Behind the Headlines

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

My husband and I own a radio scanner. It’s dual purpose - providing play-by-play at NASCAR races and listening to emergency radio traffic when I’m on call.

As soon as we learned via text message to my cell phone that there was a tornado watch posted tonight, we turned that radio on.

No, I’m not on call tonight. But it’s a wonderful thing to listen to our local police and firefighters give reports and announcements during a severe weather situation!

It was really odd to be hearing Monroe County Central Dispatch give a roll call for the county’s fire departments to make sure someone was on duty …

Keeping in mind that today’s date is Jan. 7, not June 7!!!!

By Stephanie Ariganello; stephaniea@monroenews.com

I think it was something that was sent by accident, but I received a copy of the newly hashed out contract between the Drain Commissioner Office and the Utility Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO local. On the spreadsheet showing the wages, there are two columns that identify workers will receive a “Sinning Bonus”.

Apparently, the UAW and the Drain Commission worked out a deal for sinning. In 2008, in addition to the hourly rate, employees from the operations manager to water meter reader to utility clerk will receive an additional $1,935.48 for sinning.

In 2009, the sinning bonus drops to $927.89.

Of course, I do realize that it’s most likely a typo and should read “Signing Bonus” - but hey, who knows what goes on in those negotiations.

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

My new coffee mug …

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

One of my assigments for Monday’s edition of The Monroe Evening News was to follow up on the headlines out of Toledo of a multi-fatal accident Sunday night on I-280.

While we had an Associated Press version of the story, additional details such as the names of the victims were just becoming available as our newspaper was on deadline. It took several phone calls to pin down which Toledo Police Department office had the latest press release that the Toledo TV reporters were reporting on. (Monday’s story in Monroe Evening News)

That’s part of the routine for following a major story that’s just outside a newspaper’s main coverage area: you’re one step behind the reporters who are on the scene, but looking for angles that need to be emphasized for your audience. And sometimes, the rewrite includes translating local landmarks to something that makes a bit more sense to a regional audience.

The weird thing about that story landing on my desk is I know that part of Toledo very well. (more…)