I responded this morning to a post on the “Eyes and Ears” forum on monroenews.com. Someone had heard about a suicide and wondered why it wasn’t reported in the newspaper.

You can see the discussion here: 

http://monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/news_message?Category=forum&ThemeID=877&GroupID=234798&InReplyTo=67891&FromPost=1

It raised questions that go well beyond the simple answer I gave on the forum - that newspapers don’t report suicides, partly to spare the grieving family and partly to avoid the copycat syndrome.

In many of the decisions we make, we’re balancing several competing interests. Is it interesting? Will our readers want to know? Will it sell papers? Will anyone be hurt by publishing it? Will it invade someone’s privacy? Is there a public policy issue involved? Will it raise the public consciousness on an important issue?

Contrary to public perception, we really do weigh all of these factors, and many more. Suicides are good examples of cases where the private interests and public good win out over public interest.

Clearly, people would want to read a story about a man hanging himself over a lost love. That’s the kind of stuff that makes great novels, movies, plays. Love and tragedy, conflict and death - what better topics for story-telling. And what better topics for selling newspapers.

But in the case of suicides, most newspapers choose to put their own economic interests and their readers’ interests aside and instead strive to do what’s right.

There are at least two important reasons to not report suicides. A compelling, well-told story about a tragic suicide could very well cause others to try taking their lives in similar ways. And families have a right to privacy regarding the death of a loved one.  

Of course, there are times when other interests prevail. The Virginia Tech shooter committed suicide, but not until after he had killed 33 people. The public’s interest in knowing everything about the shooter far overshadowed any right to privacy.

Of course, there are other “interests” involved, too. In the case of a suicide in the parking lot of a store, there is a business interest. No business wants that kind of publicity. A suicide involving a well-known person or elected official creates another set of pressures.

We make decisions along these lines every day. Some are easy, some very difficult. Weighing the public interest, as in readers’ desire to know, versus the public good, as in furthering public policy, is one thing. Weighing our own financial interest, as in selling papers, versus a family’s right to privacy, is another.

You get the idea. The decisions aren’t easy. And how the newspaper covers these issues is a legimate subject of public discussion. If you disagree with our policies, we want to hear why.

Both this blog and the Eyes and Ears forum give you places to sound off. Letters to the editor in The Evening News are another venue. So, what do you think?

I’ll admit, right up front: I’m not an expert on fish.

I don’t often fish myself. I’ll occasionally tag along on a fishing trip, but my heart’s not really in it.

I love to eat fish. I’m not much of a connoisseur, though. I have my favorites, but generally I’m in favor of most fish when it’s on my plate.

For some reason, this has been a fishy week. I’ve been in fish conversations, or read interesting blogs on fish, all week long.

Take, for example, Gerry Wykes’ “Naturespeak” blog, which currently features a fascinating entry on long nose gar. I’ve heard of gar, seen pictures, wondered about them, but Gerry answered all my questions.

Over at Dave Liske’s “LunaPierCook” blog is an entry on catfish, caught by his step-son in Lake Erie and pan-fried on his stove. My taste buds were salivating.

Meanwhile, Chuck Mason’s “Fishing Michigan” blog has covered everything you need to know to catch walleye, the prize of Lake Erie, and he continues to post fishing reports on a regular basis. This week he’s talking about pike and muskie.

But it’s not just the blogs. At The Evening News, I sit about 10 feet from Ray Kisonas, our fine reporter and intrepid outdoorsman. Ray often comments in his Sunday column about his fishing and hunting exploits - generally excuses about the one that got away.

This week, though, Ray was bragging about catching large mouth bass in canals along Lake Erie. I asked him where, and he refused to tell me; ”I don’t want a bunch of yahoos going there,” was his explanation.

I reminded him that he’s required to reveal his sources to the managing editor. Not his fish sources, he said, in no uncertain terms.

When I asked him how the bass tasted, a shocked expression spread over his face.

“You don’t eat bass,” he said. “You catch and release. Bass is a sport fish.”

Well, I had just read the LunaPierCook blog on eating catfish. To my amateur palate, bass and catfish sounded similar. I know I’ve eaten both in the past. Bass, as I recall, is a little fishy tasting.

But Ray was adamant. I reminded him that just a few days ago he had been bragging about how good the fish he just caught tasted.

