Grumpy Editor

AP story on U.S. receding height raises questions

Getting wide print and broadcast play yesterday was a story claiming America is losing its "tallest country in the world" title as the growth rate in height is ebbing.  Grumpy Editor finds the rambling Associated Press piece by Matt Crenson rather strange on several counts with apparently no editors raising eyebrows.

•  First, a bit of editorializing in the third paragraph:  “But just as it has in so many areas, America’s predominance in height has faded.”

•  Then, the source of the lofty information comes not from solid studies by those in medical or insurance fields or even the U.S. government, but from “an economic historian at the University of Munich.”  And that is not noted until the 11th paragraph of the 29-paragraph story.

•  No details on how the information was pinpointed other than the source “has spent the last quarter century compiling data on heights of nations.”

•  Strangest of all is nowhere in the lengthy piece are actual height comparison numbers indicated for current and past Americans.  An accompanying, though not precise, chart (distributed by AP) shows average height of U.S. white males grew 2 inches from the 1800s to 2000 while U.S. black men grew 3.5 inches in the same period.  This, according to the chart, compares with the Netherlands which has seen 7.5 inches’ growth in the period while the story declares “even residents of the former communist East Germany are taller than Americans today.”

•  No mention is made that the suspected lower growth trend in U.S. residents’ height may be attributed to the influx in recent decades of smaller-size immigrants from Mexico, Asia, Central America and South America.

•  Universal health care coverage in Europe is mentioned toward the end of the story plus the sentence:  “In the United States, by comparison, an estimated 9 million children have no health insurance.”

Hmmm.

AP digs up 1977 N.Y. happening for Sunday readers

News room vacations, along with summer doldrums, are upon us when a wire service focuses on a New York City happening 30 years ago for Sunday’s newspapers, notes Grumpy Editor who figures the anniversary story really must grab readers in places such as Des Moines, Salt Lake City and Las Vegas.

Despite most newspapers recently chopping space devoted to stock lists, editors still find room for lengthy pieces such as the Associated Press story by Larry McShane, plus photo (complete with credit line) to fill up space around ads.

With the magic ingredients --- for most editors --- of fire, disaster and crime, the AP piece recounted a July 13, 1977 event in New York when a lightning bolt knocked out electricity to about eight million people in five boroughs for 25 hours.

With it came arson, looting of more than 1,700 stores and arrests of more than 3,000 people.

Look for the anniversary material to be rehashed in July, 2012 --- and beyond.

Response to Rep. Jon Porter’s survey leads to newsletter

Alert members of Congress do well to get readings on what their constituents think about current matters.

But Grumpy Editor finds a gimmick gaining use by legislators is to link a welcomed survey --- sent via e-mail --- to automatic subscription to a lawmaker’s newsletter.

Such is the example this week by Rep. Jon Porter (R., Nev.) who seeks comments on “What do you think the federal government should do to solve our energy problem?

Five possible solutions are then listed for the recipient.  Top choice is to be checked off.

However, as Porter indicates at the end of the message, “By answering this survey, you are subscribing to my newsletter.”

That’s equivalent to tiny print at the bottom of a car dealer’s ad.

Gaining input is what more representatives should be doing.  But to link that to (a perhaps unwanted) newsletter, further cluttering up the inbox, is a bit of trickery leading to most recipients refraining from responding.

A sixth choice on Porter’s energy problem list should be added, reading: “Save your energy, hold the newsletter.”

Most editors keep All-Star Game off front pages

Baseball, Mom and apple pie used to be the big Americana items, especially during the month that includes Independence Day.

With Tuesday’s All-Star Game in San Francisco, Grumpy Editor wonders why some editors --- who now prefer spotlighting football, tennis, even soccer --- don’t even put a front page reference (or “refer”) to the Midsummer Classic pointing to inside coverage.

Grumpy Editor surveyed front pages of some major newspapers yesterday to see how the All-Star Game was treated.  Even when there was All-Star representation from a team in their circulation area, no or scant mention was on the front page.

Ignoring any mention of the baseball classic on the front page included all New York City dailies --- New York Times, New York Daily News, New York Post and New York Sun --- plus the Baltimore Sun, Washington Times, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Miami Herald.

Giving the All-Star Game a one-sentence or a brief headline front page “refer” were the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe and Las Vegas Review-Journal (which always is heavy with front page football and tennis images) in a city that bets on anything that moves.

Solidly recognizing the game on front pages were USA Today, with a dominant photo plus refer; San Diego Union-Tribune, with three photos, game summary and refer; Los Angeles Times, with a below-the-fold photo and refer; San Francisco Chronicle, with two photos plus a story that jumped to an inside news (not sports) section, and San Francisco Examiner, with a dominant photo along with reference to four stories inside.

Maybe most editors’ thinking these days is like that of Bob Klapisch, sports columnist, The Record, Hackensack, N.J., who wrote, “If you’re like most baseball fans, the All-Star Game was long ago downgraded from a must-watch event to a vapid beauty pageant.”

Wonder how he feels about hot dogs --- and apple pie.

Fear on all fronts sends stock market lower

The stock market’s big downward move yesterday was attributed to one word:  Fear.

