Joe Dennis, a seemingly simple man living in Georgia, a Christian family man, and a teacher at two universities in Georgia, is much more insightful and knowledgeable than one may think.
Dennis said, “You will develop empathy. It’s undeniable. You are put in situations and see things you normally wouldn’t.”
He also said, “So I think it’s done quite the opposite. It hasn’t made me sad about the world; it’s made me motivated to change the world, uncover stories like that, and shine a light on things that need to be addressed.”
Dennis wanted to share and gain every inch of knowledge he could; he was inspired by meeting others and listening thoroughly to people from anywhere and everywhere. Dennis attended Catholic school in a small town in Illinois for 12 years. He then spent four years at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. Dennis then continued his journalistic journey at the University of Georgia by getting his doctorate in mass communications and journalism; years later, he began teaching the multimedia journalism class at UGA.
“Every experience you have on this earth informs you and makes you a better journalist. Dennis said, “And I’ve made mistakes in journalism. That helped me tremendously to move forward. But it’s funny when you meet so many people; as you get older and older and older, you’ll realize that different people remind you of people from your past.”
Dennis is deeply connected with the people and stories he’s encountered as a journalist. Through these deep connections, he has acquired much wisdom and insight, which he shared with his UGA journalism class for high schoolers. Dennis’s words resonated with me; his worldview and wisdom have helped me understand the kind of person he is through pretty much a stranger’s glance. That emphasizes how someone can find a story in anything and anyone, even after a short time. That was something Dennis wanted to teach the class. Dennis has a lot of information and knowledge to share with people, and he is excellent at expressing his expertise.
Until his death about ten years ago, he was the kind of family patriarch. If you ever had a problem, you would talk to my dad.
Dennis says, “ he was just such a good listener.
Dennis says, “You know, he had a very level-headed temper. I learned so much from him on how to listen to people and to like, genuinely like care and show some empathy to people.”
Through the words Dennis shared about his father, it is apparent that he was his mentor and his guidance through this wild world. Dennis learned a lot from his father, and his traits stem from the knowledge he gained from him. His father always listened to him, so he became a journalist. Dennis learned how to genuinely care for others and share his empathy with anyone he encountered; through his father’s guidance, Dennis grew and excelled in journalism. Dennis’s deep connection to journalism and uncovering some of the most tragic stories is personal; he is continuing his dad’s legacy as a listener and as an empathetic character, which shows the kind of person Dennis is.
“We took pictures of this little kid playing, and it just generated so much sympathy, it spurred the Monroe City Council to address this issue and pass bills to deal with it.”
Instead of emphasizing the tragedies of slum-lording, Dennis captured a gentle-hearted moment of a little boy living under these conditions, still smiling. These images were something people could empathize with and hopefully understand, as well as the importance of why the issue needs to be addressed sooner rather than later. Dennis captured a beautiful moment, so beautiful that it is still the most important and inspiring story he’s ever covered, all because he was able to help a little boy.
Dennis’s efforts in this story led to the Monroe City Council helping relieve some of the slumlord issues in Georgia, and this was a proud moment for Dennis. This was a proud momentnot because of the attention on the story or the fact that the City Council recognized him but because he helped people.
Dennis’s talk about capturing this moment in time and forgetting all of the chaos behind the scenes was a beautiful sentiment for the story he covered, and this sentiment showed through the Monroe City Council’s efforts to relieve the community’s struggles.
“The last words my dad said to me before he died were to be the peacemaker, and that’s what I’ve spent my time trying to do.”
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