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Jennifer D. Wade Journal

Welcome to my online diary, enjoy your stay!

Blog posts March 2005

OK, Now I'm Mad!

A busy, busy week at work.  On Wednesday, we had a major snowstorm.  Most parts of the area got 6+ inches.  Problem is, our forecasters didn't call for that much snow, and it started snowing MUCH earlier than they predicted.  Needless to say, viewers were upset.  I spent a good part of the night answering phone calls from people wanting to know if this road or that road was closed.  I also answered a couple from people who just started spewing curse words as soon as I said hello.  To those people, I say, please give me your phone number so I can call you when I get upset.
 
Other big stories of the week included that school shooting in Minnesota on Monday and 3 people dead from CO poisoning on Thursday.  We've also been keeping an eye on the Terri Schiavo case.
 
Yesterday was Good Friday, and finally, things calmed down.  We had one reporter doing live shots at a fish fry for the early evening newscasts, then she packaged that off for the 11.  The other nightside reporter got a vo/sot with a guy who said PennDOT ruined his yard, then they packaged off a Stations of the cross ceremony that the organizers dedicated to the Pope. The other new story was the fatal shooting of a police officer in Easton, which is technically not in our coverage area, but people there can see us on cable. 
 
The shooting was already about 3-hours old by the time we read the story on the wire.  Since Easton isn't our area, we were not about to send one of our own crews.  The wire story made the shooting sound accidental, and no one was talking about a killer on the loose or anything.  It seems like he may have been shot by another cop, but no one came out and said that specifically, either.  We tried getting video from the Philly stations, but the timing didn't work out.  Long story short, I led the 11 with the Stations of the Cross, then went to the fish fry and 1st weather.  After that, I put the guy mad about his yard, then I put in a reader about the Easton thing, followed by stories about robberies and things that we covered on earlier newscasts.
 
Now, I read these comments on talkback online from people who didn't like that.  Well, I have my reasons for doing what I did:  First of all, I repeat, Easton is technically NOT in our coverage area.  Given that, I would have needed video and/or a better story (i.e. cop killed, second cop charged with murder; or cop killed, suspect on the loose) to move the Easton thing up to the lead.  Secondly, it WAS Good Friday, the most solemn day on the Christian calendar.  In an area that is predominantly Catholic, at a time when the Pope could literally die at any minute, Good Friday IS a legitimate news story.  Given the same circumstances, I would probably do the same thing all over again.
 
On a brighter note, I have found at least one person to play racquetball with at the Y.  I've played with him once (took 2 out of 3, too), and we're scheduled to play again next week.  There's also another guy I'll play with next Saturday.

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The Dark Side

As of tonight, I'm back on the night shift, or "the dark side" as we like to call ourselves.  The new girl is doing well, and my help isn't needed anymore.  Yesterday, I basically sat around and did nothing except make phone calls about heroin - and I've about had all of that I can take. 
 
So, now that I'm back on nights, I have to start going back to the gym.  No excuses!

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Heroin Hell

The heroin special assignment is finally going to air today - albeit in a much different form than I imagined.  Due to the influence of the EP and the Asst. ND, I ended up spending yesterday on the phone, talking to a lot of DAs and drug rehab types, hoping to get a new hook for the story.  Turns out, I got one!  It seems that many people who become heroin addicts start their life of substance abuse with underage drinking.  So, one county that has a heroin problem is now starting a massive campaign against underage drinking.  So, that will be the "new" part, then I have Jill's Healthwatch part about addiction, and Julie will do a story about recovery.  It should - and I say should - work out.
 
In other news, I'll be on the 5/5:30 for at least another week.  The new girl is doing well, but I think she would like me there just in case all hell breaks loose or something.  Honestly, I don't expect I'll have much to do.  Maybe I can go out with a photog or something and write an anchor pkg.

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Halfway There

One week down, one to go on the 5 & 5:30.  The new producer is doing well.  She did the 5:30 on Thursday and Friday while I did the 5:00.  So far, so good. 
 
I'm also working on a project for the ND.  He's having me coordinate a series about the local heroin problem.  It's tentatively scheduled to air tomorrow, but I think I'll end up pushing it back to Tuesday or Wednesday.  A third part is still up in the air, and I'd like to see if that can come together.  I don't think there's any big rush to do it.  Plus, we're out of sweeps.
 
I'm going to add a movie review section to the website, and see if I can dig up some more of my poems. 

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2 Down, 8 to Go (I Hope)

Two days into my tenure as producer of the 5&5:30 newscasts.  On Monday (Day 1), we had team coverage of "Winter's Roar." So, no problem filling the shows there.  Today, the roar was pretty much silenced, so I had more work to do.  Fortunately, Scott was around to help write.
 
The ND had me in the office and told me again that this should only be for two-weeks.  The new girl is learning the computer system, and today I let her line produce some of the 5:30 to get used to the buttons and stuff in the control room.  I think she'll be OK.

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5 blog posts