“That was walleye,” he pointed out. “Bass is a fish you fish to catch. Walleye is a fish you fish to eat.”

Walleye, he went on, is the best tasting fish in the sea - or river, lake or pond. 

“Wait a minute,” I said. “What about salmon.” (I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, where salmon is king)

“It’s okay,” Ray responded. “But not as good as walleye.”

If he was going to make a rash statement like that, I told Ray, he needed to stand behind it. Next walleye catch, I expect a sample.

This excerpt from former Vice President Al Gore’s new book sure gets the wheels turning. Regardless of what you think of Al Gore, it’s an interesting comment on the state of America, politics and the media.

It’s not like Mr. Gore is the first to point out the problem. I’ve mentioned it on this blog, and most journalists in America have lost some sleep worrying about it. But the former vice president offers an interesting perspective, coming from near the top of American politics (very near the top).

“American democracy is now in danger—not from any one set of ideas, but from unprecedented changes in the environment within which ideas either live and spread, or wither and die. I do not mean the physical environment; I mean what is called the public sphere, or the marketplace of ideas.

It is simply no longer possible to ignore the strangeness of our public discourse. I know I am not alone in feeling that something has gone fundamentally wrong.”  - excerpts from Assault on Reason, by Al Gore

It’s not just presidential politics. The same polarization that seems to keep reasonable people from listening to any viewpoint that disagrees with their own has permeated state and local politics, too.

The Granholm-DeVoss race in 2006 and the Iacoangeli-Cappuccilli race in 2005 both were characterized by innuendo, hyperbole and personal attacks, from both sides.

The animosity has continued in both state and city politics - it seems that every issue is seen through the prism of partisanship, instead of moving the city or state forward.   

Politics is unavoidable. There’s nothing wrong with people on both sides of any issue holding strong opinions and presenting persuasive arguments. But it seems as it no one is listening to the other side’s perspective any more.

The fact of the matter is that liberals are right some of the time and conservatives are right some of the time. The same goes for Republicans and Democrats and supporters of both the current and former mayors.

The best government occurs, in my opinion, when power is shared and both parties have to deal with each other - when they’re forced to listen, to sort out the options and search for compromises.

That can lead to serious dialogue. The kind where people actually move from their entrenched positions, grudgingly admitting that maybe someone on the other side had a good idea.

It may be beginning to happen at the federal level, where negotiations over immigration reform have been promising. Michigan desperately needs for it to happen at the state level, where the budget crisis is looming.

Monroe has its own budget crisis on the horizon. Serious cuts in services are likely to be needed. It will be a challenging environment - the kind where anger and animosity could poison the dialogue needed to make good decisions.

Let’s hope that Mr. Gore is wrong - that while the state of political dialogue in America is sick, it’s not terminal.

 As I was getting my hair cut this week, the barber mentioned that earlier in the day he cut the hair of one of the public officials traveling to Hawaii to attend a conference on managing pensions.

One of the Hawaii 14, as they’ve become known. I didn’t know whether to be flattered or insulted.

The barber, as barbers often do, offered his views on the subject. I was surprised by how understanding he was. None of the outrage I’ve heard from many. A little concern that sending 14 people from one county was a little over the top, but no anger.

He was willing to concede that Pension Board members should go to conferences to learn more about how to manage the money that has been placed in their care. And he seemed to buy their argument that Hawaii isn’t that much more expensive than Los Angeles, Miami or Boston, for example.

If you’ve been living in a cave for the last month, there was quite a stir when first the Detroit Free Press, then other newspapers including the Monroe Evening News, reported that Michigan was the leading state and Monroe among the leading communities in sending folks to the Hawaii convention (here’s the initial story).

Given the state of the economy in Michigan and Monroe, it seemed like a funny thing to do - spending public money (public pension money, not public tax money) to send 14 people to Honolulu (now 13; one pulled out for health reasons).

After our initial editorial on the subject, which generally concluded that two or three representatives should attend the conference and give a report to the others, The Evening News has been silent on the subject.

Our editorial board talked about adding further comment, after the Republican and Democratic parties recommended that any public officials pay their own way, and after two county commissisoners agreed to do that.

