Local journalist looks to future in community
A name well recognized and largely well-received in the Shreveport- Bossier City community, Tom Pace is embarking on his 50th year in media.
From radio to photography, television to teaching, and now even venturing into writing his first book, Pace has often been referred to as the hardest-working man in media.
As he wrapped up a day of interviews and recording to commemorate Labor Day, Pace sat down with a treasure trove of photographs and nostalgia that spanned his decades-long career.
A weathered, yet well-preserved report classically written by typewriter on “How to Become a Disc Jockey” from 1962 outlined Pace’s dreams of being in radio from his junior high days in New Orleans.
The report lay atop photo albums and pictures, from Pace’s early years playing cassette tapes to photo ops with Mario Lopez from the Miss USA pageants to some of Pace’s most recognized photography now used on postcards of the Louisiana Boardwalk.
“I’ve always had the bug,” said Pace of his passion for media. “Fifty years in media means to me that I have paid my dues, and I have been there and done that. I have worked the midnight shift, when I got started in 1965, where I played tapes at a little AM station in Little Rock, Ark., and there I was at the tender age of 18 when it all started [for me].
We played records on 45s!” Pace recalled his most memorable experiences and interviews with the kind of details and enthusiasm that will surely narrate the pages of his upcoming book.
He said two of his biggest highlights from his career was working with the Donald Trump organization during the pageants that were held here and then being the co-chair for the 2002 Salute Medal of Heroes Convention. Pace was quick to note the greatest interview of his career was with Retired Army Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who received the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s Patriot Award during the convention.
Fifty years in media encapsulates a vast amount of interviews, names of notoriety and stories that shape a community. While Pace said he does not report on the seedy side of the community, he still believes in sharing powerful moments with his listeners.
“I say humbly that I don’t [cover] rapes, robberies, murders, muggings, fires, unless it is something that has caused egregious harm to our community,” he said. “I think that’s one thing that sets me apart, and the second thing is that I’m willing to devote my broadcast to good things [happening in our community]. It’s those moments when you realize you have done something that has touched so many lives [that keep me inspired], and all you did was allow them to tell a story.”
“I have no staff, it’s all me. I operate a website, my news division, I take photos, I do a podcasts for my website, I do interviews, and I do a one-hour show every day which I produce and post,” said Pace on his busy schedule. “[But] I plan to go on for as long as I can. Humbly, I like to think I’ve done something that’s good in my lifetime.”
– Katie Ho
