Blog: That In-Between, End of Time Kind of Time

December 27, 2007

Well, this is it. It’s that last week of the year, that year ending time that it just really does not pay to be a reporter. Between Christmas and New Year’s Day, news often takes a break.

No way, you might say. It’s just an excuse to kick back and take the week off. Well, maybe, just a little. But really pay attention to the daily newspapers and the local TV newscasts. What stories are you hearing? “The Biggest Stories of 2007″, “The Year in Review”, “The Best Photos of 2007″. So you have noticed.

It’s called “filler and fluff”. It’s news that in July, well, just would not be news. But it takes up space in print and fills time on the airwaves. Channel 3 got creative this year and ran stories about people that had to work on Christmas day. Translation: “I had to work Christmas; you had to work Christmas…let’s kill some boring time together.”

Then there’s the “return something to the store” stories. That means “I have to stand in line to return the tie grandma gave me and try to get a measly $3 out of it, so I might as well do a story with the three hours I’m going to be here”.

There are have been stories about Christmas trash. Well, there’s lots of trash, and it make the news as a top story. Usually it’s some government scandal when we talk trash on the news, but that last week of the year it’s wrapping paper. Live reports from the curbside trashcan at 6:00.

The daily newspaper is filling up with the “Best Photos of 2007″. Some are really cool to look at; some are just lucky shots. Take 8,000 pictures a year for the newspaper and you will get lucky on one or two. Some of them are really good, however. More filler and fluff, but more entertaining than the guy on 3 standing in the mall trying to make a story out of people that are shopping/returning and not watching the news.

What’s the point of writing all this in my blog? Well, nothing really. It’s just a slow time of the year when nothing much happens. NorthEscambia.com is a new site, so there’s no year-in-review material to run. The kids are out of school; the wife is home from work. So I’m following the lead of the other news organizations around here and using filler and fluff. I hope you understand; I don’t want to work this week any more than the next guy. We’ve been blessed enough too that wrecks, fire and crimes have been pretty quiet also, so nothing there to write about. If “breaking news” happens, we’ll cover it.

We really are working a little bit this week at NorthEscambia.com. We are working on some of the computer code that runs the site, making changes that will make the site better for you. We are also working on a big announcement that will happen in January, but that’s all I can say right now.

Thanks again for taking the time out of your day to visit NorthEscambia.com. We appreciate you stopping by and hope to see you again soon.

— William

Read William’s other blog entries including “Blog: Merry Christmas Meanderings And Other Toy Package Nightmares” by clicking here.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under Blog, News