Behind the Headlines

By Charles Slat

I could fill a book with the weird or odd coincidences that have characterized my many years of working at newspapers.
Today, one of those weird episodes happened.
I have been trying to connect with a source for the better part of three weeks. I don’t know this guy, but was told he could supply all the info I needed for an article. I made several calls to him over a period of a couple of weeks and left detailed messages. I left a message with his administrative assistant, just to make sure he still was alive.
About three days ago, he called me back — when I wasn’t in the office. He left a message that said I could contact him between certain hours the next day. The next day and the appointed hours came and I got his voicemail. I called back a bit later and got his voicemail again.
Today, I was in a day long meeting in the office. During a 10-minute break, I went to the bathroom, chatted with a co-worker for a few moments while there and then went briefly to my desk. The message light on my phone was blinking. I checked the voicemail and there was a message from another person I had call the day before. I hung up the phone, got out of my chair and started to walk down the hall back to my meeting. I heard my phone ring, stopped and turned around and answered it. It was the guy I had been trying to reach for three weeks. I got the info I needed. Only later did it occur to me that if we hadn’t had a meeting break at that particular time, if I had gone to the bathroom after checking my phone instead of before, if I had left my desk to return to the meeting 45 seconds sooner, I might once again have missed connecting with this guy. I mean, really, if you had tried to coreograph this ballet, it probably wouldn’t have been better timed. How weird.

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

Radio commentator Paul Harvey had quite a few well-known phrases in his career, and one was “Stand by for news!”

The past couple of days have been a little bit of that standby status.

You may have noticed that the Behind the Headlines blog is now a direct link of the monroenews.com web site. But almost as soon as that step was taken, Monroe Publishing Co.’s web sites were afflicted by some glitches. Even when we could get the other blogs to work, this one obviously wasn’t.

It’s obviously working now.

Behind the Headlines is one of the original blogs in the BlogsMonroe network. It was always intended to be a mish-mash of topics and we’ve had a real variety here: including the county fair, weather, rants, comic strips, fun sites we’ve discovered, Big Read.

It’s also pretty easy for us reporters to log on to and use this blog from any computer – home or office – even if we’re out of town. In fact, we’ve used it from time to time to post headlines that we are still getting ready for monroenews.com or to add to what we’ve already posted on our newspaper’s main web site.

It just makes sense to make more use of this opportunity — and promote it to the on-line readers a little better.

Now that we can (finally) get back into the headlines blog, I did some updating to our link list so you can see where else on the Internet that the monroenews team likes to hang out at.

Oh, yeah, about that typewriter graphic. There really is at least one typewriter still in the newsroom. Go look around the next time you visit our downtown Monroe office.

The White House web site has been updated with the Obama administration information and agenda.

– Paula Wethington

By Paula Wethington

I’ve been hearing and reading rumors about this situation at the nearby metro papers for the past few days. Now that the announcement is official, I still find it to be quite a shock.

The Detroit Free Press and Detroit News will “redirect staff, resources to digital delivery of news,” according to headline posted at Freep after the company meetings and press conference took place.

Translation: single-copy and news stand sales will continue seven days a week. But home delivery will be available only three days a week: Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays.

The recurring question has been how people without computer access can keep up with the newspaper during the off days.

The answer is: picking up a newspaper at a single-copy sales point or participate in a mail subscription service.

It’s obvious to me, as a reader of those papers and as someone who works in the newspaper business, that the Detroit Media Partnership had to make a difficult decision one way or another.

If you are familiar with the print version of those publications, you know how much automotive advertising went into those products. Well, consider what’s happening in the automotive industry right now.

And if you haven’t been familiar with the headlines about the newspaper industry, here’s a roundup that names several Michigan papers.

The Toledo episode of Extreme Home Makeoever is on TV — ABC station.

