This is a memo from Melanie Sills, Editor of the Sacramento Bee, to her staff. Although the subject is the paper’s new design, the focus is on the enduring values of Journalism that represent an Ethics of Courage:

From: Sill, Melanie - Sacramento  
Sent:  Wednesday, July 23, 2008 2:57 PM
To:   SACB Newsroom Staff; SACB Opinion Pages
Subject:      Editor's update for Wednesday, July 23, 2008

A redesign as dramatic as ours, with so many changes, attracts attention. We expect plenty, and based on response so far, there will be fans and critics, and in many cases reaction will focus on specific changes versus the overall redesign.

People outside the newsroom who have seen the redesign pages have expressed excitement, curiosity and enthusiasm. My page 1 column the other day drew a few dozen responses, none critical of the redesign. The comments posted on the story online are the typical "can't wait to see The Bee go down" variety from the hobbyists who make a sport of this kind of thing.

Truth is, plenty of people would like to see us go away. Some powerful people, in business and government, would welcome a break from public attention. Scam artists and crooks would celebrate the business opportunities presented by an uninformed public. Political opponents who don't like The Bee's editorial stance would hold parties, though I think they would miss us most of all.

Bad news for them. We're not going away. In fact, our adversity is forcing us to consider what we do that's most important and step up our efforts in accountability journalism. The proliferation of garbage information sources makes it even more important that we arm people with good information.

Journalism can't just be as good as it used to be. It must be better, especially journalism done by institutions like The Bee that -- relative to other information sources -- are relatively rich in resources.

We have to do the best work of our careers. For ourselves and our profession's survival, but also for all the journalists losing jobs, all our colleagues who want to keep doing this work badly enough to go it alone rather than change professions. This is, as we often say, our mission: to act as independent agents for the public interest, finding things out and informing the public. And this -- more than just jobs or profits -- is what is in danger as newspaper companies fight for secure footing.

Yes, plenty of critics want us to fail, or to simply go out of business. But on the other side of the coin is this: Plenty of readers want us to succeed.

The common theme in everything I've heard from readers is this: We need good journalism from The Bee. We need you to be better, and better than ever.

And from many, we're rooting from you. Some even add, "God bless you."

So do not heed the naysayers, whether they're commenting on our stories or sitting in the chair next to you; whether they're anonymous rock-throwers on blogs or people who used to work here and now have the answers to everything. Journalists who genuinely believe their best work is over with should consider another line of work. News staffers who need the future to be like the past are going to be frustrated and cynical, and this is not a good recipe for work or life. People who see ways for us to be better should speak up and be part of the future.

We can't do all things, but we must do the most important things to the best of our abilities. We can't afford mediocrity or passivity.

What gets lost in the current nostalgia wave: There was plenty of bad in "the good old days." Newspapers were often ignorant or indifferent to people outside the mainstream. They missed huge opportunities to innovate. They allowed a chasm to open between journalists and communities. They did a lot of great work. None of these realities is contradictory.

The future will be different from the past, but our work can be just as important, and perhaps even better in some cases.

The redesign itself updates our look and presentation. Its soul is the content, which so many of you and your colleagues have worked to shape.

Next Tuesday marks the next step down the path.  After we get past the initial cheering and jeering, we will keep moving forward with improvements. We'll build out the redesigned sacbee.com. We'll develop our integrated news approach.

We will be known not by what typography we use but for what we report and how successful we are in engaging people in what's happening here and why it matters.

That will be the best work of our careers.

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Melanie Sill
Editor and Senior Vice President
The Sacramento Bee
916-321-1002