Dear dimwit on the phone

It's 2011, nearly 2012. All you have to do is press the guide button. It's not difficult.

And if you don't have a cable/satellite service with that feature, you need to get with the times or quit your yapping.

But, hey, I can still see the value in printing all the listings. We still publish the top-selling cassettes in America, right? #Whatisthis?1970?

 

Cassettes aren't dead yet. I have friends in some bands who are still putting out cassettes for some kind of retro appeal.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-04-15/entertainment/bs-ae-cassettes-revival-20110413_1_tapes-cassettes-brett-yale

 

I agree...100 and 20 trillion per cent! But...

Tell that to the 75 year old man or the 60something woman that calls every...single...day...

 

I would do that if anyone ever called me for that reason. I'd be no more willing to give them the TV channel a game is on than I would be willing to research where they could get the latest season of Dexter on DVD.

Either you're a newspaper or a cable company. I don't see the need to be both.

 

We had an agate guy -- still working as far as I know -- who would ruthlessly track these things down.

 

Dear Crazy Mom from Podunk,

Yes, I mentioned your daughter from Podunk County High got ejected from last night's season-opening girls' basketball game for fighting (which is what one of the three officials told the official book). Yes, I mentioned the two girls from Urban High got ejected as well.

Yes, I mentioned all three should be facing automatic two-game suspensions for fighting, per state association policy. Your coach, as well as Urban coach, admitted as much.

And yes, I wrote your daughter threw multiple punches. Even you admitted she did in retaliation of self defense after being knocked to the floor by Urban player A.

It doesn't matter that the state association had yet to review it (I said it could as early as today), however, I did point out that all three players' suspensions COULD change base upon the review.

No, I did not mention that your daughter is a white freshman and the two Urban players are black and older (sophomore and senior). Your daughter had four white teammates on the floor who did not throw punches. And there were five black players who did not throw punches.

So I'm not exactly sure why your pissed that I mentioned:
- All three players by name
- What they were ejected for (fighting)
- That your daughter COULD face a harsher suspension for throwing a punch once the fight was reviewed

You didn't help your cause by admitting you got all of your information off a homer radio station and not being, you know, at the game.

 

Amen to that.

 

It boggles the mind sometimes, doesn't it? Today I got a long, rambling email from a local minister who's upset that we ran a story 6 weeks ago about a kid getting booted from the local college football team. He's a good kid, says the email, and we did a disservice to him but not getting his side of the story. ... You mean, the kid we called and who said he didn't want to talk?

 

rtse, I did a story about a lawsuit against a city's police department. Called the cops. They said no comment, after several calls and emails. Called the city attorney. Left emails. I got a two-sentence statement, to which I immediately replied. No further e-mails.

So, I had to write what I had, which was the lawsuit, a "declined to comment" from the police and the two-sentence statement from the city's attorney.

Attorney called me angrily once the story printed, saying it was entirely one-sided.

 

I'm reminded of a time a high school basketball coach got fired. Called the AD, who said he didn't want to say anything until he saw what the fired coach had to say in the paper. Called the coach, who said he didn't want to say anything until he read what the AD said in the paper. All I could do is tell the editor is, this one is will be done without quotes!

 

You think so? I quoted you verbatim.

 

You should have told the AD that while you're not at liberty to share what the coach said, you feel it's in his best interest to respond given the nature of the quotes. Then do the same with the coach. Clearly one of them would have caved and, if not, you at least tried to outsmart them and that's going to be worth at least one Kit Kat bar.