If there’s one individual at our organization who embodies the spirit of engagement journalism, it’s my colleague John Shabe. Soon after NJ.com launched on the internet in early 1996, Shabe started freelancing for the company as a moderator tasked with listening to readers and guiding conversations on the forums. The site wasn’t quite a news site as much as it was a community bulletin board segmented into topics of interest. Through the website, Shabe responded to comments by Star-Ledger readers and passersby who found NJ.com to talk about their sports teams. Other comments threads discussed t…