Writing about politics is what I’ve always wanted to do.

There was a time when I would have said I wanted to be the next Helen Thomas, front row center at the Presidential press conferences. Granted the first and last question. Ending the conference with the tried and true phrase “Thank you Mr. (or, let’s be honest, Madame) President”.

My path to the White House press corps from Mesa State College’s political science and journalism programs has taken some unexpected twists, and for a while I wasn’t sure I would ever report on politics again. Especially since I’ve come to love Colorado and now have very little desire to set myself up anywhere east of the Mississippi, let alone in Washington, D.C.

My path took me to small town papers. I’ve worked as a crime reporter in Canon City and as managing editor in Fort Morgan. But I was beginning to wonder what my next adventure would be as it became glaringly obvious that my desire to cover yet another county fair was negligible at best.

So how could I say no when I was offered the chance to come on board and help revitalize The Colorado Statesman?

An institution such as The Statesman needs to continue in Colorado. Each of our readers relies on us to provide information about the politics of this state like no one else can. And that is precisely what we want to continue to do.

However, we can’t do exactly what has always been done and expect this venerable institution to survive for another century. We must make changes and adjust to the modern media environment if we want to keep publishing.

You will already have noticed changes to the print edition of our paper and you can expect more as the weeks unfold.

Keep close tabs on our website as well. Over the coming weeks and months, it will be redeveloped to provide us with a strong multi-media platform from which to continue to expand our coverage of what is important to our readers.

I am proud to be joining The Statesman especially because of the institutional dedication to transparency in our reporting.

You hear a lot of complaints that reporters today are not objective, or they show a bias in how they report the news. And in many cases that is a fair complaint. Reporters and journalist should make an effort to report from the perspective of an objective observer, they should, to the best of their abilities, work to keep their personal biases out of their writing.

However, sometimes that just isn’t possible.

Journalists are human, just like our readers and sources. We are influenced by our life experiences and beliefs, just like everyone else on the planet. The best we can hope to do is to acknowledge those biases and attempt to work around them. We don’t always succeed.

The Colorado Statesman has worked to be a non-partisan purveyor of political news in Colorado for many, many years, and I have no intention of changing that.

We will always endeavor to find balance in the stories we tell, our opinion pages will have voices from both sides of the aisle. While we are making plans to begin, as a paper, to take positions on certain issues through editorials, we will work together to explain why we believe our positions are best for the state we all love.

And, in the spirit of transparency, allow me a moment to tell you a bit about my biases and beliefs.

I was raised in the conservative stronghold that is southeast Idaho — the last time my home state sent its four electoral votes to a Democrat was in 1964 when Lyndon B. Johnson won by just over 1 percent against Barry Goldwater.

I tend to disagree with just about everything my home state’s elected officials do, and growing up in Idaho, I was considered a liberal hippie. Imagine my surprise when I came to Colorado for college and found out I wasn’t so far to the left as my home state would have me believe, and I’ve tended to become more moderate as I’ve aged — although many in Idaho might still think I’m a liberal hippie.

I’ve never registered for a political party, a deliberate choice on my part. While part of that choice has been to maintain my journalistic objectivity, I also have never felt comfortable identifying with either of this country’s major political parties.

I’m a pro-choice feminist, who would be thrilled if my government would stop legislating my reproductive system. If there is any chance of a diplomatic solution to an international situation, I prefer that by far to military action, but I’d love to shake the hand of the guys who took out Osama bin Laden. And frankly, blowing ISIS and Boko Haram off the face of the planet may not be such a bad idea. I firmly believe that this nation’s government needs to learn to live within its means, and it would be lovely if just once Congress could balance its budget.

At the end of the day, I want those who are elected to represent the citizens of this state to do what is best for their constituents, and if I see them doing the opposite, I intend to call them on it. It is not my job to stir up trouble, but you better believe that when there is trouble, I’ll be there.

I, along with the rest of the staff at The Statesman, take my responsibilities as a member of the fourth estate seriously and I will continue to provide our readers with the best political news in the state.

Rachel@coloradostatesman.com