Our journey through 2001 may end tomorrow night, but it will be remembered forever because of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on America and America’s response.

Not surprisingly, 129 readers who accepted an invitation to rank the top stories of the year overwhelmingly selected the attack as the No. 1 national/international event. This being the United States, some readers held a different view. Six felt that the attack was the No. 2 story of the year; two considered it to be the No. 3 story.

Speaking for the majority, one reader wrote, “This was a mass tragedy that went beyond Pearl Harbor.”

On the local and state level, readers overwhelmingly selected the coverage of the Texas Seven as the No. 1 story. As one reader put it, the national attention brought much-needed scrutiny of Texas’ prison system.

After those developments, ranking other top news events grew more challenging. Consensus fragmented in determining the news value of so much jolting news but generally followed readers’ ongoing interest in threats to public safety and justice.

On the surface, the cultural events included in the list of the year’s top news paled in news value when compared with hard news, but that’s a deceiving measure of how important those events were to the public.

Coverage of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and the opening of the redesigned Amon Carter Museum drew worldwide interest and celebration. Why did they rank so low among the year’s top stories? It’s an interesting question to discuss.

Part of the reason is because many readers tend to reserve a definition of news as information that’s not just surprising or previously unknown but as “information about something that threatens me in some way.” News that’s either happy or inspiring doesn’t set off such alarm.

Another deceptive measure in readers’ response to this informal survey is the number of readers who responded either by snail mail or e-mail. The Sunday Star-Telegram’s posted readership is 799,600. Of those, 129 participated in ranking top stories.

That number may seem to be so small as to be laughable, but that’s just arrogance making its usual mistake of underestimating the value of even a drop of American opinion. There’s a dimension in reality where there’s no such thing as a small group of readers just as there’s no such thing as a small newspaper. Their potential as agents for change is awesome.

There is one aspect of the reader response of which I am particularly proud. A group of sophomores and juniors at Carroll High School in Southlake participated. Social Studies teacher Marsha Gray sent in the students’ rankings. Gray noted in a letter that one student was disturbed by a low ranking given to news of the deaths of 20,000 people in India’s worst earthquake in 50 years.

We understand and appreciate that student’s position. Ranking the news is seldom easy, which, for instance, is why news meetings can generate great debate about which of the top stories should go on Page One and, of those, which should be above the fold. As with readers, editors’ opinions vary.

There’s an old rule of thumb in the news business: The hardest part of editing is deciding what to leave out. Those decisions must be made – and made quickly, against deadlines.

There’s always the possibility that something bigger will happen on deadline and plans will need revision, but that’s a risk that’s taken – just as we risked the occurrence of major developments after Dec. 16, when we invited readers to rank the top stories. One vote for a No. 1 story equaled three points, two points for No. 2 and one point for No. 3.

Here’s how readers graded the news:

National/International Rankings

1. Terrorists fly hijacked commercial airliners into the World Trade Center’s twin towers and the Pentagon, killing more than 3,000; a fourth hijacked jetliner crashes in Pennsylvania after passengers struggle with hijackers to take back the cockpit. Total points: 362.
2. The United States takes the war on terrorism to Afghanistan, aiming airstrikes at the Taliban and dropping aid to refugees. Total points: 134
3. George W. Bush, former Texas governor, is sworn in as the 43rd president of the United States. Total points: 94.
4. Letters laced with anthrax kill five, stirring fears nationwide. Total points: 69.
5. Medical frontiers expand with the implantation of the first self-contained artificial heart and the announcement that an early human embryo has been cloned. Total points: 32.
6. Recession ends a 10-year economic expansion. Total points: 26.
7. India’s worst earthquake in 50 years kills 20,000 people. Total points: 17.
8. Democrats regain control of the U.S. Senate when Vermont Sen. James Jeffords quits the Republican party to become an independent. Total points: 13.
9. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone scores the biggest movie-opening weekend in history, earning almost $95 million. Total points: 10.
10. San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds sets the single-season record for home runs, slamming 73. Total points: 5.

Local/State Rankings

1. Seven Texas prison escapees’ capture in Colorado ends a weeks-long, nationwide hunt for suspects in the Christmas Eve murder of Irving police officer Aubrey Hawkins. Total points: 327.
2. Waco-based missionaries Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer are released in Afghanistan, ending imprisonment by Taliban captors. Total points: 135.
3. Lockheed Martin wins the $200 billion joint strike fighter contract, assuring thousands of jobs in Fort Worth. Total points: 134.
4. International energy giant Enron Corp. of Houston files one of the largest Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganizations in history. Total points: 102.
5. Arlington resident Wadih el Hage and three other radicals are convicted in the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Total points: 63.
6. Arlington Police Cpl. Joey Cushman is fatally wounded during a training exercise. Total points: 26.
7. Political redistricting creates more potential muscle for Republicans in the Legislature and tougher challenges for Democrats. Total points: 18.
8. Public transportation gains momentum with commuter rail service and completion of the Airport Freeway/Loop 820 interchange. Total points: 17.
9. The Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth reopens with much fanfare and a beautiful new space designed by architect Philip Johnson. Total points: 16.
10. The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition breaks with tradition and names two gold medalists, Olga Kern and Stanislau Ioudenitch. Total points: 11.

How readers cast their votes:

National/International

No. 1 No. 2 No. 3

Attack 116 6 2

Afghanistan 1 45 41

President Bush 6 27 26

Anthrax 0 22 25

Medical 1 12 8

Recession 0 7 12

Earthquake 1 6 2

Democrats 2 2 3

Potter 1 3 1

Bonds 0 0 5

Local/State

No. 1 No. 2 No. 3

Escapees 86 29 11

Missionaries 26 22 13

Lockheed 22 24 20

Enron 14 18 24

El Hage 1 17 26

Cpl. Cushman 2 6 8

Redistricting 2 3 6

Transportation 1 3 8

Museum 0 5 6

Cliburn 1 2 4

Thanks to everyone who took time from his or her busy holiday schedules to share thoughts. And here’s a toast: To the readers – may your spirit and courage always outshine the news.

Happy New Year, y’all.

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