The Super Bowl for Journalists

Accountants have tax season, professional sports players the playoffs and retailers the holidays. Journalists are stuck covering these stupid elections.

Alright, they are not that stupid, just time-consuming. In reality, words such as important, momentous and consequential come to mind, especially when it’s a presidential vote as is the case this season.

Still, when the leaves start turning shades of orange each year, seasoned writers and editors around the country cringe because we know what’s coming. Our collective inboxes and voice message systems are flooded with messages from candidates, memos from public relations flacks and press releases filled with as much B.S. as the books of a mortgage lender.

Long hours that burn well into the night follow suit; a bottle of extra strength aspirin is highly recommended, or at the very least a bottle in general.

We are thrown into a position of having to listen to countless politicians and politicos go on and on about their respective races or causes. Republicans paint one picture, Democrats another. The sky is falling or the sky is blue.

Then, when brain damage has officially reached Stage One, we have to sort out all the promises, truths and platforms.

All of this is in an effort to help inform the public, and in Yellow Scene Magazine’s case, offer poignant recommendations on whom or what you should favor if you reside in the North Metro/Boulder County region.

It is one of the most stressful, difficult and rewarding aspects of this job.

Here’s why it’s stressful: We know from previous editions that we are either amazing political prognosticators or people take our recommendations seriously. We suspect it’s the latter, meaning when it comes time to pick between two candidates who both should be commended for their qualities, we think long and hard about the decision knowing we’ll be a part of the outcome.

Here’s why it’s difficult: Our readership cuts across a diverse political spectrum. We serve Boulder liberals, Weld County conservatives, rural libertarians, East County moderates and more. My beliefs defer from the values of certain communities, which may stray from the other writers who helped put together this section. In a word, our editorial staff has to think like someone who lives in Frederick when deciding the best candidate for House District 48, like a Boulderite when considering whether paying city council members more is a good idea and like a Westminster resident in trying to find the right candidate to fight for FasTracks needs.

Here’s why it’s rewarding: At the end of the day, we get to work our butts off to become a part of the process. It’s naive to think we change the minds of countless undecided voters, but if we can help educate and motivate just a few, it’s worth the long nights, stressful days and delirium that kicks in the final month before Election Day.

That being said, I’m looking forward to Nov. 5, because regardless if the candidates we support make it into office, Election Season will be finished. It’ll be a Wednesday, my attention will be turned to a trip to Vegas, the Broncos game and Thanksgiving.

Most importantly, it will by 360-some-odd more days until another election makes it onto my calendar.
I’ll be sure to have that aforementioned bottle within reach when it all rolls around again.