Election Day

Municipal Election Day is finally here, and please, get out and vote.

As I said two weeks ago, every election is important.  Off year elections traditionally have low turnout and that's just sad.  The people on the ballot are your neighbors-- your council members, mayors, and school directors.  Like it or not, they have a big influence on the way you live your life-- especially when it comes to the amount of taxes you pay.

In Lackawanna County, where I live, voters have the capability of reshaping their government with several questions on the ballot.

It looks like a busy day.  A couple "big race" preview stories were written last week.  They were tweaked and edited over the weekend.  You'll see them on Newswatch 16 This Morning beginning at 4:30 AM.

I'll likely do a turn out story for noon, and vote on my way home from work.

The night crew has the task of getting the numbers and the reaction on the air.  There's a special prime time broadcast on WNEP2, and a wrap up on Newswatch 16 Wednesday Morning.

Don't forget about our Twitter feed, @wnep and WNEP.com.

If I get a moment or two, there will be blog updates today, and a wrap up some time tomorrow morning.

I have my thoughts on what I think will happen today and tonight.  I'll keep them to myself today, and critique my predictions tomorrow.

Again, vote.  It's important.

>>>10:40 AM UPDATE  I visited polling places in Scranton, Moosic, Olyphant, and two in Jessup.  Turnout is light.  The Lackawanna County ballot questions seem to be generating the most interest among the few people at the polls.

The "Fix Lackawanna" people seem extremely well funded and organized.  I stopped by their downtown Scranton headquarters this morning.  It looks like they have everything they need to make it work.  "Fix Lackawanna" volunteers are at every polling place I visited.

My noon piece has been edited, and it's back on the road in a few minutes.

>>>3:30 PM UPDATE  Photographer Paul and I went to Taylor for our noon live shot.  It didn't look busy, but poll workers said turnout was "okay." My noon story was focused on the government study question-- a tough one to explain in a minute and a half.  At times like this, I envy my friends in print.  I spoke with Corey O'Brien, Lackawanna County Commissioner this morning.  He thinks passage of the referendum is fait accompli, and O'Brien hopes the commission gives all options a fair shake.  I spoke with a member of "Fix Lackawanna" afterward.  I got the feeling she just wants to toss out the current system, before the first meeting.

 I voted on the way home.  Being an Independent, I could vote only for the ballot questions and government study commission members.  I was voter 124 in my ward.  Turnout was a little heavier than I thought, but my little town has hotly contested mayor, council and school board races.

I've complained about this before, but I really hate running the gauntlet of candidates and their volunteers, bombarding me with cards and assorted other paper.  My mind was made up long ago.

Let's take a break and wait for the numbers.

Again

There are renewed efforts to strengthen the state's anti smoking law.

Casinos can still have smoking sections.  You can still smoke in bars that make less than 20 per cent from their revenue from food.  If some in the legislature have their way, those exceptions go away.

First, it's an issue of fairness.

Second, it's clearly a health issue.  It's a proven and indisputable fact that second hand smoke is hazardous.  No one is trying to stop you from smoking.  All you have to do is engage in your habit where it doesn't hurt anyone.  What's so bad about that?

A Scranton diner fought the smoking ban.  It's still there.  A couple downtown bars closed.  That had more to do with a bad economy, competition, and mismanagement than a ban on smoking.

Other states have anti smoking regulations that are more strict than Pennsylvania's.  Show me the economic collapse.  You can't because it never happened.

Bad Photography Sunday: The Creek

Nicholson has three creeks flowing through it, and this is one of them.  It's Martin's Creek.  The photo was taken on a cool mid April morning.  The trees had yet to sprout their leaves, but I've said before, brown and grey can be just as interesting as a photo full of brighter colors.

Bad Photography Saturday: Tunkhannock Viaduct

The Tunkhannock Viaduct in Nicholson is perhaps my favorite thing to photograph.  There are interesting angles from both sides.  The concrete changes color in the sun, depending on the time of day.

Something recently occurred to me.  I upgraded my camera in September of 2011, and I still hadn't made a trip to Nicholson to photograph the bridge.

That changed in the middle of last month.

This photograph is taken from the east-- looking toward the town of Nicholson itself.

After looking at the photograph for a while, I realized this photo is more about the creek than the bridge.

Over

The long, national nightmare has come to an end.  "The Office" aired its last original episode last night on NBC.