By Charles Slat
A few weeks ago, I wrote a column about Frank Upham, whose idea for a flag-marketing campaign led to the creation of the Pledge of Allegiance. I got a bit of feedback from that column, most from people who thought it was a pretty interesting story.
But Monroe residents Richard and Jeanne Micka provided some additional information that shed a little more light on the tale.
The Mickas related how Elizabeth “Aunt Bett” McWebb, Monroe’s own author of the Little Brown Bear stories, would talk about an uncle of hers who was a real crackerjack.
Mrs. McWebb, of course, was special in her own right — a masterful storyteller in addition to being a kind and gentle lady. She truly was one of Monroe’s treasures and was known for enthralling hundreds of schoolkids with her tales. That’s one of the reasons there’s that Little Brown Bear monument to her near the Dorsch Memorial Library in downtown Monroe.
What the Mickas told me, that I didn’t know, was that Frank Upham — the guy behind the masterful Pledge of Allegiance flag marketing campaign — was that crackerjack uncle of Mrs. McWebb’s. And that’s one of the reasons the Mickas made sure the National Flag truck came to Monroe to honor Aunt Bett after she passed away.
You may recall that Aunt Bett’s full name was Elizabeth Upham McWebb.
Now you know the rest of the story.

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

Attention National Public Radio listeners: Car Talk, the hugely popular automotive advice show hosted by brothers Tom and Ray Magliozzi, is becoming an animated feature.

Check out the details at Click and Clack go to Hollywood.

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

A delegation of Monroe Evening News editors, reporters, sports writers and photographers will have a call-in night from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday April 17.

The newsroom staff would like to hear what you think about your newspaper, take your questions and feedback.

The news phone numbers will be:

• 240-5766
• 240-5767
• 240-5777
• 240-5778

The sports phone number will be:

• 242-1100 ext. 393

If you can’t call in that night, but would like to talk to someone about the newspaper, editor Deb Saul can be reached during business hours at 242-1100 ext. 289.

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

We have a new piece of inspirational art at The Monroe Evening News’ downtown Monroe office. It’s a huge banner featuring The First Amendment, hanging down what used to be the main stairwell from the newsroom to the old main entrance, but is now a stairwell that is used mostly by employees.

I didn’t get a really great picture of it. Either I had to zoom in close enough so you can pick out the words, or zoom back out so you can get the full effect. But it really does look neat, and you’ll want to ask to see it when you visit our office.

(and the rest of it does continue down the stairwell ….)

By Stephanie Ariganello; stephaniea@monroenews.com

I’ve just got to tell you – I love the text message scandal story that’s been a-brewing in Detroit the last two weeks. First off, it’s juicy. It’s got all the good makings of a prospective Law & Order episode. And while it’s true that there are actual people at the heart of this who may end up wounded – not just a good story – it’s can still be a positive thing.

I won’t lay on you the whole self-righteous “the people who suffer in this are the people of Detroit.” We know this. But it seems to have broken open what some have always suspected: a long, winding trail of corruption in Michigan’s largest and hardest pressed city. It’s only when the light shines and we’re able to see what we’re dealing with that change happens.

But aside from all that, I love it because of what it does for newspapers. There’s all this talk of newspapers grasping for air, clutched little hands held fast over our news-mongering hearts, trying to understand the what and why of our own story. There is a general bad feeling about media, a mistrust, or even worse a dismissal of traditional news outlets. And then along comes the Detroit Free Press story on the explicit text messages. Suddenly, everyone is paying attention to the printed word again.

When the story first broke, I delighted in reading the comments on the Freep forums. Most skewered and barbecued the mayor. Some of them defended Kwame and commented that they finally came up with something, after intense scrutiny and wouldn’t we all have something that we would like to hide?

Or they verged on the edge of “this is a private matter between him and his family.” This stance gulled me. One person asked if the Free Press invaded the Mayor’s and his aide’s privacy by taking info off of their phone/pagers and wondered if it was legal. It’s fine to question, but it should be made clear: the devices they used in their affair were city issued. That means, every text, every phone call, every directory assistance is funded by taxpayers. And, additionally, what the texts seemingly revealed is that both people involved perjured themselves, possibly costing the city upwards of $9 million – and counting. That is nowhere near a private matter.

