One of the hardest things about the job of an assignment editor is having to say "no" _ and there are a lot of reasons I have to do just that on a near-daily basis.
Sometimes people ask us to do stories about things happening outside of the area. A very nice woman from Fort Stanwix called me Friday, eager to send me news of the many interesting goings-on at the monument, which is in Rome, N.Y. She seemed incredulous that The Daily Star's calendar of events is limited only to those things that are happening in or near the newspaper's coverage area.
The nice woman argued that many of the fort's visitors are from the Oneonta area _ which I don't doubt. But if that were our sole criterion, where would it end? People from around here routinely travel to Albany, Binghamton, New York City, Florida _ the list goes on. My job, as I see it, is to make sure we tell the world about what's going on here. We're proud to be a member of The Associated Press, and to bring you news of state, national and world significance. But I'm more proud of our commitment to the local community. And in this digital age, there are nearly infinite ways to find out what's going on in the rest of the world.
Another reason we sometimes have to say "no" is because what matters dearly to one person may not be of abiding interest to all of our readers.
Several weeks ago, a woman came to me in tears, asking if we would do a story about her lost dog. It felt cruel to tell her "no," but I did, after not finding a satisfactory answer to the question, "What makes this lost dog different from any other?"
When my reporters pitch story ideas to me, they have to fill out a form that includes several questions. Some of them are practical considerations, like how long they expect the story to be and whether there will be an opportunity for us to get a photograph to illustrate the story. The most important question, and sometimes the hardest to answer, is, "Why do we care?" If we can't answer that question, we figure our readers will wonder the same thing.
Some of you may be thinking, "I might have cared about a missing dog." But what happens the following week when another person's dog is missing? And the week after that? How do we tell that person "no" when we told someone else "yes"? And would you keep caring about missing dogs if you were reading about them every day?
As hard as these questions are to answer, they're not the sort of thing that keeps an editor awake at night, staring at the ceiling. That category is reserved for errors.
Mistakes make an editor's blood run cold, because we know that each and every one of them calls our credibility into question. The logic goes like this: If we're so incompetent that we can't even take down a lottery score, catch obvious spelling errors or other simple tasks, why should we be trusted at all?
It's a harsh analogy, but one that I understand. I blanch when I see typos in the New York Times, and I scoff at misspellings on official documents. That's why I sit down every day with my boss, editor Sam Pollak, and the members of our copy desk, and talk about all the things we screwed up the night before.
It's not a particularly fun conversation, but it's an extremely important one. Much as we want to excuse away our mistakes, we can't. All we can do is try to avoid them in the future.
Emily F. Popek is assistant editor of The Daily Star. She can be reached at 432-1000, ext. 217, or epopek@thedailystar.com.
Local News
Editor's Notebook: Saying 'no' can be toughest part of job
- Local News
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Ramsaran freed on $300,000 bail
Accused killer Ganesh "Remy" Ramsaran was freed from Chenango County Jail this afternoon after he and relatives posted $300,000 worth of real estate to meet bail conditions set by County Judge Frank Revoir Jr.
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Area school budgets get voters' OK
With schools in the area proposing budgets at or below the state tax cap, all districts reporting by 10 p.m. said voters approved their spending plans.
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School budget voting results
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Tree-killing insect found near Unadilla
A tiny pest with a big appetite for ash trees has arrived in Delaware and Otsego counties, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
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Roxbury artist's portrait exhibit is a record-breaker
ROXBURY -- Greg Frederick is an artist who has likely broken more records than anyone reading this story today. By records, we mean that relic of the musical recording industry -- vinyl long-playing albums (the ones with the small hole in the center) and 45 revs per minute single records (the ones with the considerably larger hole in the center).
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Bruni to step down after 30 years
Children's programs, a computerized card catalog and online access to a world of information are among changes ushered in at the Huntington Memorial Library in Oneonta by Marie Bruni since she became library director 30 years ago. "It's been great,'' Bruni, who plans to retire, told the Oneonta Common Council during a meeting in City Hall on Tuesday night.
- Tuesday, May 21, 2013
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State investigation seeks missing Bassett Rx pads
The state is investigating the possible theft of blank prescription pads from Bassett Medical Center, a spokeswoman for the hospital confirmed Monday.
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Classes resume after threats at schools
School was opened on schedule at two area schools where Internet threats caused lockdowns Friday afternoon, two superintendents said Monday as the investigations continued.
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Survey: Town residents cool to merger
More than half of Oneonta town residents responding to a survey oppose the idea of a merger with the city of Oneonta, the study summary said.
But a majority said "yes" to a partnership with the city to protect the reservoir and quality of drinking water. Two-thirds oppose drilling for natural gas, according to responses, the survey reported, and a majority supports commercial and industrial development in the town.
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Lawmakers: Farm bill has 'devastating' mandates
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Correction
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Copes Corner Park gets new lease on life
The job description for town supervisor doesn't normally include mowing grass, but that's what Charlie Eckelmann found himself doing the other day over at Copes Corner Park in the hamlet of Gilbertsville.
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School budget votes held today statewide|
Voters across the state go to the polls today to decide the fate of their local school budgets. In many cases, the selection of board of education candidates and propositions are on the ballot.
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Blodgett plan review to continue at meeting
The Oneonta Planning Commission on Wednesday will continue its review of environmental impact documents submitted as part of a site plan application for a proposed student apartment complex on Blodgett Drive.
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Area life coach wins state recognition
Heidi Friedman, a local life coach, has been awarded a statewide honor by The Arc, a 60-year-old national organization, and ANCOR, an associated organization.
- Monday, May 20, 2013
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Fill each day, SUCO grads told
Two speakers at the State University College at Oneonta asked audiences to push the ``pause button'' on their lives Saturday.
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Community comes together to build playground
The quote "If you build it, he will come" from the 1989 film "Field of Dreams" is often slightly altered to "If you build it, they will come."
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Police to patrol schools after threats
Police will be present at public schools in Delhi and Walton today as a precaution in the aftermath of last week's online threats, school officials said Sunday.
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Ramsaran remains in jail
Ganesh Ramsaran, accused of murdering his wife, remained in Chenango County jail Sunday on bail, authorities said.
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Library, airport on council agenda
The Oneonta Common Council will consider the future of the Huntington Memorial Library and of the municipal airport, among other business, during a meeting Tuesday night.
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Ramsaran freed on $300,000 bail
