate Irish Collins, a reporter for the Saco-based Sun Chronicle, part of Current Publications, another Maine-owned media outlet. No one person can come close to matching Kate in producing such a volume of news content with consistent accuracy and lack of bias.

My friend Kelley Bouchard at the Portland Press Herald consistently delivers solid reporting and poignant features. She led off her newspaper’s insightful (and painful) examination of Maine’s aging population. The Challenge of Our Age.

On Election Night, every political junkie in Maine turns to the exceptional coverage provided by the Bangor Daily News.

And if you’re looking for a good compilation of Maine news and opinion, check out Bob Mentzinger’s Writing Maine feed. Mentzinger is a close friend, but he’s also the editor at the Brunswick Times Record, another afternoon daily that strives every day to produce exceptional journalism on a shoe-string budget.

Yes, there is plenty of room for media criticism, and Al Diamon does an exceptional job of keeping Maine’s media outlets on their toes with his sometimes harsh, yet consistently detailed analysis that can be found in his weekly Media Mutt column published at The Bollard.

These are just a few samples that show it’s not hard to find solid journalism in Maine or anywhere else. You just have to look for it.

The next time you feel like bitching about the media, go take a long, hard look in the mirror and ask yourself this: are you part of the solution or part of the problem?

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The good ol’ days?

Try it, you’ll like it

Pull back the curtain

Where’s the good media?

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