Bloggers can blog, commenters can comment, but what it really came down to is reporting. The release of the messages, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act – something any person in the country can and should use – was the first step. (Albeit a step that took much effort and tenacity – which it shouldn’t since it’s public info…) Now we have a person who abused city resources who has resigned, a mayor who is being investigated, a full city council investigation into budget matters and city spending and possible criminal charges to be filed. Isn’t this what newspapering – the watchdog of the media – is all about? Reporting what has been overlooked, seeking truth in matters that affect all people of a particular place whether they realize it or not and shedding light into the dark corners?

Yes, websites and other media can cover issues like this (and the Free Press took full advantage of its site during this story), but they didn’t. And when stories break elsewhere, on different media that is, it doesn’t seem to generate quite the same amount of buzz and permanence.

So maybe print is going out of fashion, but let’s not forget its purpose.

By Stephanie Ariganello; stephaniea@monroenews.com

I happened to be on call yesterday – just in case something had to be covered or reported on. On Christmas, it usually has to be something big to warrant a call in.
So, I was a little shocked to get a call from both my editor and the editor of the paper. However, when they informed me that our second-generation editor and former president of Monroe Publishing and The Monroe Evening News, Grattan Gray died earlier that day, it was clear why.

I would be the one putting together the story on his life and his death. Talk about intimidating.

Knowing that Mr. Gray has such an enmeshed history in not just our paper, but the community at large, I came in last night to read through clips and old articles to get a sense of who he was and what he did in his life. The more I read, the more I realized just how enormous a task it is to summarize a person, their life and actions and what they’ve contributed to a community. Mr. Gray may be an exception in general, simply because he did so much.

I met Mr. Gray maybe two times since I’m relatively new to the newsroom. I had heard stories and knew he was held in high regard by some of the more esteemed of my colleagues, but I had no idea. He had spent more than 70 years in the newspaper industry – (70!) something that is inconceivable. What I found I really liked about him, as I was reading, was his drive to try new things, to keep things moving and to keep an eye on the little things but only while knowing how the big picture was shaping up.

I’m the first to admit that I’m not the strongest obituary/life story writer (when it comes to newspaper). I get caught up on the whole how would this person want their story to go? aspect a little too much. Plus, space and time are the usual constraints. With someone like Mr. Gray who had been a writer and newspaperman for so long, when I went to type, my fingers wouldn’t move. I was cracking – not something that usually happens to me when under pressure.

That was, until I read a column that Steve Gray, Grat’s son wrote in 1995 when his dad was handing over leadership of the company. The column, titled “From a son to a father:” starts off with the words “thank you.” Steve goes on to summarize kind of how I was feeling in the next few lines. (Obviously the sentiment from a son to a father was beyond anything I was experiencing, but I felt similarly overwhelmed.)

“Ours is a family where words come easily and sentiment doesn’t.” Steve wrote. In journalism, this is the hope – that words flow, but emotions don’t.

“But this is a time when I feel a powerful urge to say something special,” he continued. “There’s so much I could say that I scarcely know where to begin,” he wrote. “So I’ll keep it simple.”

So, that’s what I tried to do. I missed the mark. And my editor did some rewriting – but with the history we have in the newsroom and the collaborative nature of it, we were able to put something together that tells Mr. Gray’s story and also highlights his many accomplishments.

By Stephanie Ariganello; stephaniea@monroenews.com

As I was having my quick breakfast of dried apricots I kept thinking of a poem, referring to dried human ears as dried peach halves. I couldn’t remember all the details, but that description, even years and years later, has never left me.

So I found the poem – which is actually written by a native Detroiter who went to MSU and then grad school at Bowling Green. I’m posting it here to demonstrate the power of writing, the power of descriptions that leave branded spots on our brains. (Note: I had to edit it in order to remove the “f” word, which appears in its entirety in the poem.)