Should we congratulate the commissioners for listening to their constituents? Or should we lament that it’s really not very fair for the two of them to pay, while the other 11 go on the pension board’s dime? We decided to stand pat with our previous comment.

Personally, I have this added concern. 

For months and perhaps years, whenever a government at any level really needs money for something important, visions of coconuts dancing on palm trees are going to swim through the heads of voters. Opponents of tax increases have been given a rallying cry that we’re sure to hear over and over again.

“They’ve got enough money to send 14 people to Hawaii. I’m voting no.”

It’s not fair. It’s comparing apples and oranges. But it’s likely to happen. 

Aren’t we still hearing about $200 toilet seats?

If you need your faith in young people restored, go to a spelling bee.

Monroe County’s bee was last night, and I had the honor of pronouncing the words for the spellers. It truly was a rewarding experience - sharing the room with so many bright, good-looking and well-mannered young people.

Some were intense. Some were a kind of studied casual. Some seemed to be mostly curious. A few tried to pretend they were bored.

But as a group, it was an impressive show. They spelled some tough words, they were tripped up by some tricky words, and all 39 students showed a high level of class, whether they won or lost. Their parents should be very proud.

I can only remember one giving me a dirty look as he walked off the stage - as if it was my fault he misspelled the word.

This year’s list seemed to be heavy on short, tricky words, instead of long, complicated ones. Words like “trawl,” ”stoic,” and “sphinx.” “Isthmus” took out a couple of the final 10 students.

One longer word, “rhinoceros,” was the only word that none of the finalists could spell.

For a lover of words - after all, I’ve made my living with them for three-plus decades - it was a real treat.

We hear a lot about the failures of our schools, and that we’re raising a generation of kids who only know how to play video games.

But this group was quiet testimony that schools and parents are doing just fine with today’s young people.

I spent my evening yesterday studying how to pronounce 500 words.

My wife periodically stuck her head into the den, listened to me pronounce a word, read the definition and use the word in a sentence, and move on to the next one.

She’d shake her head, give me a weak smile, then go back to watching television by herself.

Tonight, I’m the official pronouncer at the Monroe County Spelling Bee.

The pressure is on. I’ve watched spelling bees before, and I know how important they are to the boys and girls who won their local school bees and advanced to the county bee - and to their parents.

And I know how much pressure that puts on the pronouncer and the judges to get it right.

When I was asked to do this job, I agreed immediately. It sounded like fun. That was before I looked at the word list.

Some of those words are not only tough to spell, they’re a tangle of syllables requiring improbable sounds to come from the mouth.

I’ve been a journalist for 30-plus years. I make my living with words. But there are words on the list I’ve never heard of.

The English language is rich and diverse. We’ve borrowed words from many languages, and we spell and pronounce them in crazy ways.

All of which only goes to make the students’ prowess in spelling that much more amazing. After all, I only have to learn how to pronounce them.

They have to spell them.

Like many people, I subsribe to some listservs — group e-mails lists where people with interest in a particular topic can share views.

One of my favorites comes from Northwestern University’s Readership Institute. Basically, it’s a bunch of newspaper editors who share comments and opinions on, well, newspapers and their Web sites.

Usually, it’s pretty dull stuff. But some humor sometimes creeps in.

One issue this week was obituaries. After a few serious posts - after all, death is a serious topic - an editor from coastal Georgia changed the subject:

“Once we took our obits to a paid service, the language has gotten out of control. People “going home to be with the Lord,” “shedding their earth suit to go dance with the angels,” being “called home to their heavenly father.” It’s almost comical if people weren’t actually dying! I’m not making this up, folks.”

At this point, let me stop and explain The Evening News’ policy. Unlike most newspapers, we still provide free obituaries for everyone who dies in our circulation area. Our staff writes the obituaries, and we stick to fairly standard wording. People “die” in our obituaries.

We do offer paid obituaries for people who want to include more details than the basic information that we put in the free version. Since they’re paying, they can say whatever they want, within reason.

Well, you can imagine the response on the listserv. A bunch of veteran editors have seen a lot of different ways for people to go to heaven. For example, this one was offered by another Michigan editor:

“…, 78, of Shepherd, on Saturday, April 21, 2007, was successfully transplanted from this life into the Kingdom of Heaven, where she now awaits reunion with those who remain.”

