Thursday, March 4, 2010

Second Fiddle

Our newsroom is a busy place.  In addition to the daily task of putting together the various editions of Newswatch 16, we have several visitors.

Tuesday, a woman and her teenaged son came through the building.  The son was there for a job shadowing program.  Mom provided the transportation, and she was there for her own curiosity.

Joe Snedeker escorted the pair on a tour.  They got to my desk, while I was working on a story for Newswatch 16 at Noon.  We were introduced.  I don't remember what the student said.  I got a quick "Oh, hi" from mom.

My desk is near the windows looking out into the backyard.  Seconds after we met, mom looked outside and, with glee and amazement,  said "Oh, it's the Sock Monkey!"

30 years in broadcasting-- 20 in TV, 10 in radio, a long list of awards and accomplishements, anchor and producer of a top rated TV broadcast, radio news anchor on the number one morning show in the market.  I've had a hand in virtually every big story in this town since 1981.   I've met congressmen, senators, and governors. mayors, bishops, and more.  I'm on a first name basis with many.  During my radio days, the TV people used to listen to me to learn what was going on.  Fires, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, elections...    When the big news happened, people turned to me, confident they would get it first and I would get it right.

I was threatened with jail time because I discovered and reported things, concerning a murder investigation, that I wasn't supposed to know.

When George Banks went on his killing spree, I was on radio stations across the country, including Cleveland, Boston, and Atlanta.

My political reporting wound up live, on WBAL TV in Baltimore and WFSB TV in Hartford.

My reporting on the EF Hutton check kiting scandal was used by three national radio networks.

Some of my interviews on the crash of TWA Flight 800 were used on CNN and the CBS Evening News.

A newspaper columnist noted how I kicked butt on the night Tom Ridge was elected governor.

Vice presidential candidate Lloyd Bentsen yelled at me because he thought my questioning was too harsh.

I had the first interview with Bill Scranton, after he lost the race for governor in 1986.

I fired questions at President Bill Clinton on live TV.

Sideline reporter for state championship high school football games.

Streetside reporter for Scranton's St. Patrick's Day parade for five years.

Hundreds of blog hits a day.

Interest in all of that:  zero.  Fascination with Snedeker's sock monkey puppet:  off the charts.

What happened to me ?!?!?!?!?!?