... The newsroom of WMBB of Panama City, Florida was watching the webcast this morning. Here's the rundown of thin slices and kudos.FROM APPEALS COURT: 'Don't ask' challenge reinstated: Court calls for scrutiny of military policy on gays. This story was packaged with the nurses…
• Then & Now with Dick Olsen: Former Rogers track, football star is now a pastor in Las Vegas. ("The way his son is dressed reminds me of the Barats & Bereta Mother's Day video," said deputy city editor Dan Hansen)Now: Deb, Dick and sons…
The big deal today is the open house for The Spokesman-Review's 125th birthday, complete with a cake shaped like the building. Top photo: Production systems manager Mike Hollingworth takes a photo of the culinary artists responsible for the cake. Next to the balloons is publisher…
RE: The story about exploding tennis balls, the question was whether it was a candidate for the front page. Some of the factors, according to the news budget summary:• They were found at an elementary school and at least one child touched one. • There…
Dog lover Kat Biggs fights for stray cats: Dropping a cat off at the animal shelter is essentially a death sentence these days. Mandatory holding periods for unlicensed stray cats are being repealed across the Inland Northwest as authorities contend with worsening feline overpopulation problems.•…
Big discussion this morning was about the China earthquake story on the front page. Read it here, Workers dig for survivors after massive China quake and here are some of those discussion points:• Senior innovation editor Carla Savalli, previously senior editor for local news, didn't…
ON A SAW: Sawmill's final notes resonate: Workers plan for future as end of era on Coeur d'Alene's waterfront draws near. deputy city editor Dan Hansen said the story's lead paragraphs were utter poetry. ON GREEN AND CLEAN: Perhaps not so poetic, the funeral industry…
Talk loudly into the microphones, senior innovation editor Carla Savalli said, because editor Steve Smith was tuning in via webcast. In other news:A dead person appears in an Associated Press photo on page A8 to go with today's cyclone coverage from the newswire, a small…
At the morning meeting, one editor noticed the business section AP photo shows a man talking on a cell phone while bicycling, while his little passenger is not wearing a helmet. A man bicycles past a sign advertising gasoline at a BP Station in Miami…
BLOOMSDAY: Beautiful day for Bloomies: It was a routine Bloomsday though, editors said - and nothing disastrous. For more Bloomsday coverage, click here. HERO: Cheney native killed in Iraq on third tourHAGAHOUSE: Duane Hagadone building lavish home, elevated on stone pillars with a creek flowing…
Saving Salish, a disappearing Native American language, produced by Rajah Bose, photographerThe multimedia department gets more video projects coming out of Voice stories than from city news - "So many of the Voice stories are human interest stories," notes managing editor Gary Graham. Rajah Bose…
• 97-year-old takes it in strides: Kennewick walker ready for seventh Bloomsday. With people living longer, should Bloomsday split their "90 and over" category? Photo director Larry Reisnouer, among others, thinks it may be a good idea - While there are exceptions, there must be…
Here are some of the coolness slices from today's Spokesman-Review: • 300 sick in norovirus outbreak: Was the headline too panic-inducing? some editors wondered. There have been more developments on this story in fact, because North Idaho folks added more than 200 people to the…
This photo was printed kind of bluish on the front page of the Northwest section, photo director Larry Reisnouer said, but here we are, a lovely elephant: Libby, a 38-year-old female Asian elephant, gets a washdown from handler Ben Hutchinson on Wednesday. The Shrine Circus…
Great story about Spokane recycling, folks said, although editor Steve Smith said the man in the accompanying photo looks suspiciously like him. This story also comes with a very detailed chart located here that goes through city-by-city recycling services, and a map. Glenn JohnsonWhen news…
After much discussion, editors agreed that yesterday's bomb threat at Eastern Washington University made two things clear: Online and radio coverage are timely deliveries to report breaking news as it happens, but for something that is only relevant news while it is still happening, editors…
Deputy city editor Dan Hansen's still offering the free rabbit. Dems' debateDid anybody watch the Democratic candidate debate yesterday? Well, one editor watched for 15 minutes before switching it off, while another editor watched for an hour and fell asleep... the most common complaint so…
Typical meeting this morning with a few editors' picks from online and in print. Here's a rundown: Check out photographer Jesse Tinsley's audio slideshow on Video Journal, which accompanies a story in the Voices tomorrow.• The latest on consumer goods: "Rising food costs squeeze consumers,…
Elton John was in Pullman this weekend, and some readers wondered why he didn't get the attention of The Spokesman-Review for a post-show recap. Editor Steve Smith got a handful of phone calls about the Elton John concert over the weekend and why S-R did…
Gov. Christine Gregoire's campaign made it into Spin Control 2.0 but not into the print edition. Reporter Jim Camden went to check out the campaign, writing for the Web and bringing an audio recorder to feed quotes to the radio men. But others wondered if…
The story "Crocker's world: U.S. envoy talks about future for Iraq and himself" sparked a lot of discussion about strategy and execution - whether there was new information, and whether the story was sufficiently critical. U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker stands in the rotunda…
Editors and reporters get a lot of interesting voice mail from readers. What if The Spokesman-Review could use these voice mails in podcasts (or now, on the radio?)? This may include complaint calls and rants, readers leaving unusual story ideas (to put it mildly)... The…
It's not often that we run a weekday front page consisting of just two story packages. But editors this morning seemed to agree that it worked. The packages in question involved the Our kids: Our business project and the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King…
Daily Briefing begs your pardon for this late (and inadequate post) and promises to do better tomorrow.Editor Steve Smith liked the colorful selection of photos this morning and predicted no shortage of pinwheels to come in the next few weeks. (He may have a quota…
Each weekday morning and afternoon, the newsroom staff meets to discuss the coverage plan. This blog covers editors' discussions, upcoming coverage and miscellaneous newsroom news.