Being the editor of the Island’s only daily newspaper can often be a challenging and thankless job — but somebody has to do it.The important role was placed in the hands of Bill Zuill, who has served as The Royal Gazette editor since 1998. He rose through the ranks after starting as a “well-mannered, smart and yet shy” summer student at The Mid-Ocean News.He went on to lead this newspaper through a host of important milestones, such as Hurricane Fabian, allegations of Government corruption within the Bermuda Housing Corporation, the Uighurs scandal and, more recently, a recession.Today we bid farewell to Mr Zuill as he steps down from the post and thank him for a job well done.Over the past two weeks, tributes — even from a couple unlikely places — have poured in honouring his years of dedication and service to the Island community.Dwayne Caines, Police media manager, said: “I will always treasure my time working with Bill Zuill, during my tenure with the police I can truly say he has been an honest broker with a genuine love for the Island of Bermuda.“We have not always seen eye to eye on key points but Bill would always make a call or send an e-mail to see what could be done to reach a happy medium. He possessed a passion for news, a commitment to fairness, and a thirst for the truth, which made him a pleasure to work with.“It is with a sense of sadness that we bid farewell to Bill but I know he will be around as a resource for us here on the Island. From your colleague and friend, all the best in your future endeavours.”Former reporter Carla Saunders Zuill met Bill ten years ago, after graduating with a journalism degree and not finding satisfactory work in the field.Someone told her to go and see Bill, who was looking for reporters; she went reluctantly because she didn’t like the image of the newspaper.“One if the first things he asked me was what was my perception of The Royal Gazette and if you know me, I pulled no punches. I thought he was going to tell me to get out his office but instead he thanked me and handed me my first assignment.“One night that stood out during my years at The Gazette was the number of shooting stories I covered, particularly one incident when I received a call at 11pm about a shooting. I figured we’d just cover it tomorrow, but something told me to call Bill — and I was so glad I did.“He sent me out into the field (I had my then two-year-old in tow) and I typed (and he reconfigured) the front page until two in the morning. We broke the story before electronic, which is unprecedented.”Ten years on and this is still the highlight of her career. Ms Saunders Zuill said Bill was always a good boss, but a bit tough at times. “In reflection I know it was only because he saw more of me than what I saw within myself as a writer. I’m thankful for all of the opportunities he afforded me while there. Bill, I wish you nothing but the best in the future. You will truly be missed.”Tony McWilliam, the editor-in-chief of competing newspaper the Bermuda Sun, said he had “enormous respect” for Bill.“He’s a solid, dependable journalist who has skippered the Island’s paper of record through tumultuous waters with courage and steadfastness,” Mr McWilliam said.“It’s a difficult and invariably thankless job in Bermuda, where everyone is interconnected and heightened accountability ensures that reaction to stories — especially if it’s negative — is swift and often blunt and personal.“Bill has applied intellectual vigour to his commentaries, taking time to explore the minutiae in order to explain and contextualise the issues of the day.”Mr McWilliam continued: “I have regarded Bill as a formidable competitor but also a strong ally of the press in general. He played a key role in the establishment of the Media Council of Bermuda, which has raised journalistic standards.“Above all, Bill’s journalism has been underpinned by personal qualities that can’t be learned or taught; he’s a thoroughly decent man who cares deeply about his Island home.”Former Premier Ewart Brown kindly declined the invitation to comment on Bill’s resignation as editor, but said: “I wish him well.”Former PLP MP Dale Butler praised Bill for his fairness and passion displayed throughout the years.Mr Butler said: “I think that history will record that Bill Zuill was a good editor who was seen to be fair and reasonable and although he championed a number of causes he did not throw them in our faces but educated us first.“I had a good working relationship with him and often wrote to tell him which editorials were spot on and which ones were lacking because he had overlooked a few facts.“Seems strange that he would step down at such a young age but that seems to be a sign of the times. No doubt he has chosen to enjoy the more precious things in life like his family and that is the wisest decision of all. I wish him all the best in the future.”Premier Craig Cannonier said there were few jobs in Bermuda where “all the currents and pressures of Island life converge each day” but that one such job is the editorship of The Royal Gazette.“For the past 14 years that post has been manned by William Zuill, who has spent his days putting out a newspaper that told the story of Bermuda as it happens. It is not an easy job — not by a long shot.“The challenges have come from all sides, and they sometimes have been fierce. But through it all, Bill has held steady, like the eye of a storm, making sure his paper did the best job possible to report on Bermudian life in a fair and balanced manner.