My favorite post, though was this one from an Oklahoma editor:

“I keep waiting for the obit that starts out:

‘John Doe descended into the fiery depths of Hell on Friday, April xx, 2007. . . .’ “

You must have noticed.

Just as the other signs of spring have sprung - flowers, lawn mowers, baseball games - the orange cones also are back.

This summer is shaping up as one of the worst - but then, aren’t they all - when it comes to highway construction.

US 23 to Ann Arbor. Telegraph and Dixie, north and south of Monroe. Lewis, Sterns and Summerfield in Bedford. I-75 north of Monroe. And that doesn’t include all the smaller road construction projects in the city and county.

The Evening News has a regular feature designed to keep readers up-to-date on where the orange barrels will be located each week. It’s called Roadwatch, and it appears every Saturday in the newspaper and 24-7 on monroenews.com.

It won’t whisk the barrels away so you can drive through unimpeded. But it at least will help you plan your trip to avoid as much orange as possible.

I can be sure when we cover local news about Iraq or the military that someone will complain.

Feature stories about a soldier returning from Iraq or about two siblings enlisting in the Navy are going to elicit complaints that we’re glorifying the military to show our support for the war in Iraq. One such thought was posted on the Eyes and Ears forums this week.

“… I suggest you should change the name of your paper, really, to Monroe Military News. Weren’t we bombarded the last couple of days with military this and military that? I really don’t think Mondays’ article about siblings going into the Navy deserved to be front page headlines. Couldn’t the editors find something a little more news-worthy? I guess you’re still trying to push Mr. Bush’s illegal war.” See entire thread here.

Meanwhile, virtually every time we cover an anti-war protest - such as on Page 1 today - we draw criticism from others. How dare we put those unpatriotic images on the front page? We’re giving comfort to the enemy.

People on both sides want to believe that we’re either anti-war or pro-war, anti-Bush or pro-Bush, anti-left or anti-right.  They’re looking for any sign of how we lean.

Frankly, I’m sure there are individuals in our newsroom who are opposed to the war. I know there are others who support U.S. involvement in Iraq and want us to stay as long as necessary. Without polling the newsroom, I’d guess the percentages are about the same as in the general population.

But that’s not how we make news decisions. The No. 1 question we ask ourselves over and over is, “How many readers would be interested?” There are other factors, of course. “Is it important?” “Will it touch peoples’ lives?” “Do we have a reporter or photographer available then? “Have we covered a similar story recently.” “How does it fit with the other news of the day?” 

The brother and sister enlisting in the Navy may not have been a Page 1 story 5 years ago, as it was Monday. Neither would a soldier returning home from service visiting his son at school, which was on Page 1 Tuesday.

But today we’re in a war - a deadly war. Our soldiers and sailors are dying at the rate of nearly 100 a month. That makes two members of a family enlisting together a lot more compelling. How do you suppose their mother feels? Proud? Frightened. I suspect both.

How do you think that father and son felt when they hugged for the first time in nine months? Strong emotions like those are what make good news stories. We can all relate. We care, whether we support the war or not.

We also don’t apologize for covering war protests on Page 1. Surveys tell us that most Americans agree that we should remove our troops from Iraq and let them settle their own civil war. Events like Wednesday’s protest may only draw a dozen people, but they represent the views of many.

Every war protest won’t be on Page 1. That depends on many factors, as I mentioned above. And the same goes for military feature stories.

But as long as our nation’s at war, those stories are more likely to rise to the top of the “are readers interested” meter.

The lead story in today’s Evening News was about gas prices going up again.

As we discussed the day’s news in this morning’s Page 1 planning meeting, that story quickly jumped to the top. Everyone is affected by rising gas prices, and everyone is angry about it.

I can remember few stories, in my years as a journalist, where readers mistrust the information as much. No one I know really believes what they hear from oil companies.

Now, that doesn’t mean the oil companies aren’t telling the truth. It’s just that skepticism on this subject is out the roof. We’ve all heard too many conflicting stories over the years, while we watched oil company profits soar.

Frankly, it’s my view that gas prices will go as high as Americans will pay. It doesn’t have anything to do with the price of crude or lack of oil refineries or rising demand. It’s all about charging as much as folks will pay. If drivers begin conserving, the price will come down. As long as we keep paying, the price will go up.