The Mirror's coverage of high school graduations has evolved over the years from sporadic stories and pictures and massive gray lists, mainly from Blair County, to where we are today.
And that's making every effort to be a presence at the 25-plus schools in our coverage area.
We've dropped the lists - surprisingly, without complaint - and package those in our annual graduation section, which this year will be published June 26.
Special Sections Coordinator Cory Dobrowolsky will jump through the usual number of hoops to pull together the massive project in part because we know it's a keepsake.
Graduation is a difficult juggle for newsrooms. During this two-week span, there are often two or three (Wednesday, there are seven) per night, which can tax a staff and create a space jam.
And there's sentiment that it's not really news - it's certainly not hard news.
Then again, it is a life-cycle event, and it's an opportunity to recognize some of the top students - many of whom deliver thought-provoking and inspiring messages - in the region.
A significant portion of the feedback that accompanies your circulation renewal forms says you want good news to balance the inevitable gory details from the courtroom.
To that end, we've taken an all-hands-on-deck attitude with high school and college graduations as reporters grab cameras and try to chronicle a positive moment in each of our communities.
Explanation, please
A distraught but controlled couple visited the Mirror the other day wondering about the handling of a case in which their son was arraigned on a number of charges, including simple assault, terroristic threats and criminal mischief.
They were not condoning his behavior but were surprised that the information was expanded beyond the traditional police reports and was presented with a headline, a mug shot and several inches of copy.
They pointed to other aggravated assaults that were listed in the police reports.
The quick answer is we try to prioritize based on three things - the amount of information, manpower and space.
But the parents raised a fair question, and we followed up on that information that previously had been limited to a paragraph to produce similar-sized stories in the ensuing days.
Here's something that young people who commit crimes may not read or appreciate until they're in jail - where our readership is high: If those who considered the anguish their actions cause their loved ones, fewer crimes would be committed.
Yesteryear mixup
We're fortunate that Tim Doyle still enjoys combing the microfilm and bringing history to life by producing the yesteryear column in news and sports.
And it's quite possible that a reporting error occurred 50-plus years ago.
Either way, Mel Grimes should have been credited for the no-hitter he threw in the Greater City Baseball League on May 20, 1960. Jack Sloey was not the winning pitcher as a recent yesteryear listing said since he spent his entire City League career behind the plate.
For the birds
Since writing about feeding the deer a few months brought plenty of reaction, here's my latest dilemma with wildlife:
I've got a couple of pesky birds that keep invading my back porch and repeatedly smacking their beaks against the door, which doesn't exactly constipate them, if you know what I mean.
Any advice on how to combat this is welcome.
Mirror Managing Editor Neil Rudel can be reached at 946-7527 or nrudel@altoonamirror.com.
