The Follow-Up

First of all, thanks to Eric Mansfield for linking to my blog yesterday.

I didn't feel my words on the Stephanie Tubbs-Jones reporting were all that strong, but it was certainly interesting to watch.

I feel as though I should post a quick follow-up.

The Plain Dealer wrote about it's erroneous reporting here. Here's a excerpt:

"We are deeply distressed that we got this wrong, and sincerely apologize to the congresswoman's family and to our readers," Goldberg said. "Obviously, we believed we were on solid ground, or we would not have gone with the story."

Also, The PD says it reported the "death" at 1:49 pm ... if that's true I got it wrong in my original post. However, it felt MUCH earlier than that to me.

I did not see it myself, but I am told that Fox 8 News read a lengthy on-air apology as well. I could not find the statement on their website.

I'm a little unclear on the actions of Channels 5 and 19.

As I said before, WKYC was the only station to get it right. And I want to explain a little something I wrote in one of my updates to the previous blog post.

I'm happy the station showed restraint in it's reporting. However, I was a little turned off by the fact that they went out of their way to TELL me they got it right. At that point in the proceedings, Tubbs-Jones was obviously still in very grave condition.

When I worked in television, I was a big fan of letting the work speak for itself. I still believe that.

In a situation like this one, I would have downplayed the "we got it right" chest-thumping out of respect for the Congresswoman, and let others (bloggers, columnists, etc.) give the station credit for doing their jobs the right way.

I'm all for tooting your own horn ... but not in a situation like this one.

The Tubbs-Jones Incident

Wow. Quite a day to watch from my post as a currently ex-member of the news media.

In case you haven't heard, a prominent Congresswoman from Northeast Ohio ... Stephanie Tubbs-Jones ... was hospitalized after being found unresponsive in her car last night.

Well, at around 12:30 this afternoon, the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper broke some somber news on its website that Ms. Tubbs-Jones, a key player in Hillary Clinton's campaign, had passed away.

The PD quoted "sources" saying the Congresswoman had succumbed after life support was removed at a local hospital.

Her family then scheduled a 2 pm news conference at the hospital. 3 of the 4 local television stations pitched live to the presser saying Tubbs-Jones had died.

That's when the assembled members of media found out the surprising news.

Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs-Jones wasn't dead.

Instead, the hospital told reporters that Tubbs-Jones was in very critical condition, after suffering a brain aneurysm.

The Plain Dealer quickly pulled it's original story replacing it with this. Here's a quote from that article.

"Officials updated her condition this afternoon after conflicting reports that the congresswoman was dead. Numerous media outlets - including The Plain Dealer on its Web site cleveland.com, CNN and the Associated Press - reported that Tubbs Jones had died."

So, here's a question ... where do you think CNN and the AP picked up on Tubbs-Jones' "death" in the first place? I'm guessing from the original article on the PD's website.

The paper has also disabled the "comments" section of its story, I'm guessing because of the sensitive nature of the Congresswoman's condition.

I'm sure, though, that they also don't want anyone calling them out on today's shoddy piece of journalism.

On a side note, I want to give some kudos to my former employer WKYC. They showed restraint as the only television station in town to hold off reporting on the Congresswoman's condition ... until they had confirmation.

Also, to the Congresswoman's friends and family ... my thoughts and prayers are with you as well, during this difficult time.

(UPDATE: After initially writing this post, I discovered this story on wkyc.com. Sadly, I can't say as I like the chest-thumping for not screwing up the story. Seems a little much for what remains a very grave situation for a local politician. The station loses a couple points for that one. Just do your job, and let others write about how you did it.)

(UPDATE 2: Just learned shortly after 6 pm that the Congresswoman has, indeed, passed away at the age of 58. Condolences to all who knew and loved her.)

U2 Oops

Well, in this day and age of internet leaks ... has anyone heard the latest?

Apparently, 4 tracks off U2's upcoming album were leaked onto YouTube ... they've since been taken down.

How did they get there?

Well, apparently some fans were walking past Bono's French villa ... and the lead singer was playing the new tracks ... loudly.

So loudly, that the fans recorded them ... and posted them online!

Look, I'm against piracy ... the musicians should be able to get their cash for their efforts.

But, if you're gonna be stupid enough to blast the music for all to hear ... don't complain when they hit a website!

That being said, I am a U2 fan ... and am excited for their latest effort ... rumored to be titled "No Line On The Horizon."

And, it also kind of takes me back to the old days, when radio stations used to get leaked copies of songs and play them ... until a "cease and desist" order came from the label.

