Jerry Springer Was And Wasn’t Who You Think He Was

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This wasn’t the first time something like this happened, and I doubt it will be the last. Call it “The Quiet Man” approach. Hmm, that sounds like a pleasant topic for a future commentary.

This episode, however, begins in the quiet world of Manchester, New Hampshire in June of 2017.

No, wait. It actually begins before this beginning. Early in April, I met Suzette Standring at the New York Press Association Spring Conference at the Gideon Putnam Hotel in Saratoga Springs, New York. She is an award-winning author and a syndicated columnist. Suzette was at the NYPA conference to present on how to write better columns.

In case you haven’t noticed, this weekly sojourn is what we in the journalism business call a “column.” It’s not necessarily a traditional column (which Continue Reading “Jerry Springer Was And Wasn’t Who You Think He Was”

I’d Rather Have A Bottle (of Diet Pepsi) In Front of Me…

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Those of a certain age remember Dr. Demento. Those who aren’t of a certain age should discover Dr. Demento.

Dr. Demento was what might be called a “free range” DJ in the waning days of AM music. He didn’t fit in any acceptable genre. He played novelty songs no one else would play. In doing so, he popularized Elmo and Patsy’s “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” and would help launch the career of Weird Al Yankovic.

It wasn’t all about the music. Dr. Demento’s shows featured oddball skits and comedy routines. In the late 1970s and early 1980s it was likened to an audio version of Saturday Night Live. (Those of a certain age know that was Saturday Night Live when it used to be Continue Reading “I’d Rather Have A Bottle (of Diet Pepsi) In Front of Me…”

Facebook and Free Speech

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There’s been a lot of talk among some in the media about the suppression of the First Amendment – every American’s right to free speech. Folks like to point to President Trump’s never-ending battle with his major media opponents. You hear a lot about Trump supporters shouting down national media celebrities. You can argue the anti-media crowd is merely exercising its First Amendment right to free speech, but that’s another topic. For all the ink spilled, one thing is certain: merely complaining about the press is a far cry from actually shutting down that press.

There is, however, another national actor that actually is shutting down the free press. And that could be a much bigger problem than the sum of all of President Trump’s tweets.Continue Reading “Facebook and Free Speech”

Merrymaking in the ‘Nati

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The Championship Winners flank either side of the affable play-by-lay announcer. NSNC Photo

As I sat down to write this account, a profound thought struck me: It’s much easier to go from writer to talker than from talker to writer. I’ve been both. I’ve had fun at both. But never, until now, have I ever attempted to shift from play-by-play announcer to sportswriter. But here goes…

Named for George Washington’s Roman protégé, with a nod to that ancient empire’s capital the city of Cincinnati has long been called the City of Seven Hills. Indeed, for a hundred or so of the nation’s finest columnists, the undulating topography of Cincinnati’s inclined streets no doubt left an ache in the shins that echoed for several days.

Nonetheless, it was in this Queen City of the West that they gathered. At once to dine at the Mecklenburg Gardens – a dinner that lasted well past its “sell-by” date – and to cavort with the giraffes during happy hour at the Cincinnati Zoo.

For many, though, the highlight of the event wasn’t Jerry Springer apologizing for ruining the culture, or even George Clooney’s equally famous dad Nick regaling the crowd with stories of Walter Cronkite and ruffage. For attendees, and at least a handful of the hotel staff, the pinnacle of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists Annual Conference was Continue Reading “Merrymaking in the ‘Nati”

Sinclair Bashing: Talking Points Attacking the First Amendment or Merely Competitive Mudslinging?

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“It was a lovely day for strolling along the seashore. Men were sleeping on the sand, some of them sleeping forever. Men were floating in the water, but they didn’t know they were in the water, for they were dead.”

Ernie Pyle wrote those lines in his column describing D-Day in 1944. He was the most popular – and memorable – war correspondent during World War II. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1944. The following year, with the European Theater of Operations coming to a close, Pyle relocated to the Pacific Theater of Operations. There, on April 18, 1945, on the island of le Shima, Ernie Pyle’s pen fell forever silent. Covering the Battle of Okinawa – the last major battle of the War – the 44-year-old journalist was killed instantly in a hail of Japanese machine-gun fire.

President Harry S. Truman eulogized Pyle saying of the columnist, “No man in this war has Continue Reading “Sinclair Bashing: Talking Points Attacking the First Amendment or Merely Competitive Mudslinging?”

The Difference Between a Reporter and a Columnist

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I interviewed a prospective intern the other day and she asked a very interesting question. I was explaining how, because our vast publishing empire does so many things – from print to digital, from text to video, from social media to books – we have the flexibility to design an internship program customized to her specific needs and wants. I asked her, “What should you have on your resume that would most impress your future employer? Chances are, you can get that by interning here.”

She was contemplating a different question, though. Something I had told her about what I do intrigued her, and she wanted to explore that. So, instead of answering my question, she asked me one of her own.

“What’s the difference between a reporter and a columnist?”

I leaned back in my chair. Wow, I thought, what a great question!

I had told her I did both. She wanted to know specifically how the two journalism functions Continue Reading “The Difference Between a Reporter and a Columnist”

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