Newsprint ink didn’t really flow through the veins of Jon Witherspoon, the former longtime publisher of the Winston-Salem Journal.
It just seemed that way.
Witherspoon, the last Journal publisher to advance through the newsroom ranks to the publisher’s office, died Monday at age 83.
He served as publisher of the Journal for 13½ years before retiring in May 2007.
His Journal career began long before that, when he was hired as an obituary clerk in 1964 after graduating from Wake Forest College with a degree in physics.
But he was already known at the Journal: He worked as a copy boy while at Wake Forest beginning in 1961.
His various roles over his career included working as a reporter, copy editor, news editor, human-resources director and general manager before becoming publisher.
Witherspoon worked on the Journal’s news staff when the paper won the 1971 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. He is a former president of the N.C. Newspaper Association and in 2005, he was elected into the N.C. Journalism Hall of Fame.
He did step away from newspapers to serve 18 months in the U.S. Army from 1965 to 1967, including in Vietnam as an intelligence officer. He also spent three years in the early 1970s as a general manager of a chain of weekly newspapers in Maryland before coming back in 1974.
Yet, according to his former wife, Jean, it was clear his heart was in Winston-Salem and with the Journal, so he answered the call from then-Publisher Joe Doster to come home in a management position.
“He fell in love with Winston-Salem, the local community, its potential, and over time, felt inspired to help to address its challenges and how it could be better,” Jean Witherspoon said.
“The success of the Journal was his personal ambition. His goal was always to do things right.”
Jean Witherspoon said she believes that ambition came from “he really wanted to make his parents proud.”
“They worked hard to give him the ability to Wake Forest, and he was devoted to making sure they knew he knew of their sacrifices and that he was worthy of it.
“He was thankful and loyal to those people who shared his journey at the Journal.”
Ready to spar
Witherspoon held a well-earned reputation for backing the newsroom, often sparring with elected officials, business leaders and major advertisers on controversial topics.
Foremost was the 2002 award-winning series about North Carolina’s eugenics endeavor, “Against Their Will,” that brought awareness to the state’s program and ultimately state legislative approval of belated compensation for victims.
A May 2007 editorial about Witherspoon’s retirement said that “for Jon, ‘the people’s right to know’ is much more than a cliché; it is something to be fought for. Those who care about good journalism and its future appreciate his principled defense of the freedom of the press.”
Under Witherspoon, the Journal did a series that showed how the city and newsroom itself were divided by race. The paper also exposed the state’s eugenics program and helped free Darryl Hunt, who was wrongfully convicted in the death of Journal copy editor Deborah Sykes.
“I can’t remember a time when Jon interfered with the work of the newsroom,” said Phoebe Zerwick, an award-winning investigative reporter for the Journal from 1987 to 2008 who was a lead reporter on the eugenics and Hunt coverage.
Zerwick, co-founder of the Down from DC newsletter, is the author of “Beyond Innocence: The Life Sentence of Darryl Hunt” and ”The Last Days of Darryl Hunt.”
“We put out a paper every day, with stories that often rubbed people the wrong way, and published significant journalism during his tenure … all of which held powerful institutions to account,” Zerwick said.
Zerwick said the Journal’s series on race “among other things took a hard look at racial disparities in the newsroom.”
“At the time, the support of a publisher did not seem remarkable, but in hindsight, with news organizations caving in to pressure from those in power, I appreciate the courage it took to let the newsroom do its work.”
Different kind of publisher
Witherspoon was among newspaper publishers in N.C. who defied a state law that barred newspapers from publishing lottery winning results from other states. The publishers claimed a First Amendment stance on the issue.
He led the N.C. Newspaper Association in persuading the General Assembly to pass a shield law to protect the integrity of journalists working in the state.
Terry Oberle, who served as the Journal’s sports editor for 35 years before retiring in 2008, said Witherspoon wasn’t afraid to allow staffers to have a role in the hiring of top executives. Staffers often got to interview potential newsroom leaders.
“Jon didn’t try to steer our coverage, but rather give us the resources in terms of money and staffing to do our jobs and stayed out of our way,” Oberle said.
“Many of the editors under Jon didn’t find out until much later how he was protecting the newsroom, sports staff, serving as a buffer from critics of our coverage.
“Most of all, Jon was a good observer of human nature and the world, and it carried over to the newsroom.”
Witherspoon was more than a publisher, said John Railey, a former editorial page editor who also helped lead the eugenics series.
“Jon was also a fine journalist who gave us room to do our best work,” Railey said. “He gave us the courage to take a hard look at eugenics, including on local aspects that took a hard look at the Journal’s coverage.
“He was a happy warrior, witty and aways good to be around. I’d say they don’t make them look like that anymore, but Jon would gently tell me to cut the cliché.”
Ken Otterbourg, the Journal’s managing editor for five years before stepping down in January 2010, said Witherspoon took over the Journal “during a period of turmoil, righted the ship and supported the newsroom and its independence, frequently standing up to powerful interests on our behalf.”
Beyond the newsroom
Witherspoon enjoyed serving as the Journal’s public face, whether working with Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership in the early downtown revitalization efforts, discussing the newspaper’s positions with top business executives, or lending a helping hand — and soup ladle — during the annual Second Harvest Food Bank’s empty bowl luncheons.
Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines described Witherspoon as “a consummate newspaper man who loved his profession and loved Winston Salem.”
“It was my pleasure to have known him and worked with him on many civic issues. My deepest condolences to his family.”
Forsyth County commissioner chairman Don Martin said he “always found Jon to be a good listener and a person who asked good clarifying questions.”
“It was my belief that he strived for the paper to be even-handed and fair in its coverage of the local news.”
Gayle Anderson, the retired president and chief executive of Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce, worked closely with Witherspoon on community projects.
“Jon understood how the community worked and was optimistic, yet realistic, about its future,” Anderson said.
“He had a wonderful sense of humor and often injected a bit of levity into a conversation.”
Witherspoon was preceded in death by his brother David. Jon is survived by his sister, Rachel, his children Jon and wife Sandra, and Derek and wife Melissa; grandchildren, Jessica, Sarah, Ashley, Bradley, Caroline and Jake; and five great-grandchildren.
rcraver@wsjournal.com
336-727-7376 @rcraverWSJ
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