The Colonel

by Carolyn Forche

What you have heard is true. I was in his house. His wife carried a tray of coffee and sugar. His daughter filed her nails, his son went out for the night. There were daily papers, pet dogs, a pistol on the cushion beside him. The moon swung bare on its black cord over the house. On the television was a cop show. It was in English. Broken bottles were embedded in the walls around the house to scoop the kneecaps from a man’s legs or cut his hands to lace. On the windows there were gratings like those in liquor stores. We had dinner, rack of lamb, good wine, a gold bell was on the table for calling the maid. The maid brought green mangoes, salt, a type of bread. I was asked how I enjoyed the country. There was a brief commercial in Spanish. His wife took everything away. There was some talk then of how difficult it had become to govern. The parrot said hello on the terrace. The colonel told it to shut up, and pushed himself from the table. My friend said to me with his eyes: say nothing. The colonel returned with a sack used to bring groceries home. He spilled many human ears on the table. They were like dried peach halves. There is no other way to say this. He took one of them in his hands, shook it in our faces, dropped it into a water glass. It came alive there. I am tired of fooling around he said. As for the rights of anyone, tell your people they can go f— themselves. He swept the ears to the floor with his arm and held the last of the wine in the air. Something for your poetry, no? he said. Some of the ears on the floor caught this scrap of his voice. Some of the ears on the floor were pressed to the ground.

The poem comes from Forche’s book called “The Country Between Us” published in 1981 by HarperTrade New York. (Incidentally, Margaret Atwood had a hand in getting this published – one of my all time favorite authors.)

Ever wonder what it looks like here at the News? Here’s a glimpse of where the magic happens.

If you were me, this is what you would be seeing right now:

A shot of Dean Cousino from the last couple of weeks. Looks like I got him at a good time:

Why are the people on the desk always so intense? Oh, right. That deadline thing. Here are Doug and Jessica, putting together the day’s news back in November (when I originally tried to post this to no avail).

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

It’s been a long time since I got a story assignment with the instruction, “wear your press pass.” But because of security details at the Radio Disney concert this afternoon in Ida (story will be in Sunday’s edition of The Monroe Evening News), I needed my press ID to get into the VIP reception at Ida Public Library.

The press pass I usually pull out is in my wallet (actually, my business card works in most situations). But, I do have a copy hanging on a lanyard tag to use as needed. It is useful to be that visible at times.

When I got to the library door, the event staff checked my media credentials and gave me a new lanyard with a card labeled with “VIP: Radio Disney Jingle Jam.” Within a few minutes, another event worker gave me a yellow ticket for the reception and a green ticket for reserved seating at the concert. So, I put all the passes in the concert lanyard and concluded I now looked like a music groupie with everything that was hanging around my neck.

After the reception ended and the audience was waiting for the national show to start, I went inside the library lobby to warm up.

A girl who was probably about 10 years old looked at my array of tags and said, “No fair! You’ve got a VIP pass.”

Her dad started laughing and said, “she’s a reporter.”

“Did you meet Keke?” the girl asked me.

“Yes I did. She was really nice.”

This response resulted in another agonized response from the young fan.

I explained that I didn’t get Keke’s autograph and had only enough time to give her two or three questions. Even a VIP pass doesn’t give you much more time than that, I explained. Other fans want to say hello.

But, I told the girl, if she wanted to meet Keke in person, there was still a chance to do it. There would be a public meet-and-greet with souvenir sales and autograph signings after the show.

This young fan let her dad know she was quite willing to give up her spot for the Night Light Parade so she could meet Keke Palmer. And, I think he was going along with her request.

Here are the tags that got her attention:

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to hear Keke perform live. I had to leave the show early.

But I did listen to clips on the Internet from the entertainers before going to Ida this afternoon and I like Keke’s music.

By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com

Someone at my former workplace always put the Wednesday before Thanksgiving edition on a scale to see how much that monster of a paper weighed. I’ve been asking about this at The Monroe Evening News every year since moving to Monroe. Seems nobody has thought of researching this bit of trivia!

So, after the paper landed with a very loud thud on my porch, I took it to the bathroom scale and weighed myself with and without today’s paper:

That’s 3.5 pounds of newspaper the carriers just delivered to your home or news racks.

I’ve been talking at Monroe on a budget about the sales and deals you can find while shopping in Monroe County. Stay tuned, it will take some time to compile today’s report.