CALF_News_August_September_2019

43 CALF News • August | September 2019 • www.calfnews.net the world interesting from God to the newspaperman. We used to believe there are only so many ‘events’ in the world. We expect the papers to be full of news. If there is no news visible to the naked eye, or the average citizen, we still expect it to be there. …The successful reporter is one who can find a story, even if there is no earthquake, assassination or civil war. If he cannot find a story, then he must make one.” This, Boorstin explained, is a new kind of “synthetic novelty which flooded our experience” – that being “pseudo- events.” The common prefix pseudo comes from the Greek wording meeting false or intended to deceive. …“Pseudo- events spawn other pseudo-events in geometric progression.” A pseudo-event having gone wild. Considering that much of the news reporting or news making now originates through the internet, this “pseudo-event” has become the media standard. Today, 73 percent of all internet publishing jobs are concentrated in the Northeast corri- dor (Richmond to Boston) and the West Coast crescent (from Seattle to San Diego and east to Phoenix). Chicago, a traditional media center, captures just 5 percent of these jobs, leaving just 22 percent for the remainder of the country with even a smaller share of these in the Heartland. It is no wonder that those of us living in the Heartland and involved in agriculture fight an uphill battle to spread our message and overcome “pseudo-event” reporting. Perusing my office’s waiting room read- ing material, I discovered a drastic contrast to the perceived media bias emanating from publishers on both coasts. Colorado- biz magazine published in Denver, which I consider the Heartland, gave a fair and unbiased feature on modern cattle ranch- ing.“Cattle Call on the Eastern Plains” chronicles the fifth-generation Flying Dia- mond Ranch near Kit Carson. Scott and Jean Johnson, along with their children, are building on land stewardship to create a sustainable cattle business. “We’re land managers, not cattle managers,” Jean Johnson says.“There’s a mental switch that occurs when you think your crop is grass. If you call your- self a cattle ranch, all you see are cows.” “We’re farming the land with our cow combine,” son Charlie Johnson says, describing the ranch’s rotational grazing program. The land is grazed uniformly low with cattle moved to another pasture every four days. The 1,000 cows and 1,000 yearlings have access to just 5 per- cent of the ranch at any one time. “We hope we are building soil health,” Charlie’s sister, Jen Livsey, says.“Healthy land is a carbon sink and a water sponge.” With an annual rainfall of 13-14 inches, the land can’t support traditional crop farming, but still provides sustain- able managed grazing.With $3.4 billion in cash receipts, according to the 2019 Colorado Business Economic Outlook, the Flying Diamond Ranch and others in the beef industry account for 67 percent of Colorado’s agriculture economy. With the temperature probe beckon- ing me back to my smoker in anticipation of perfectly smoked beef “burnt ends,” I put away my reading materials and grab a fork. It is evident that the news reporting or news making coming from my back- yard, I can honestly say with bias, will be delicious and not a “pseudo-event.”  SUCCESSFUL TRANSITION Continued from page 31 time. Despite this fact, there’s nothing else he’d rather do, it’s their lifestyle. “You’re the furthest thing from an eight-to-five worker that there is. Live it or you will never be successful,” Kory says.“[I want to] raise my family and show them the way of life we live. Hope- fully they will pass that on to the next generation.” Kory leans on his faith through the ups and downs of life.“If God brings you to it, he will bring you through it. I’ve seen it play out and be real several times.”  bulls personally and makes a point to spend some time at each stop, finding out the needs of his seedstock clients. 'It’s not for everyone' The young family numbers four bright children ages seven to 16 months. They often find themselves working together on horseback, a skill that is not an option on a Custer County ranch and one that carries on their family history. Danielle rides too, when horses aren’t taken by the children, and spends a considerable amount of time being Kory’s right hand at ranch work. It goes without saying that raising youngsters takes an enormous amount of time. She also enjoys gardening and canning. Kory warns that what they do is extremely demanding at calving and AI RIGHT: From left, Ostrand family: Kory, Danielle holding Merrik, Brexton, Olivia and Avery. Right, Slagle family: Mark in black hat, Kristin, Melissa, Vivian, Cori and Bridget. Photo by Megan Ritz