Ron Fournier tweeted this from the 2016 Detroit Jazz Festival.
Trading a high-powered career in the national capital for fresh challenges in one's Midwestern birthplace is an attention-getting move. Crain's editor-publisher Ron Fournier, a former wire service bureau chief and national magazine columnist, made the jump last fall and still is asked why.
His latest answers are given to James Warren, chief media writer at Poynter, a leading journalism site. Warren's own career includes stints as Washington bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune and New York Daily News.
Wednesday's interview touches on differences between Detroit and Washington, the appeal of running a business and how his hometown "helped me adjust my priorities." Excerpts from Fournier's replies:
Ron Fournier: "I’m putting family first — for the first time."
► Coming home: "I left because my wife, Lori, and I missed home and our two oldest children (we have three) had already moved to Michigan. We left the state out of college 31 years ago and never stopped missing our families. We never stopped calling Detroit home."
► Real impact: "I help a vibrant, important newsroom cover a community of leaders who, for the first time in my lifetime, are working together for a greater good. . . . If I play my cards right, I can make a difference. Nobody makes a real and significant difference in D.C. these days."
► Learning: "I don’t know Detroit (I left out of college). I don’t know business news (I’ve covered politics since 1988). I don’t know the business of news (as publisher, I now run a small business). I’ve got a lot to learn and I love to learn."
► Life balance: "I left work early yesterday to babysit my grandson. My mom, sister and one of my brothers live in Macomb County, just a few miles from our house. Another brother lives in Grand Rapids. We are having a blast together. . . . I’m putting family first — for the first time. Leaving D.C. and getting back home helped me adjust my priorities. . . . Don’t define yourself by your job. Get a life. Go home."
Earlier article:
'Ambassador' Ron Fournier Starts Talking Up Detroit's Charms the Day He Arrives, Sept. 6, 2016
