Look Both Ways And Beware Of Jay Drivers

by Kevin Burton    What I see 20 feet away, you can see 200 feet away. By definition therefore, I am legally blind.    So you would think, all other things being equal, my career as a jaywalker could/should be painfully short, or maybe even disastrously shortened.    I was very nearly run over by …

Good News About Life Savers Among Us

by Kevin Burton    Then Apostle Paul said better than I ever will:   “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on …

Use A Variety Of Verbal Tools To Communicate

by Kevin Burton    In my early studies in journalism I heard or read somewhere that a news reporter should write at a 10th-grade level. I never did that. I wouldn’t.    I was very aware that I was talking to everyone, “broadcasting,” in the print news sense of the word, with the emphasis on …

How I Rode Cold Notes Straight To The Top

by Kevin Burton    Today we finish up the Dictionary Scoop website’s list of jargon phrases used in journalism. As I did yesterday, I will add to the list.    “Above The Fold” is a term that refers to stories and pictures that appear in the top half of the front page. It’s the part …

Speaking My Language, Journalism Jargon

by Kevin Burton    Every industry has its insider jargon and our friends at Dictionary Scoop have released a list of journalism phrases.    And I’ll get to it, gladly.  But first, one bone to pick.    So the way I was trained in journalism was, get to the point, now. Put the most important …

Here’s The Nice Side Of A Rich Vocabulary

by Kevin Burton    Newsniks in general and I in particular have been accused of highlighting the negative side of life, seeking it out and advertising it.    That’s not entirely fair, but neither is it a ridiculous assertion.  It’s a discussion.    But now via Merriam-Webster and as has been sung by Bing Crosby …

New Statue For Wichita, Jail Time For Thief

by Kevin Burton    The man who stole a bronze statue of baseball legend Jackie Robinson was sentenced on Friday to 15 years in prison for that and other crimes, as news came that a new statue will arrive in Wichita tomorrow.    Ricky Aldrete said a fentanyl addiction led to the crimes. Wichita police …

Bonnie Raitt Supports A Free Press, Journalism

by Kevin Burton    I love Bonnie Raitt more this week than I did before, and that’s saying something.    Raitt announced Monday that proceeds from her Sept. 23 concert in Carmel By The Sea, California, will go to support investigative journalism and protect a free press.    “Special guest Roy Rogers will support the …

Boom, Boom: Fireworks Store Erupts In Flames

by Kevin Burton    You hear this phrase a lot: “don’t judge.”    Well in this case, go ahead. Be my guest. Judge, and jump in with both feet, or both wagging index fingers, if you want to. I don’t care.    On our first regional beep baseball trip, to Indianapolis in late May, I …

Blind Nebraska Woman Denied Postal Delivery

by Kevin Burton    Dialogue magazine for the blind used to have a column called Abapita. Abapita is an acronym standing for “ain’t blindness a pain in the anatomy.”    Sadly that magazine stopped publishing in 2019.  Also sadly, for the blind, the pain in the anatomy continues.    I get all manner of news …