The last song I remembering this happening for in those days was a track off of Guns 'N Roses "Use Your Illusion" ... which I think WMMS played and played ... until they were told to stop.

Silly Olympics?

I have to admit ... I've been catching quite a bit of the Olympic Games ... more than I thought I'd watch.

Like everyone else, I've been riveted on Michael Phelps ... and his amazing feats.

But, while having lunch before yesterday's Tribe game ... I look up at the television to see another competition ... on the trampoline.

Seriously ... trampoline.

Since when is something I did in elementary school now an Olympic sport? And who made this decision? The same people that want baseball out of the games?

Look ... I know it takes athleticism to jump and twist and flip and land ... but, seriously folks, it's the trampoline!!!!

Which brings me to the list of Olympics sports that I can't believe are in the games.

1. Trampoline -- Enough said.
2. Synchronized Diving -- I'm OK with regular diving, but this one is strange to me.
3. Synchronized Swimming -- Let's just make ballroom dancing a sport, too.
4. Rhythmic Gymnastics -- If you need ribbons to compete, it's not a sport.
5. Table Tennis and Badminton -- I know these are hugely popular around the world. But, if it can be done in my basement, or at the next family reunion, I don't think it should be in the Olympics.

If these things are in ... so should the events in the following Monty Python sketch. It's one of my favorites by the way, as I just love John Cleese as a chicken.

On The Move

Well, being out of work has its perks I guess ... as I took my mind off the job search for 3 days ... and had some fun.

Thursday, a friend and I went to the Hocking Hills State Park ... for a little hiking. It's a great park with a lot of interesting rock formations ...

We ended up climbing up, down and all around a bunch of ravines ... probably about 6-7 miles in all ... and not easy miles. Other than me sweating like a pig, it was a great time. Pictures to come.

We grabbed a little dinner in C-bus on the way back ... my first ever trip to PF Chang's was a solid one.

Friday, I became the last person in America to see The Dark Knight. Good, fun, movie ... and for 2 1/2 hours long ... it really kept moving pretty well. Heath Ledger is amazing, and Christian Bale has redefined Bruce Wayne. Plus, apparently he's now also going to play an adult John Connor in the new Terminator movie, so he shouldn't have to worry about his checks bouncing.

After the flick, we took in an Aeros game. I love watching minor league baseball. It's a great, family atmosphere, plus you get to see some Indians of the future.

Saturday, more baseball, as we took advantage of some free tickets to catch the Tribe and Angels at Progressive Field. It was a sloppy game, but wanted to mention one aspect of it.

It was a "Turn Back The Clock" game at the Prog ... so they tried to recreate the way things were in 1948. That meant turning off the giant scoreboard, except for a recreation of the old board at Municipal Stadium.

It also meant no one yelling at me between innings from said scoreboard, no between-inning music (except for some fake organ stuff), and no walk-up music for batters.

Can I tell you how much better this was? You see, I'm a baseball purist ... I hate that ballparks and arenas have to entertain every waking moment of the game. So, today, the ballpark was kind of quiet ... and I liked it.

I did miss my statistics and the out-of-town scoreboard (especially with a 1st place fantasy team) ... but, man, I'd take a music-free day at the park any day of the week.

Of course, the Tribe couldn't stick to their "no video" policy on the big board, because they showed a wedding proposal in the 8th inning.

For the record, the proposals were cute when they happened a few times a year. Now, it's just a little cheesy to see them each and every game.

C'mon guys ... can't you do better than a ballpark engagement?

Sports Heresy

Yes, it's officially that time of the year when I become a bad, bad fan.

You see, I'm an avid fantasy baseball player, in a highly competitive league.

There might even be some money on the line, but I can't confirm that, because Uncle Sam considers fantasy sports gambling.

Now, to confess my sins.

It's one of those years, where my favorite team, the Cleveland Indians, have given up and are out of contention.

Oddly enough, though, my fantasy team is in 1st place. Barely.

So, who do I root for?

Well, my rules have always gone like this:

1. Root for the Indians above all.
2. Should the Indians not be competing, and my fantasy team is, switch allegiances.

So yes folks, if one of my fantasy starting pitchers tosses against the Tribe ... I'm rooting for the Tribe to go down.

I'll be at the game this Saturday against the Angels. Neither pitcher is on my team. Which is good, I can root for the Indians.

But, if the Angels' Chone Figgins happens to go 5-5 with a couple steals, I wouldn't complain.

RIP Issac Hayes