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45 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, December 13, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 5, 2004 This 2000 picture of Chris Johns was taken on assignment for National Geographic magazine in Botswana. Johns, a Crater High School graduate, will become the magazine�s editor-in- chief. --Photo courtesy National Geographic magazine ‘A humble boy from Central Point’ will lead the Geographic By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune As a youngster in Central Point in the early 1960s, Chris Johns looked forward each Saturday to piling into the family car bound for Grants Pass. An educator five days a week, Chris’ father would work at his father-in-law’s Glenn Utz Menswear store in downtown Grants Pass while the rest of the family spent the day at the grandparents’ home. "I’d go to this big bookshelf in my grandfather’s study and look at National Geographic magazines," Johns recalled. "And I’d dream about places I wanted to go." Johns, 53, a 1969 graduate of Crater High School, has gone to those places and more. After nearly 20 years of traveling the globe as a photographer for National Geographic, Johns will become its editor-in-chief on Jan. 1. He will be the ninth full-time editor of the magazine in its 116-year history. Advertisement Currently an associate editor, Johns will succeed William L. "Bill" Allen, who retires after 35 years with the magazine whose circulation is roughly 9 million worldwide. "I’ve always believed I had one of the greatest jobs as field photographer for National Geographic," Johns said in a telephone interview from his office in Washington, D.C. "Now I believe I’ve got the best job in journalism. It’s something I take very seriously. "But I’ve never forgotten I’m a product of the Rogue River Valley — it shaped my life." He isn’t the only member of the magazine’s staff with a local connection. Illustrations Editor Bert Fox was the Mail Tribune photo editor from 1978 through 1982. And former Oregon resident Dennis Dimick, a senior editor focusing on environment and technology, has relatives in Eagle Point. Born in Medford to George and Joanne Johns of Central Point, Chris Johns spent his youth like many of his peers: playing sports, fishing and hiking. To go farther afield, he and his buddies acquired dirt bikes. "We used to race around on our motorcycles up on Johns Peak and Old Stage Road, exploring trails and logging roads," he said. Johns was active in 4-H and Future Farmers of America, rising to state FFA presidency. During a national FFA speaking contest in Kansas City, Mo., in 1969, he won second place. His father is a former social studies and geography teacher who became principal of Mae Richardson Elementary School in Central Point. Johns has an older sister, Candace, a 1965 Crater graduate now married and living in Portland. Joanne Johns said her son has worked hard to get where he is. "We’re thrilled for him," she said, adding Chris was a good student and enjoyed his childhood. "He’s still just a humble boy from Central Point," she said. Chris Johns acknowledged he was a bit travel-challenged in his youth. "Foreign travel for me was going down to Southern California to visit an aunt and uncle, and popping over to Tijuana," he said. After college and an award-winning stint as a newspaper photographer, he joined the National Geographic as a contract photographer in 1985. With the world as his assignment, he has been everywhere from the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania, Africa, to Lower Kalskag on Alaska’s Kuskokwim River. For those who haven’t been to the Far North, Lower Kalskag is some 400 miles west of Anchorage. An Alaskan in the Bush would simply note it’s about 20 miles downriver from Upper Kalskag. Johns says his views on travel were put into proper perspective while taking photographs for an article on the Fraser River in British Columbia. He spent time with an old trapper, following him along his trap line. "I asked him if he had traveled much, and he told me he had been to McBride several times and to Prince George twice," Johns said. McBride is a tiny dot on the map with 740 residents, while Prince George is slightly larger than Medford with a population of 75,150. "He told me that if he could really learn his trap line, know everything about it, that would be a real accomplishment," Johns said. "He was an incredible observer who missed nothing. What I learned from that is you don’t have to travel long distances to be a true traveler." Johns figures his own insatiable curiosity has served him well. "When you show that you want to learn about people, they want to connect with you," he said. "There is this thread of humanity that connects us all." The challenge for the magazine is to explore that connection around the globe, he said. "The world is changing at an unprecedented pace," he said. "It’s an incredible time to be a journalist, to tell the stories that can directly affect all our lives, from Medford to Capetown to Beijing and all the communities in between." At the same time, the world is getting smaller: One event can have global repercussions, he said. "For instance, how Shiites feel about Christians, about being Muslim, now has a direct effect on Americans," he said. "Or if there is a huge problem in Nigeria, that will affect Americans." The reason, he explained, is the increasing reliance of oil being pumped from Africa. "What we do at the National Geographic is put a face on the events you can relate to, " he said. "We try to shed light. The world is a pretty complicated place. But we also try to make it fun. We want to inspire people." Recent editions of the magazine have focused on a variety of issues that have both local and global implications: "The Heavy Cost of Fat" was August’s cover story, followed by the September edition on global warming and November’s question "Was Darwin Wrong?" The answer was an emphatic "No," according to scores of scientists interviewed. "We’re not taking sides," Johns stressed. "We’re interested in enlightening people." For magazine subscribers, Johns spilled the beans about the cover story for January. "It’s a story on caffeine and how it shaped the world," he said. "We are also exploring the science of caffeine." An edition, no doubt, that would have fit nicely on his grandfather’s bookshelf. Chris Johns: Central Point to around the world Chris Johns launched his photojournalism career while studying animal science at Oregon State University. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in technical journalism and a minor in agriculture, he earned a master’s degree in photojournalism at the University of Minnesota. In 1975 Johns became a staff photographer at the Topeka Capital-Journal. Four years later he was named National Newspaper Photographer of the Year. He joined the Seattle Times in 1980 as a picture editor and special projects photographer. In 1983 he became a freelance photographer, working largely for Life, Time and National Geographic magazines. By 1985 he was a contract photographer for National Geographic. He became a full-time member of the magazine’s staff in 1995. He was named associate editor in December 2003. That was also the year American Photo magazine listed Johns as one of the world’s 25 most important photographers. In addition to his magazine work, he has photographed and written four books, "Valley of Life: Africa’s Great Rift," "Hawaii’s Hidden Treasures," "Our Inviting Eastern Parklands" and "Wild at Heart: Man and Beast in Southern Africa." He wrote the foreword for "In Focus: National Geographic’s Greatest Portraits," published in October 2004 by National Geographic Books. Johns lives with his wife, Elizabeth, and their three children on a farm in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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