The second source I discovered and decided to use was a primary source. I found the article at the newspaper and magazine archives. The reasons I wanted to use this source was because of the significance it has to my exploratory essay and the fact that Ron Buckli, the author, is credible and has been a journalist/writer at Leader Telegram for many years. Buckli had this article published on May 21, 1968.
The main reason for the article was because the University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire was celebrating the retirement of Bill Zorn. About 500 friends/players showed up to his basketball coaching and athletic director retirement party. The quote I enjoyed the most from this piece was, “words of praise, skillfully mixed with good-natured barbs and stories from the past, were heaped on Zorn by some of the nation’s leading sports dignitaries during the entertaining program” (Buckli, 1). This quote give the reader a small bit of who was there and how important Zorn was. I also learned a few more things about Zorn through this article. For example, Phillips, the chancellor, presented Zorn and his wife with a brand new stereo and $5,000. Lastly, Zorn did not completely resign from Eau Claire, he continued the Dean of Men position on campus.
I have no argument against Buckli’s article. The only aspect I am unsure of is, since Buckli was a Bill Zorn advocate, he would not write anything not positive about Zorn. This can skew the information about Zorn, however, I am not overly concerned due to Buckli’s ethos.
Based off this article, Zorn was very well perceived by his peers. My question was addressed slightly. “Why was Bill Zorn so significant to Eau Claire?” Zorn was beloved by his peers because he was a great coach and a great person to be around. The individuals in attendance displayed that. Also, after reading this I think I may change my research question slightly. What made Bill Zorn so significant to Eau Claire? This is a subtle change but I think it is enough to help me write my exploratory essay.
Works Cited
Buckli, Ron. “Five-Hundred Pay Tribute to Zorn at Testimonial.” Leader Telegram 21 May 1968. 1. Access NewspaperArchive.com. Web. 30 Oct. 2013.
Seems like another awesome source. I really like that this source made you think about your research question a bit and directed you in a different way. I think that what made him significant to UWEC instead of why is a valuable change. It narrows down your research question yet you can still add in why he was significant as well. I also really liked how you referenced his use of ethos which will help you write your exploratory essay later. Looking forward to hearing more! Great job!