Mike Cowling speaks in Reeve Union

The New York Times has lost some of its "edge" since the Jayson Blair scandal, according to Mike Cowling a professor at the University of Oshkosh. " The scandel did more than ruin one reporter's reputation; it questioned the integrity of the prestigious newspaper," Cowling said in a speech Wednesday in Reeve Memorial Union about his work with The New York Times.

Jayson Blair was a reporter for the New York Times, which shocked readers when he admitted to plagiarism and faked reports. Cowling discussed how The New York Times has changed since the scandal. Many of the repercussions of the scandal led to more committees, more attributes to sources and most notably the resignation of editor Howell Raines.

"The New York Times is still a traditional newspaper," Cowling said. Unlike many news publications, The New York Times have not combined with any other bureaus, contrary to the Chicago-Sun Times. The times still remain liberal newspaper. Cowling said, " The reporters at the times takes pride in not revealing their source, even if it means jail time."

According to Cowling, the changes, such as more committees to review articles before being published, have made the paper "very cautious". However, even after the Blair scandal, the times still demand excellence in every story. Cowling described himself as a "rim rat" or editor at the Times and he and many of his colleagues would constantly clean up the stories to make them better and more powerful. According to Cowling, The New York Times still maintains the highest level of news reporting in the world. Last year, the times won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting. "The New York Times refers to itself as the top dog", Cowling said.

Cowling has taught at the University of Oshkosh Wisconsin for 10 years, where he teaches media ethics, new writing and news editing. Prof. Cowling is also the executive secretary for the Northeastern Wisconsin Scholastic Press Association (NEWSPA). Cowling has spent the last eight summers as copy editor on the National or Foreign Desk of The New York Times and during the last eight years he has spent his nights as an editor for The New York Times, reading section fronts. Earlier in his career he spent 8 years as a National news editor for the Los Angeles Times, where he taught at the University of California-Fullerton.

He spent five years as a copy editor for the Chicago-Sun Times and has worked for five other newspapers in Illinois area as an editor or reporter. Cowling received his bachelor’s degree in Journalism and History at the University of Eastern Illinois and earned his master's degree in journalism at the University of Illinois.

Cowling was asked to speak at the University of Oshkosh Wisconsin on behalf of the "Thinking and Writing in Journalism" series which was presented by the Department of Journalism and Journalism Advisory Board. Cowlings has done freelance and editorial work for the Los Angeles Times and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Prof.Cowling was the author " Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly", which he reviews the book "Controversies in Media Ethics" by A. David Gordon, John M. Kittross and Carol Reuss. Cowling has a wife named Melanie. They have two children: Matthew, 24, and Audrey, 15.