One thing is certain about New Yorks junior U.S. senator shes always an attention-getter.
Calls about her recent visit to the Poughkeepsie Journal lead off this From the Mailbag column, a look at what readers have been saying lately about the newspaper.
When Hillary Clinton visited Kingston and Poughkeepsie last month, she made a stop at the Journal for a discussion with members of the newspapers editorial board.
The Clinton story was among the biggest local stories of the day, partly because of national events in the few days before her visit.
Clinton was in town for two events, which the Journal covered. She later came to the newspaper because she was in the area and it gave the editorial board a chance to do an in-depth interview with her.
Just a few days earlier, Vermont Sen. James Jeffords left the Republican Party and declared himself an independent. That momentous switch gave the Democrats a majority.
Clinton and her Democratic colleagues were suddenly more powerful.
Journal coverage of her visit was extensive, with stories, photos, an editorial and a short excerpt of the transcript of her interview at the Journal. The full transcript was on the Journals Web site.
A few readers complained that the extensive coverage showed a bias in favor of Clinton.
For the record, the Journal had endorsed Clintons opponent former U.S. Rep. Rick Lazio in last Novembers election. That being said, the newspapers editorial stance doesnt affect the way news is covered.
Editors decide the extent of coverage on a big story, in part by gauging how much a topic affects readers lives and by how much they think readers want to know about a person or subject. And people want to read about Clinton no matter whether they like or dislike her.
Though the newspaper cant always judge how many people read a story in print, editors can count how many times an article is called up on its Web site.
In the week after the Clinton stories ran, the full transcript of her interview with Journal staff was called up 1,027 times the most of any news story during that period.
Como mourned
Another recent story prompted a few comments of too little coverage on the Journals pages.
Famous crooner Perry Como died in May and his death was reported in a short story in the news section. A few days later, a syndicated column about Como and what his fans thought about him ran in the Journals Life section.
The same week, a feature story about rock icon Bob Dylans 60th birthday appeared on the front page of the Life section. Dylan lived in Woodstock for a time. He and Como have been music legends to different generations.
A few of Comos local fans called to say they wished that Comos death had received the same kind of treatment in the paper as Dylans birthday.
They may have a point. Como was immensely popular in his heyday, though he hadnt been performing in years, and many readers will mourn his death.
What many readers dont know is that the front page of the Life section on Sunday is planned ahead and produced on Friday. Some sections that arent dependent on breaking news need to be done in advance in the large Sunday paper or we would not be able to print it on deadline and get it delivered on time.
Early deadlines a factor
News about celebrities that happens during the week can be put in the Life section. But, if it happens on a Saturday, it will be put in the news section of Sundays paper because the Life section is already completed.
Obviously, it was known for a while that Dylans birthday was coming up and editors were able to plan to devote some of that Sunday front Life page to those stories. It wasnt a case in which editors favored a story about Bob Dylan over one about Perry Como.
Other readers contacted us about stories, columns or editorials they appreciated.
Peter Sala of Poughkeepsie called to say he likes the Life sections weekly Day Trips feature, which tells readers about interesting places they can visit in one day. He read about the Chinese Buddhist Chuang Yen Monastery in Putnam County, went to visit it and found it delightful.
Editorials in the Journal that proposed reforms to New Yorks stringent Rockefeller drug laws won praise from the Legal Action Center in New York City, a nonprofit prison reform organization.
Student columnist praised
Reader Frank Brinckerhoff wrote to say he enjoys a column written by high school student Anna DuPont, which runs on the Verge page in the Life section.
Verge is geared toward teenage readers. He told DuPont he was old enough to be her grandfather, but that he found her writing style to be breezy and entertaining.
Journal editors welcome comments, both positive and negative, about whats in the newspaper. Feedback helps them gauge if theyre meeting readers needs, and gives them outside perspectives on whats being published. So, keep in touch.
