I deal with technology all day, every day. It is now an integral part of the newspaper racket.
Yes, we still create our beloved print edition every day - and no shortage of people still lovingly hold it in their mitts each morning, along with their coffee.
But increasingly we exist in an online world.
And guess what?
It's not always pretty out there.
There was a time when the newspaper had an outsized voice in the community. Some say we still do.
But that dynamic is changing, a result of the technology we swim in every day.
The truth is today every person with a phone, tablet or laptop is a publisher, able to push their message out to the public.
The result sometimes is a cacophony of voices, this one included.
But there is a difference in what I do and what so much of what goes down on the Internet. Every item I pen - blog, column, Tweet or Facebook post - has my name beside it.
That is not always the case online. And too many people use that veil of anonymity to engage in conduct they would never consider for a second if they knew they would be identified and tied at the hip to such ugly commentary.
I talk about it today in my first Letter From the Editor weekly print column of the new year.
I am calling for a Year of Civility.
I'm not going to hold my breath.
You can read the full column here.
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