Published: August 16, 2006 11:24 pm      

Carmichael returns as editor of The Star

After a little more than a year of coasting along the beaches of the Gulf Coast area, native son Fredie Carmichael has returned to the place that provided him stability in life and his craft.

“I really enjoyed my time in Pensacola, (Fla.). It was a great experience to learn from some talented journalists. But anytime you have a good opportunity to come home, it’s a good thing,” Carmichael said.

That opportunity came when he was named editor of The Meridian Star, the place he started his journalism career nearly six years ago as a reporter.

Carmichael, 26, replaces Steve Stewart, who has been named publisher of The Tidewater News and president of Tidewater Publications LLC in Franklin, Va. Stewart, 39, a veteran publisher and editor of several community newspapers in Mississippi, served as editor of The Star for the past year.

Carmichael’s return is viewed with great anticipation.

“I first had the opportunity of working with Fredie in early 2000 when he was a reporter and I was advertising director for The Star,” said Publisher Crystal Dupré.

“Even then I remember being impressed with Fredie’s strong desire and passion for the newspaper business and especially the desire to serve his hometown newspaper.”

Dupré said readers can expect new and exciting changes under Carmichael’s leadership.

“Fredie has a strong team,” she said. “I, along with The Meridian Star staff, am extremely excited and proud to bring Fredie back to Meridian.”

Carmichael spent the past 17 months as a reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. During his time there, he focused on special projects reporting, including writing about Medicare’s new prescription drug plan, the Pensacola Bay Area’s housing market, the beach economy and local politics. He also covered hurricanes Dennis and Katrina.

During his tenure at The Star, Carmichael won several state and regional writing awards. In 2004, the Mississippi Press Association awarded Carmichael the prestigious Bill Minor Award for best news story in the state of Mississippi for his coverage of the Lockheed Martin shootings.

Acknowledging his heartfelt ties to home, Carmichael said he plans to use that passion to better serve The Star’s readers.

“I want our news to have a harder edge to it,” he said. “Our readers expect us to be watchdogs; we need to let them know how their tax dollars are being spent and why. We are their eyes and ears.

“At the same time, I think we have a lot of great stories to tell about our community,” he said. “There are some wonderful things going on in our area and we need to pursue those stories with the same passion we pursue the hard news stories.”

In addition to more emphasis on local news and in-depth coverage, Carmichael said readers can also expect a new look to The Star in coming months.

“Especially with the front page — we’re not going to be the same day after day,” he said.

“We want people to walk by the rack and want to pick up The Meridian Star because it looks different than it did yesterday. We want the front page to reach out and grab people. We’re going to be creative and we may push the envelope at times, but we want to get people’s attention.”

Carmichael also plans to continue the Readers Advisory Board started by Stewart.

“We want everyday people to sit on this board — your average hardworking folks,” he said. “We want to get them in here and see what they want from their newspaper.

And, as always, reader input is welcome.

“We want people to tell us — good and bad — what they like and don’t like,” Carmichael said.

Carmichael is a product of Clarkdale Attendance Center, Meridian Community College and Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus. He is married to the former Sara Gardner of Hattiesburg. He is the son of state Sen. Videt, R-Meridian, and Donna Carmichael.