Behind the Byline: Longtime Sports Editor’s ‘second stint’ in Petaluma

Through the majority of the week, longtime Petaluma Argus-Courier Sports Editor Johnie Jackson — otherwise known as JJ, a Santa Rosa native — can be found pacing the sidelines or intently taking notes from the bleachers at Petaluma’s local high school competitions, all while doubling his role as Sports Columnist to reflect on current events in the athletic world. Jackson, who is now on his “second stint” with the Argus-Courier, first wrote for the paper from 1973-80 after leaving the U.S. Army, but moved on to continue his journey elsewhere before circling back to his Argus roots in 2011.

Staff writer Amelia Parreira talked more with Jackson to find out more about where his life has taken him over the years.

Petaluma Argus-Courier: What were you doing before you started your job as a reporter and columnist here and what drove you to join the Argus staff?

Johnie Jackson: I worked as sports editor for about seven years when the Argus was a six-day-a-week publication with its own press. I moved to a daily newspaper in Coos Bay, Oregon, and from there to the weekly Novato Advance where I was editor for around 20 years before ending up as managing editor of five small weekly publications in the MarinScope chain based in Sausalito. I left MarinScope and was job hunting when John Burns, who had been my publisher in Novato, offered me the sports writing job in Petaluma.

PAC: What or who inspired you to become a sports journalist?

Jackson: Quick answer: I love sports, but am not a very good athlete. At Santa Rosa High School, I studied journalism to get off campus during the period, and volunteered to cover sports because no one else wanted the assignment. I discovered, to my amazement, that I enjoyed writing.

PAC: What has been your most memorable moment while working at the Argus?

Jackson: Several years ago, after I had settled into doing sports again, (former publisher) John Burns and Editor Chris Samson, with a short staff made even shorter by an illness, asked me to do the story about a double shooting. One of the victims was an off-duty deputy sheriff. I had minimal contacts with the police department, but did have a pretty detailed press release. I got lucky and discovered a friend of mine who put me in touch with a friend of one of the victims which led me to family members. I received a California Newspaper Publishers Association honorable mention for the first hard news story I had written in more than five years.

One of the most difficult stories I ever covered was a solo vehicle crash in 2004 that took the life of Casa Grande basketball player Brett Callan. The driver of the speeding car that left the road was another Casa Grande athlete. Two other passengers in the car were seriously injured. Dealing with the families of both Brett and the driver was probably one of the two most emotionally difficult things I have ever encountered as a reporter.

The other occurred when I was working in Novato and interviewed the widow of a young pastor who had been gunned down on the steps of his church during a robbery. The gracious young lady I interviewed in her home was six months pregnant at the time.

PAC: Do you have a favorite athlete interview? If so, who and why?

Jackson: I have been fortunate to interview many of Petaluma’s outstanding athletes and share their stories, and made many friends in the process. Two interviews that particularly stand out were with Don Ramatici and Nate Thurmond.

Ramatici, one of Petaluma’s leading businessmen, was part of the original Petaluma Leghorns legendary football team. He was later the coach of the team. Don was articulate, patient, witty and had hundreds of stories about the Leghorns and a different Petaluma. He was my real introduction to Petaluma history. He had two sons who were exceptional high school football players. One, John, some would say was the best ever to play at Petaluma High School.

I remember the interview with Warriors center Nate Thurmond because he is 6-feet, 11-inches tall and I am 5-feet, 4-inches in cowboy boots. We had a considerable communication problem until Nate finally sat down on a bench and I could look him straight in the chest.

PAC: What is your favorite moment in sports history?

Jackson: My personal favorite is the Little League World Series of 2012 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, where I had an opportunity to be with the Petaluma National Little League team that finished third.

On the Major League level I can’t think of ever being more excited than the final week of last season’s National League West race where the Giants beat out the Dodgers by winning 107 games.

PAC: If you had season tickets to watch any team, which would it be?

Jackson: Easy. It would be the Giants.

PAC: What else can people find you doing in your spare time?

Jackson: I have a 9-year-old godson I have known since his birth, and we kind of grew up together. I spend a lot of weekends with him. Oddly, we don’t play a lot of sports. He is into cars (Hot Wheels) and a video game called Minecraft. I know a lot about “Creepers,” “Iron Golams” and “Enderman.”

Amelia Parreira is a staff writer for the Argus-Courier. She can be reached at amelia.parreira@arguscourier.com or 707-521-5208.