Faces and Places John Archibald, lead metro columnist for the Birmingham News

Emily Etheredge, Contributor
Published On: 11/ 3/2009

What happens when you try five different majors in college before deciding on a profession? You get John Archibald, lead metro columnist for The Birmingham News. Unable to find a major that provided a spark, Archibald got a job at the University of Alabama’s school newspaper and “bang. I was in love with it. I changed my major to journalism and was hooked,” he said.

He is still writing and providing local readers with insight into his opinions on local issues 23 years later. Although everyone he writes about typically gets offended, Archibald does not shy away from sharing his thoughts on the subjects at hand.

“I typically call ‘em like I see ‘em,” he said. “It never really gets personal and most people come to respect that.”

That still does not stop some readers from lashing out against his column.

“I receive lots of harsh mail, angry calls and visitors at the front desk. Part of the job,” he said.

More recently, his column has focused on the drama surrounding Larry Langford and the chaos happening in the city of Birmingham. Archibald makes it clear that he likes Langford personally and respects his energy and ideas, although he must balance that against what he describes as “the reality [that] he is a personal and public financial disaster.” Archibald has been following the trial closely for the past couple of weeks and has even watched from inside the courtroom.

Throughout the years he has interviewed various sorts of people including politicians, pillars of business, athletes and celebrities. His favorite person so far was a guy who had more DUIs than anybody else in Alabama (claiming 50-something). Archibald doesn’t really ever suffer from writer’s block and feels that if you can’t write it’s because you have reporter’s block. The more you find out about the people you are interviewing, the more you can write about.
Whether or not people always agree with the opinions he shares in his column, it is clear that Archibald loves everything about his job. Writing opens up the opportunity for him to meet people from all walks of life and put them on even footing.

“It’s remarkable, really, that people want to hear what I have to say. That’s a real kick, and better than money.”
You can read John Archibald’s column on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday in the local section of The Birmingham News.

Email: emilye@uab.edu