I tried to like this show.  I really did.  It just wasn't funny.  The characters were horrible, slimy people.  I didn't want to spend time with them.  The situations were joyless.  I wasn't one of the people who tuned in just to hear a Scranton reference, or spot a Froggy 101 bumper sticker.

According to the New York Times, an early episode was so bad, NBC considered exiling "The Office" to its Bravo cable network.  I suspect people around here gave "The Office" more credit than it deserved because it was set in Scranton.

The ratings, meager as they were, peaked years ago.

I cringed when a Lackawanna County "official" referred to "The Office" as a "hit" show.  The reality is "The Office" was far from a hit.  A newspaper headline called "The Office" "iconic."  Are you kidding me?  Reality check:  This wasn't "MASH."  Many of my print and broadcast brethren lost all objectivity.

It was never really much of a hit.  "The Office" stayed on the NBC schedule because the network has severe problems generating watchable shows.  Plus, NBC owned the show and got to keep all the profits.  At best, it was a mid level show on a fifth place network.

"The Office" will be relegated to the late night dust bin of mediocre re-runs.

Its demise gives NBC a chance to put something that's actually funny in that time period.

Unfinished Thursday

We're learning more about Sunday night's fire in Pottsville that killed six.  The family was living in substandard conditions.  There were no smoke alarms.  A city officials says the family was warned months ago.  They never had a chance.  A tragic story has become even more sad.

She wasn't the first to do it, and she will not be the last, but I could not imagine what it would be like to be confronted with an Angelina Jolie type decision.

The networks are putting together their fall schedules.  No new show has jumped out as "must see."  The only cancellation that made me sit up and take notice was NBC canning its Brian Williams anchored news magazine "Rock Center."  In spite of Williams' wordiness, I was pleased with the few editions I saw.  Plus, two of my favorites, Kate Snow and Harry Smith, were contributors.  The programming geniuses bounced "Rock Center" all over the schedule.  It was never able to find an audience.

My cell phone company offered me $ 100 off a smart phone yesterday, and I have a month to decide.  The company will not waive the $ 30 upgrade fee.  I politely told them they can keep their smart phone.

30

I graduated from Marywood College 30 years ago today.

Memories of the time?  I remembering not wanting to go through the ceremony hassle, but the parents paid for most of my education, and I did the ceremony for them.  It was an expression of gratitude. 

May 15, 1983 was a drizzly day.  Rather than hold the ceremony outside in the Memorial Commons, it was moved inside to the theater in the Fine Arts Building.

The commencement speaker talked about world hunger.  It was a speech that had little relevance for a bunch of kids who were about to go out to find jobs, so they could feed themselves.  I will give the speaker credit for being ahead of the curve.  No one was talking about world hunger in those days.

It seemed like an eternity, and when it was finally over, I posed for pictures with a few friends, said good bye to others, and my college days were over.

On my way back to my car in the parking lot, I stopped by the college radio station for a last look around.  For obvious reasons, the radio station was my favorite place on campus.

There was no celebration.  I went home and went to sleep because I had the overnight shift at WARM.  After 30 years, some things haven't changed.

I've complained a lot about Marywood in this space over the years, but overall, I'm happy I went there and I'm extremely grateful my parents gave me the opportunity.

A Bad Day

I knew it was going to be a bad day from the second I set foot in the WNEP newsroom yesterday morning.  Usually, our morning broadcast producer, Thomas, gives me a chance to put down my brief case, take off my coat and sit down before we discuss the day's possibilities.  He pounced on me the second I came into view around the corner.

Yesterday, there was only one story.  When I arrived yesterday at 2:30 AM, one of our photographers was on his way back from Pottsville.  At the time, we knew there was a very bad fire on Pierce Street. There were six people unaccounted for and feared dead.  Four of those were children.

Photographer Corey and I quickly loaded up one of our satellite trucks and headed south.  Photographer Dave and Ryan Leckey got in a news car and also went to Pottsville a few minutes later.  Corey and I arrived just before 4:30 AM.  As he set up the truck and positioned the satellite dish, I set out in search of information.

A lot of fire departments and coroner's offices can learn a few things from the people in Pottsville and Schuylkill County.  It was solid crisis management.  They confirmed what they could.  It was enough information for us to get on the air and leave them alone for a while.  They offered what additional information they had throughout the morning.  There were regular updates, mini news conferences.  We got our information, and it saved the official types from constant and repeated pestering.

