I am a Journalist

It's been almost a year since I started this blog.
"I am a Poet."
That's what I wrote in one of my early entries.
Today, as we enter a new year (it's about midnight in Tokyo Jan. 1, 2008 turning to Jan. 2, 2008 as I write this)
I want to say this:
I am a Journalist.
What you do everyday is what defines who you are.
This blog made me realize the importance of my writing outside my everyday reporting on the job.
But it also made me realize more than ever how much I believe in reporting.
I want to do my best to contribute what I can, given my background and my talent.
This blog gave me an outlet that was so close at hand yet so public and intimate at the same time, and helped me reconnect with poets and creative writers.
But it helped my job as well: People gave me ideas for stories and feedback for the writing I did on my job.
I am after all the same Person.
And in the end, it is about Writing _ not just the Craft but what's involved as Personal Belief/Conviction/All its Mystery/the Fun of it.
Journalism is changing rapidly, with everything becoming faster, niche and direct.
But I believe that ultimately the person/writer behind the journalism is going to become more important than ever.
Of course, we must deliver on the accuracy, speed and context.
But we must also have _ for the lack of a better word _ character.
And I'm not talking about reporters' reading the news on TV with authoritative voices.
Accountability, credibility, integrity, creativity _ the human side of the writer/journalist is going to count in the end to our readers.
Otherwise, all they would have would be the headlines/press releases/blurbs.
What other than the writer makes one news story different from another story?