I can't remember the first time I heard those words, Attention to Detail. But, one guy who often used that phrase was another newsman. We worked together in the 1970's and early 1980's. Both of us liked covering hard news, aka breaking news or spot news. Got our adrenalin going, got the motors running. His name was John Randt. He was a Viet Vet, army type. And, he worked in construction when the nuclear power plant was being built in Brunswick County (NC). He also worked the city beat (remember those?) at the Wilmington Star News, and later bccame a reporter, then assignment editor and finally news director at Wilmington's WWAY. Before the days of computers and electronic newsrooms. During the transition from 16 mm news film to videotape.
John was also a lieutenant in the North Carolina National Guard. He was squared away in a world of less than squared away journalists. Somehow, we clicked. We broke a lot of stories, won a lot of awards, had a great time.
Attention to Detail was something John said. A lot. Not only said it, he meant for it to be understood and practiced. He practiced what he preached, too. No story should air, he maintained, until all the facts were clear. A lot of reporters, then and now, don't adhere to that philosophy. Too often, don't let the facts stand in the way of a good story seems to be the standard operating procedure.
Attention to Detail. Not only good for reporters to practice, but good for all of us to consider in our daily lives. Nowhere is that any more important than taking pictures. I attached a number of photos in an earlier blog, photos I took in our backyard as spring started busting out all over. Nothing special They included a lot of attention to detail. The small things. The tiny flower blossoms, complete with a buzzing bee. A cucumber seedling making it's way through the soil's surface. New leaves. Just things that caught my eye. By focusing on detail, and eliminating the background clutter.
Attention to Detail. The days of yesteryear when I could spend a long time lying in the grass, looking for that elusive four-leaf clover, finding june bugs, chasing down lightning bugs. Lying, at night, on my back staring into the heavens, looking for Telstar. "It will look like any other star", the papers reported. "Except it will be moving slowly". I saw a lot of moving objects that looked like stars. Over many nights. "And, it won't be blinking", the reports contnued. Airplanes have blinking lights. Stars, real ones, tend to twinkle. I needed to find a movning object that looked like a star, that neither blinked nor twinkled. And, I did. By paying attention to detail, eliminating all of the other contenders, focusing on the one object out of millions up there. I saw Telstar. Time and again. Kids and adults gathered, once we knew what we were looking for, at the prescribed times, thanks to the paper, to gaze to the heavens. Better than TV re-runs, it was. Not so much light pollution in those days. It was fun, safe and enjoyable. Some of you will remember Telstar. It was a satellite. I even remember the instrumental song, Telstar. I had the LP. Sorry...that's a 33-1/3 Long Playing album. Vinyl. A record. It went round and round, on a turntable. Goodness. Just take my word for it. It was a cool song in those days.
Attention to detail. The smallest details. Open your eyes and your minds. You will be amazed at what's around you. In your own back yard. And, it's a great time of year to do it.
John was also a lieutenant in the North Carolina National Guard. He was squared away in a world of less than squared away journalists. Somehow, we clicked. We broke a lot of stories, won a lot of awards, had a great time.
Attention to Detail was something John said. A lot. Not only said it, he meant for it to be understood and practiced. He practiced what he preached, too. No story should air, he maintained, until all the facts were clear. A lot of reporters, then and now, don't adhere to that philosophy. Too often, don't let the facts stand in the way of a good story seems to be the standard operating procedure.
Attention to Detail. Not only good for reporters to practice, but good for all of us to consider in our daily lives. Nowhere is that any more important than taking pictures. I attached a number of photos in an earlier blog, photos I took in our backyard as spring started busting out all over. Nothing special They included a lot of attention to detail. The small things. The tiny flower blossoms, complete with a buzzing bee. A cucumber seedling making it's way through the soil's surface. New leaves. Just things that caught my eye. By focusing on detail, and eliminating the background clutter.
Attention to Detail. The days of yesteryear when I could spend a long time lying in the grass, looking for that elusive four-leaf clover, finding june bugs, chasing down lightning bugs. Lying, at night, on my back staring into the heavens, looking for Telstar. "It will look like any other star", the papers reported. "Except it will be moving slowly". I saw a lot of moving objects that looked like stars. Over many nights. "And, it won't be blinking", the reports contnued. Airplanes have blinking lights. Stars, real ones, tend to twinkle. I needed to find a movning object that looked like a star, that neither blinked nor twinkled. And, I did. By paying attention to detail, eliminating all of the other contenders, focusing on the one object out of millions up there. I saw Telstar. Time and again. Kids and adults gathered, once we knew what we were looking for, at the prescribed times, thanks to the paper, to gaze to the heavens. Better than TV re-runs, it was. Not so much light pollution in those days. It was fun, safe and enjoyable. Some of you will remember Telstar. It was a satellite. I even remember the instrumental song, Telstar. I had the LP. Sorry...that's a 33-1/3 Long Playing album. Vinyl. A record. It went round and round, on a turntable. Goodness. Just take my word for it. It was a cool song in those days.
Attention to detail. The smallest details. Open your eyes and your minds. You will be amazed at what's around you. In your own back yard. And, it's a great time of year to do it.
No comments:
Post a Comment