Mark Naymik spoke at BHS on Wednesday, Apr. 24. Beachcomber staff, Cleveland club members and other students gathered in English teacher Josh Davis’ room to listen to the Plain Dealer columnist share his experiences and answer questions.

Naymik spoke about a wide array of topics, including the journalism profession, current economic and political issues in Cleveland and his path from bartending to reporting to column writing.

“He didn’t stay on one topic for too long, so we got a lot of information,” Beachcomber cartoonist Ali Pinhasi said.

Naymik discussed the interesting interviewees he’s encountered during his career. Among them have been lawyers, businessmen and presidents. But the most interesting person he says he’s talked to was a child molester who was released from prison. Apparently, that person eventually made his home a refuge for other released child molesters who couldn’t find a suitable place in society upon release.

Regarding The Plain Dealer, Naymik discussed a few changes that were taking place. A third of its reporters will be laid off, and delivery will be cut to three days per week because an increasing number of people would rather read their news online than pay for a newspaper.

“[I learned that journalism is] still a viable career and college major to get into. Even though the format is changing, there’s still an industry,” said Beachcomber News Editor Grant Gravagna.

Although major changes are under way in the industry, Naymik still stressed that journalism will always exist for the sake of distributing information, which is why the industry will never die.

“I thought Mark Naymik was really cool,” Beachcomber Arts & Life Editor Emily Topilow said, “It was interesting to see someone from the journalism profession who could explain to us how real-world newspapers work.”