Important news missing
A caller today said that stories — about Afghanistan and Iran — on this morning’s Page A12 were better for the front page than any of the “fluff” that appeared on Page One. Those stories are more important, he said. And the most important stories belong on the front page.
“Small victories have not added up to success in Afghanistan“
“Key Iraqi criticizes U.S. charges against Iran”
He said that the Mizzou column by Bryan Burwell “Mizzou-RAH! THE NEW, NO. 1 TIGERS” belonged in Sports and that the Shaw Park skating rink re-opening photo belonged in Metro.
He added that this trend toward soft news on the front page has been developing for months.
It’s true that we don’t put the “most important” stories on the front page. The front page of the Post-Dispatch almost always has four stories. We look for a mix and variety among those four — stories that are interesting, important, relevant, useful, surprising, sometimes fun. We favor stories that reflect readers’ lives, communities and interests. So usually the stories are local and staff-produced.
While Iran and Afghanistan might not make the front-page lineup, we strive to present a thorough national and world news report inside the main news section.
(Another reader said he was about to cancel his subscription because the headline on the Burwell column did not capture the enormity of the Mizzou victory and standing atop the BCS polls. “The most understated headline” ever, he said.)
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First, the Mizzou story was on Sunday’s front page so I don’t think it belonged on the FP again. As far as Iraq and Afgh on the front page, it doesn’t necessarily belong on the front page unless we capture Bin Laden there or breaking news of that type of magnitude happens.
As far as fluff news, that is saying it nicely. I give somewhat of a pass to the front page because they like sensational pics and stories above the fold that have a wide appeal to sell “street” papers. That is certainly understandable.
What disturbs me is when the inside contains very little news and silly news. I have to scour the internet daily to find all the news. For instance, I heard a story on Fox news this morning about Mexican drug cartels were working with Islamic terrorists last may to use tunnels to get into the US to blow up Arizona military sites. I seriously doubt the PD will bother to report those CIA findings in light of the fact that they feel there is no terrorist threat and they support open borders.