“That Bill should have achieved this across 14 years is perhaps the best and only tribute a journalist cares for. And so I salute him for providing the people of Bermuda with the story of their Island and I wish him well in whatever new endeavour he should choose. Bill Zuill — a good man in a tough job.”Former United Bermuda Party leader Kim Swan said he personally had a great liking for Bill, gained while they carried out their respective roles in the public realm.Mr Swan said: “I do not envy the task Bill has had as editor of running one of the most powerful and controversial institutions in Bermuda. Notwithstanding, I always appreciated his open door policy and resultingly we have had many exchanges over the years — admittedly they have been more heated in recent years — as I recognised the role that The Royal Gazette plays in our modern society must be put under the microscope and improved.“On several occasions we have agreed to disagree on our viewpoints but I feel our mutual respect for each has remained intact. I wish Bill and his family good health and happiness as he moves on to a new stage in his life.”Former Royal Gazette Assistant Editor Gavin Shorto knew Mr Zuill while he was a summer student at sister paper The Mid-Ocean News.Mr Shorto described Bill at that time as “very much a public schoolboy”. He said: “He was very young, and a little bit shy, but he was smart, well-read and well-mannered. He also often wore a suit, which lent a certain tone to the office.“Bill wasn’t a young man you’d have sent to get his foot in the door to challenge a vicar about his cocaine habit, but there were others to do that.“The stories he did write, he wrote well. His grammar was good, he knew how to construct a story and how to tell it. He provided the additional benefit of being a young man with a wide general knowledge of the world. If you needed some maddeningly elusive fact instantly (in those distant days before the internet) it was a fair bet Bill might know.“But none of us expected him to make a career out of The Mid-Ocean News. He was the son of a former Royal Gazette editor, of course, a fact that teasingly suggested the start of a Zuill dynasty. More to the point, he was by nature a conservative and careful person, better suited to the chaste atmosphere of The Royal Gazette than to the volatility of The Mid-Ocean News.“I think he’d have had more fun if he’d stayed at the Mid-Ocean,” Mr Shorto continued. “On the other hand, if he had stayed, I figure that heart attack of his would have shown up an awful lot earlier than it did.”Assistant Editor, Jeremy Deacon, said many people on the Island — particularly Bermudians — owed their current careers to Bill.“Bill is going to be a tremendously hard act to follow — for anyone. He was very principled about journalism and believed strongly in freedom of speech and fairness.“Contrary to what many believe, I never saw any bias — only a belief to do the right thing. I never saw him cave into pressure and over the last five years that pressure has been enormous — more than anyone in the Country knows or could imagine.“Bill is not going to rest, he will be exploring other business avenues. But if ever anyone deserves a rest, it’s him.”Royal Gazette columnist Ira Philip believes Bill did “a fantastic job” and said he portrayed “a sound disposition that was sorely missing from some of his rabid right-wing editorial fore-bearers” that he encountered personally over the decades.“[Bill] has adopted a more centralist position reflective of the social economic and political realities of 21st century Bermuda,” Mr Philip said.“I have complimented him time and again on how The Gazette has done what I call, ‘risen to the occasion’ producing well-balanced, timely local news on varied political, social, sports, business and cultural fronts, and simultaneously, publishing news of local interest from a wide overseas spectrum in editions of 20 to 40 or more pages, often with interesting supplements.“I sometimes smile noticing how Bill seems to have neutralised some of my political friends who delighted in trying to dismiss The Royal Gazette as ‘the daily rag’ when in fact they themselves perhaps should do more to capitalise on its more enlightened Bill Zuill thrusts.”According to Mairi Mallon, a former Royal Gazette reporter, Mr Zuill did well to rise to the challenges that came his way as editor.She said: “Being the editor of any newspaper can be a lonely place. Being the editor of The Royal Gazette is a hard, and some would say, thankless task.“There were many hurdles for the young Bill Zuill to overcome when he took over in 1998. The newspaper is expected to be the equivalent of the Wall Street Journal, on a local paper scale. The political and racial divisions on the Island are hard to deal with in day-to-day terms, and even harder if you are the editor of the Island’s only daily paper which comes with its own racial baggage and history.“A difficult path lay ahead, but he dealt with accusations from all sides of bias and unfairness with good grace and he stood tall and fearless in the face of what most men (and women) would not put up with.”Despite the hard job, Ms Mallon said Bill always strived to be fair, good and make sure reporters were both honest and honourable.She said: “He is a good man, with a good heart who has reported without fear or favour during a difficult time for the paper and the Island as a whole.“Despite out and out hostility shown to the paper during Dr Brown’s Premiership, Bill strove to tell both sides of the story, to heal the political and racial divides. When mistakes were made, he was the first to raise his hand and say so.“To me his most lasting legacy at the paper is a generation of young Bermudian journalists, trained by him and the senior reporters, who have gone on to prove their worth on some of the best titles in New York and London, or moved into other careers where the good ethics and solid journalistic grounding taught will never be forgotten.”