That’s the way USA Today’s Michael Winter neatly summed it up as the Dow industrials tumbled 148.27 points to 13501.70.

“Fear about lower earnings, fear about the housing slump, fear about a deepening subprime shakeout, fear of rising oil prices, fear about what the Federal Reserve might do,” Winter wrote after the market’s close.

Nothing shakes up the easy-to-spook market more than fear, notes Grumpy Editor.

Associated Press business writer Madlen Read cited stocks plunged “as investors, nervous about upcoming earnings reports, cringed at troubling forecasts from retailers Home Depot and Sears and at soaring oil prices.”

Reuters pointed out stocks slid “as the subprime mortgage crisis escalated, undermining bank shares.”

Others observed the nervous market also kept an eye on crude oil prices, which briefly topped $73 a barrel; the dollar fell to a record low against the euro, and a Cambridge, Mass. speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke did not provide a clue into the central bank’s next move on interest rates.

Leafy ‘branch bandit’ robs N.H. bank branch

Some police officers really do have a sense of humor.  But most chuckles don’t get into print, observes Grumpy Editor.

In Manchester, N.H. on Saturday, staffers at a Citizens Bank downtown branch rubbed their eyes when a “tree” walked in.

Seems James Coldwell, accused of robbing the branch, duct-taped leafy limbs to his head and torso, handed a teller a black plastic trash bag and told her to fill it with cash.

But when he got outside he was startled by a pop, followed by red smoke coming from a dye pack in the bag.  So he dropped the loot and, after removing his disguise and putting the branches in his car, drove away empty-handed.

Despite the leafy attire, security tape photos led to his identity and arrest.

Quipped police Sgt. Ernie Goodno:  “He really went out on a limb.”

At his arraignment yesterday, the “branch bandit” was dressed in a simple orange jail outfit --- with not a leaf in sight.

Bush surprised only 13 miles of border fence built

On CNN last week, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R., Calif.) said President Bush expressed surprise when the congressman mentioned only 13 miles of fence has been constructed along the southern porous border.

Surprise? 

Grumpy Editor wonders why this is breaking news to the president who maintains he is in a war against terrorists who remain eager to attack --- with easy entry via the southern border.

Keep in mind he receives daily briefings on security concerns, including border activities.  He also must settle down and watch some television news on these developments, maybe hear bits of talk radio on the subject.  And he certainly couldn’t miss the recent TV spots in which three mature ladies drive to the border and see no construction in sight, triggering one to bellow:  “Where’s the fence?”

The 13-miles of fence certainly is not a new revelation.

A June 18 Grumpy Editor posting noted Hunter on the previous day revealed on CNN’s Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer that despite interest in the immigration reform bill at that time and talk of heightened security along the border with Mexico, only one layer of 13 miles of double fence has been erected out of 854 miles authorized last October by Congress but never funded.

Gore’s son keeps pedal to the metal, goes to jail

While his father, former Vice President Al Gore, was busy planning a major event to raise global warming awareness, Albert Gore III, was burning up the road.  In early morning hours Wednesday, he was clocked by Orange County, California sheriff’s deputies driving about 100 m.p.h. in an environmentally-friendly Toyota Prius.

The only son of Al and Tipper Gore, the 24-year-old was booked on drug charges, including possession of marijuana.  He was released on $20,000 bail after 12 hours behind bars.

Grumpy Editor notes timing couldn’t be worse for his father who was preparing to host Live Earth, a 24-hour, seven-continent concert series starting tomorrow that focuses on saving the environment.  The show is slated for television, radio and the Internet.

In appearances on TV yesterday to promote the program, the former vice president deftly deflected any questions pertaining to his son.  Example on MSNBC, when asked about his son's arrest:  “Well, we love him very much,” he said, “and we are just happy that no one was hurt, that he is safe and getting treatment. We are treating it as a private family matter.”

The younger Gore has been generating paper work for police departments.  Four years ago he was arrested in Bethesda, Md., on suspicion of possessing marijuana.  From that, he was ordered to participate in a substance abuse program.  Three years earlier, he was ticketed by the North Carolina Highway Patrol after being clocked at 97 m.p.h. in a 55 m.p.h. zone.  That resulted in a $125 fine coupled with a reckless driving charge dropped.

'Perp-walk' footage gets more play in TV news

Use of slow-motion television footage in spotlighting a person in the news is on the rise, notes Grumpy Editor.  It’s utilized almost daily now when the subject steps out of a car, departs a court house or walks down a driveway, among other stakeouts by TV photographers.

The “slo-mo” technique is designed to imply some type of shady doings, goes the thinking of some TV news directors.  (And just think how dull things would be if perpetrators’ footage ran at normal speed on TV.) 

Until recently, the effect has been to indicate --- or emphasize --- murder and other crime suspects.

Such “perp-walk” footage got a play earlier this week.  I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby, former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, received the treatment, via old court-departing shots, after President Bush commuted his sentence.  Paris Hilton also got the slo-mo routine when she left jail, walking a long path to her parents’ car.

Getting to be somewhat irritating to viewers is that TV news folks like to run and rerun the slo-mo footage, then repeat it over and over in several minutes’ span.

Time out for fireworks today

Grumpy Editor is taking the day off to celebrate Independence Day.