Here's hoping for an ill wind

Richard Butt
4/ 4/2008

SOMETIMES it’s quiet. There’s not a lot to report on. As the tumbleweed blows across the Channel M newsroom, we’re stuck with trying to work out what we can rivet our audience with.

Journalism is much easier when stuff’s going on.

A gruesome murder might be bad news for the victim and their family, but it means – and don’t get all judgemental with me – we have something to get our teeth into, something the viewers would want to see.

And no matter what’s happening every day, we’ve got the same amount of airtime to fill.

Oh, for a minor civil war in Marple. It would be manna from reporting heaven.

Last week I was on the late shift and had the problem of finding something to report on. It was deathly quiet – except for the death bit. That might have given me something to do.

The victim of a con artist agreed and then refused and then agreed and then refused to speak to me, in spite of my most silver-tongued pleas. I saw a story in a Bolton newspaper predicting upheaval and chaos when some new electricity cables were laid. I went up there to have a look. Oh dear.

A chip shop and a charity shop might – just – be affected a tad. No more than a tad, though.

And all it really meant was that pedestrians might have to dodge the occasional cone. Cars and buses would cruise by unhindered.

Nobody – even me – could get worked up about that. I couldn’t in all conscience subject the viewers to such drivel. It must have been a quiet day for the Bolton paper as well.

Then I got a call about a man from Sale who was angry about the state of the town’s war memorial. I hot-footed it there.

There was some debris from poppies and crosses left from Remembrance Sunday four months ago and I did a short story about it.

It really mattered to the old soldier in question, Alan Thomson. In fact, it should matter to us all. But I’m not expecting a call from the BAFTA people about my story any time soon.

Of course we, asked Trafford Council for a response. Embarrassed officials ensured the site was cleared up before we could get the story on air.

So we made something of a difference and we showed that a call to our newsroom can result in action. Indeed, I hope it made Mr Thomson’s day and I’m glad we were of service.

‘May you live in interesting times’ is not a Chinese curse. Confucius never said it. I thought he had. But there’s no proof of its origins, the internet has just informed me.

Anyway, its sentiment is apt. ‘Interesting’ is a euphemism. ‘Interesting’ could certainly apply to revolutionary Russia, starving Ethiopia or war-torn Iraq.

But you wouldn’t want to live through it. However, there would be lots of work for reporters.

So, to the kind of people who say ‘anything for a quiet life,’ I’d like to say this. Think of the poor journalist when you’re content. Think of us when your life is going by quietly.

You might want to live in dull rather than interesting times. But an ill wind blows us a lot of good.

Richard Butt edits Channel M’s early evening news – every weeknight from 5pm