Well, Isn't That Interesting ... Newsworthy? ...

Sometimes, the process of uncovering a news story is nothing more than the observation of something a little out-of-the-ordinary. 'Well, isn't that interesting,' you might remark ... and it usually is.

But is it newsworthy? Maybe ... maybe not.

This morning, on my way to work, I was westbound on that lest stretch of Andrews Highway in Midland, between Midland Drive and Loop 250, where it turns into Highway 191. In the opposite lane, the eastbound traffic was waiting for their green light. There seemed to be a pattern in some of that eastbound traffic. I saw two, then three ... then four Bosworth Company service trucks, one right behind the other, all heading into town on Andrews Highway.

As I moved along, I saw more ... and that's when I thought, 'that's interesting.' As I counted truck #10, I realized this wasn't a bigger-than-usual heating/air conditioning service call. By the time I counted 25 trucks, all heading the same direction on that same small stretch of road, well, by then, anyone would have realized something was up .... interesting, but newsworthy?

I pulled off the road, parked, and placed a call to the Bosworth Company. The woman who answered the phone explained that the company had just taken some kind of large, corporate-type photo out at the stadium with all their trucks and employees, and they were now returning.

It was interesting, yes ... but, no, it wasn't newsworthy.

It can work out differently, though, as it did for me just a few days earlier. A little before eight o'clock Saturday morning, I was in the process of putting out boxes on the curbs, weighted with bricks and bearing signs directing people to a garage sale we were having. While placing a box on the corner at Neely Street, I saw a couple of police cars in the middle of two intersections, lights flashing and officers out and moving around. Obviously, something was up in this normally-quiet residential neighborhood ... interesting, but newsworthy?

I drove over to one of the blocked streets and visited with a resident who was watching the proceedings. She told me she had been asked to leave her house, and that police apparently were looking at some kind of 'incendiary device.'

It was interesting, yes ... and, yes, it was newsworthy. I put in a call to NewsWest 9 and they dispatched the first news crew to the scene. From time to time, they cut into programming to advise the public of what was happening, and urging people to steer clear of the area and let the emergency personnel do their job. They remained on the scene throughout the day as the bombscare was resolved without injury to people or damage to property ... except for the suspected pipe bomb, of course.

And, really, that's how a lot of news stories get started ... and that's how YOU can be a part of the coverage of that story ... by noticing something interesting, something out-of-the-ordinary, and calling that information into one of the local news outlets.

It may turn out to be nothing .... but , then again ...