Monday, July 7, 2008

Legwork, legwork, legwork


Nothing beats doing a story in-person. 

What I mean by that is pretty simple. With all the tools given to the modern journalist it has become increasingly possible for the reporter to never have to leave his or her desk. If some news breaks call the parties involved and get a statement. Need background information? Just a quick Google search away. 

I can't remember the last time I actually used a phonebook to find a phone number. Hell, if you're lucky, you can get most of an individuals background information straight off the Internet. 

Of course, the downside could mean missing the real story. 

Earlier today I received a press release detailing the closure of a split-level house in a nice neighborhood of the Salem suburbs. A 2-year old girl was found wandering down the street naked by a neighbor - who called the police. After they returned the child to her parents, about 1/8 a mile down the road, police noticed the smell of rotten food and trash coming from the house. Inside they found raw sewage backed up in the upstairs toilets and sink, rotten food and trash throughout the house, as well as feces and dirty diapers on the carpet. Town officials quickly closed the house due to the unsanitary condition of the home. 

Now, I could have written up the story pretty quickly with only a call to the police department and another to the Health Department. Would have been all I'd have to do to get the story filed by tonight. 

I actually did all of the above. And then I drove down from Windham to the house. Which is where I ran into a couple of cops, a detective and the health inspector. It made the whole story for me. Not only was I able to get photos of the investigation team as they went into the house (which was later called "unfit for human habitation), but I got a heads up on where the investigation was going and the ability to describe the house and yard in my article.

I put a link to it up here tomorrow when it runs (rumor has it front page material, but we'll see).

The lesson is, as always, to do the legwork. I was given a lesson (thankfully a happy one) in doing the extra work and going the full nine yards over just mailing it in from behind my desk. 

1 comment:

S.P. Sullivan said...

Why didn't you just call Ed Blaguszewski?

I found a gem in my 300 textbook [I'm finally taking it - online]. Apparently when Woodward and Bernstein were smoking everybody on the Watergate story, one of the editors of a rival paper's D.C. bureau put up a sign in their office:

"GOYA KOD: Get Off Your Ass and Knock On Doors."

Congrats on the potential front pager.