It's good to be first but better to be right

I've waited a few days to post about the DEBACLE at the "networks" of CNN and FOX.  Shame.

Read more here.

Learn.

Never make the mistakes they made.

One (correct) response to why the media should not turn over raw tape

Running with scissors (the spelling in this title was corrected; thanks M!)

 Danger!  Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

I understand the desire to try new things but I think the KC Star attached itself to the wrong trend with its 3-D Halloween edition:

• My focus group -- the bleary-eyed husband who was deep into the A-section when I asked him if he wanted to use the 3-D glasses.  He had no idea what I was talking about.
• It took both hands to hold the paper glasses around the readers necessary to enhance the work of my bifocal contact lenses.  Handcuffed by the 3-D pictures, I couldn't drink my coffee.
• The KC Star isn't "Avatar."  I paid the higher ticket price, donned the goofy specs and saw that movie in an IMAX theatre.  On purpose.  It's called "content."  Today's edition of the Star didn't have enough interesting material to drive me past the irritation of reading it.

The WSJ already weighed in on this tech trend, calling it "overdone."

And as this piece points out, a newspaper's strength is generally the words, not the pictures. 

How much longer before Nashville gets significant attention?

I've been paying attention to the plight of Nashville and find the lack of MSM attention interesting.  Twenty-three dead, property damage is now estimated at $1.5 billion.

My friend Chez blogged about it and it reminded me of when I was in South Florida -- Hurricane Andrew destroyed a large portion of South Dade County and for a couple of days, it seemed like nobody was paying attention.  I was in Memphis when a freak summer storm left nearly a half million homes without power.   So here's a little bit from the Wayback Machine:

July 30, 2003.  More than a week has passed since The Storm hit Memphis.

My city is in shambles. As of this moment, more than 60,000 homes are still without power. In my own newsroom, Ursula Madden, Tracy Langlois and Janice Broach are all working in the newsroom by day and dealing with life in the Delta heat sans AC by night.
The storm and its wake killed seven people. The city and surrounding areas suffered damages in excess of $40 million. Assuming that each home has two occupants, it may be Friday before 120,000 have electricity. Yesterday, President Bush (may I say FINALLY) declared Shelby and Fayette a disaster area.
The weirdest thing about this whole thing (for me) has been the lack of national attention. No network crews, very little mention except for a couple of voice-overs on some of the networks. Tammy Robken got the attention of a CNBC producer yesterday and Tuesday night, Shelby County mayor A C Wharton did a "Kate Hale" on CNBC (anyone who was in South Florida during Andrew will know what that is, more than ten years later) and later tonight, NBC correspondent Kerry Sanders, will arrive in Memphis to put a story together for Thursday night's Nightly News.
Finally, some attention! Send money! Send baby food! Send trees!

Nashville's disaster is much worse than what Memphians experienced nearly seven years ago.  I hope somebody starts paying attention to them soon.

Watching Women's Basketball, Musing All the While

 It was a strange Easter for John and me--the hardest thing about being Empty-Nesters?  Holidays were so much fun when the kids were little.  Hunting for the hidden baskets, then church, then a giant meal with ham as the centerpiece. 

We had none of those.  I was on call so didn't go to church at my chosen time and then, and then, and then we didn't go.

We did take a brisk walk through the woods that are greening up slowly.  We made phone calls to our loved ones.  We had a healthy lunch.  We made a late afternoon stop in the newsroom when the weather threatened.  Skytracker was up, Gary Lezak and George Waldenberger were at the ready but it was a passing cell that didn't cause much alarm.
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This cartoon is by Brian Fairrington, courtesy politicalcartoons.com.  The iPod was released this weekend.  Reviews are rolling in.  I found Jeff Jarvis' report to be most interesting, especially after seeing the list of MSM sites who've jumped on the bandwagon.

I didn't buy one.  Yet.
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Tiger Woods will talk to the media Monday at 1pm central.  That should be interesting.  I heard a soundbite from Tom Watson on the early news.  When asked what he would ask Tiger, Watson said "How are you hitting?"  My question would be "WHO are you hitting?"

Sorry.  The door was open, I ran through it.
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Tip of the hat to Commerical Appeal reporter Marc Perrusquia.  When I lived in Memphis, I always appreciated his hard work, his sources and his incredible pursuit of the truth.  Apparently, the company we work for agrees.
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And finally, a reminder that Doh!  I forgot to graduate! from a blog I love.  I,too, got into news sans a diploma.  There are times I wish I'd finished but most of the time, I'm ok with my choices.  By the way, John McIntyre is simply awesome.  You should add him to your Favorites.