WNEP broadcast live updates twice a half hour from 4:30 AM all the way until Good Morning America ended at 9:00 AM.  We even found a few minutes to deliver a live report to our sister station in Huntsville, AL.  Ryan and I had a system that worked rather well.  I'd handle the official part of the story.  He would do the neighborhood reaction.  We took different elements of the story and combined them to make sense, without encroaching on the other's territory.

Still others back at the office updated WNEP.com, Twitter, and made sure the video got on the air and on-line.  Tom and Mindi easily and calmly adapted to several last minute changes back at the anchor desk.

Several people e-mailed and Tweeted positive comments.  Thank you.  We did what we could.

Some asked what it's like covering such a tragedy.  I don't know if other journalists are the same, but when I'm out on something like this, a different mode kicks in.  Yes, I'm trying to be as humane and sensitive as possible, but I'm also thinking about logistics, technical issues, content for the next update, how I'm going to construct my noon story, what the later follow up crews need to know...

The horror always sinks in when I'm on my way home in the car, and moments like this-- when I'm in front of my computer keyboard and monitor, in the quiet of my home work space.

I guess being in the work overdrive mode, at the scene, is a defense mechanism.  It keeps you from breaking down and crying, and believe me, it's not hard to cry at stories like this.

There are other ways of coping.  Mass media events are opportunities to see people from other stations, both locally, and Philadelphia and Harrisburg.  I've competed against, and worked with most over the years.  It's nice to see old friends, and you really appreciate familiar faces on a bad day.  Plus, you make new friends and ask about old ones who work other shifts or who are back at the office.

You try not to complain, because you know there are those who have it a lot worse-- the families of the victims, their friends, the neighbors, the first responders...

As an aside, let me tell you a little bit about Pottsville...  It's a pretty city, but it can be a television logistical nightmare.  It's hilly.  The streets are narrow.  Many are one way.  There are wires all over the place.  Add closed streets because of fire trucks and hoses, and you have a really difficult situation.  Making our way to the fire scene was line maneuvering through a maze.  Plus, the satellite truck finds its target easier when it's parked on a flat surface.  Flat was at a premium.  We found a small parking tray off Pierce street, and to the person whose space we stole, a belated thank you.

Thanks for reading this glimpse into a day in the life.  Check the smoke alarms, keep an eye on the kids, and be thankful for what you have.

Mello Yello

It was one of those bizarre, stream of consciousness conversations you have in the newsroom in the middle of the night, when the rest of the world is asleep.

One thing led to another, and we wound up wondering if the Coca Cola Company will change the name of Mello Yello because of the disgraced, thieving former state senator from Lackawanna County.

Of course, we were just being silly.

A web search shows Mello Yello came out in 1979, to compete with Pepsi Co.'s Mountain Dew.  I would have guessed it was earlier, but as you know, if it's on the internet, it must be true.

I saw it available as a Wendy's choice earlier this week.  I forgot to look for it during a Friday morning big box store.  There is a sugar free version, and I'd like to try that.  Mello Yello came out just as I was leaving high school, and I remember liking it.  That was a long time ago.  While Diet Pepsi is my drink of choice, sometimes you want to do something different.  "Different" usually consists of diet root beer, and there are a few really good brands out there.

Mello Yello's web site has a search feature, where you can find stores near you that carry the product.  The number within a 60 mile radius of my home?  Zero.  I'll keep looking, and if you see it, especially the diet version, drop me a line.

By the way, Jessup borough council voted last week voted to remove the felon's name from a road.  Jessup follows Blakely, Keystone College, Lackawanna College and Marywood University in removing Mellow's name.

Get this-- the only one left is the Boy Scouts.  Its Scranton office is on Bob Mellow Drive in Moosic.  If anyone doesn't live up to the Boy Scout ideals, it's Bob Mellow.

Drink up.

Bad Photography Sunday: The Campus

Those new movie theater complexes are great.  The seats are comfortable.  The view is perfect.  The sound blows you away.

However, you can't beat the charm of a small town movie theater.  This is the Campus Theater in downtown Lewisburg.  Bucknell owns it, so that means it will be around for a while.

Be thankful.  There aren't many places like this left.