The Nevada Sagebrush

Morrow, journalism professor, dies at 49

Tuesday, February 9, 2010 - 2:30 AM

Sophomore Jade Sheldon remembers fearing journalism professor David Morrow when she met him last fall.

His in-your-face energy and ambitious goals for his first semester at the Reynolds School of Journalism made Sheldon think his class wasn’t going to be easy.

“He assigned a lot of work,” she said. “He gave me my first F, but he also gave me my first well-deserved A, so I guess when I got to know him that impression changed.”

Morrow, a long-time financial journalist who moved from New York last summer to teach at the University of Nevada, Reno, died Feb. 1 of pancreatic cancer in Spartanburg, S.C. He was 49.

Morrow was tasked with developing a business journalism program at the school while working in collaboration with the business department’s extended studies history course in London.

Before coming to UNR, Morrow worked for Smart Money magazine, The New York Times, The Detroit Free Press, Fortune and as editor in chief for TheStreet.com.

Friends, coworkers and students described Morrow as a vigorous, eclectic character who constantly sought originality and was not afraid of a challenge.

One of Morrow’s greatest challenges came in 2000 when he took over at TheStreet.com. Jim Cramer of CNBC’s Mad Money, and co-founder of TheStreet.com, remembers warning Morrow before he became editor in chief of the Web site.

“I had to be honest with him,” Cramer said in an e-mail. “I said it was just a maelstrom of pain and red ink and anger. He told me not to worry. I told him that it was going to be like being in combat and that it wasn’t even clear if we were going to be able to come out. He told me not to worry… He did it because of his demeanor, the respect he came in with, his bearing, and his integrity. His energy. He saved us.”

During Morrow’s eight-year tenure, TheStreet.com emerged as a force in the business media world — a revolutionary outlet that didn’t fear new media. TheStreet.com captured five Society of American Business Editors and Writers Awards, including one Loeb Award, given for journalistic excellence in the understanding of business, finance and the economy.

Morrow brought originality to the site. He instituted the “Five Dumbest Things on Wall Street,” a widely popular and successful financial column for the site.

“He was an evangelist, a missionary to help people understand money,” TheStreet.com editor in chief Glenn Hall said. “It was not a job for him. It was a calling.”

His second calling – the classroom – was an easy transition for the business journalist seeking to help people understand money.

“He loved teaching,” Beth Hammond, Morrow’s sister, said. “Our mother always said he’s wanted to do that since he was a little boy.”

Morrow’s lively demeanor was apparent when he walked through the journalism building, blurting out creative nicknames like “Bossman” for journalism Dean Jerry Ceppos. He was also always willing to lend a hand.

Journalism professor Rosemary McCarthy had barely known Morrow for more than a month when she needed to buy a new car last summer, but Morrow was there.

“He’d say, ‘Well, we’re going,’ and next thing I know we’re driving and I’m test-driving cars all over town,” McCarthy said. “We went to Sacramento twice and I finally bought a car in Sacramento.”

Morrow was just as personable with his students as he was his co-workers. He would be known to reply to emails from students past midnight. He even customized his signature jingle, “We’re having some fun at TheStreet.com,” to fit his new environment.

“He would sing, ‘We’re having some fun at the Reynolds School of Journalism,’ over and over again while we wrote,” Sheldon said.

Morrow sang during news quizzes to help his students think of answers. Sheldon remembered one instance when Morrow asked about a celebrity who sued Starbucks.
“He started singing, ‘You’re so vain,’” Sheldon said. “That’s when I knew the answer was Carly Simon.”

Aside from his singing, Sheldon says she will take three very specific life lessons from Morrow:

“One, that factual errors are fatal; two, that a newsroom is never quiet and three, that cheap wine is only good used as salad dressing,” she said.
Morrow’s love of fine wine was legendary, according to friends.

Hall remembers frequenting the Borolo, a restaurant in New York’s SoHo district, and being amazed not only by Morrow’s fastidiousness for fine wine, but also the service he received.

“When we arrived (at the Borolo) it was like a scene from the Godfather,” Hall said. “Dave had a seat in the back and everyone was waiting on him hand and foot. They would eventually bring three or four bottles of wine. They would say, ‘Here, try this 1962,’ and Dave would say, ‘1962? I don’t know about that.’ With Dave, it was always an experience. Wine was always good, and when we got to the second bottle, that’s when it got interesting.”

Morrow’s thick southern accent and passion for the fast-paced New York lifestyle gave him the perfect mesh of both worlds. They were attributes Morrow harnessed and used to his advantage.
Ceppos said he was taken aback when he was introduced to Morrow’s New York energy.

“He had the high energy you associate with Manhattan movie scenes,” Ceppos said. “When I was interviewing him, we were at a restaurant downtown called Beaujolais Bistro and he excused himself during dinner to take a fast smoke. I thought, ‘Boy, only a New Yorker would do that; at an interview dinner to sneak out and take a quick puff.’”

Morrow’s wit, boldness and quick-thinking skills made him perfect for the business world while his charm, dedication to hard work and integrity is what made a lasting mark on the UNR journalism school.

A memorial will be held March 20 for Morrow in Spartanburg, S.C.

The journalism school is also working with Hammond to coordinate a memorial at the journalism building on Feb. 26. The date is tentative, Ceppos said, and is subject to change.

Emerson Marcus can be reached at emarcus@nevadasagebrush.com.