Jeff’s Dark and Early Blog

The amount of work that goes into a radio morning show is one of the most unappreciated arts in all of journalism.  I’ve felt the need to illustrate this point on a number of occasions, but this particular morning seemed to be the perfect example.

Long before even I was out of bed, producer Jayme Monacelli hit the newsroom in the wee hours of the morning.  We’re talking 1  in the morning.  Not only did she hit the ground running in terms of writing, she also handled the proof-reading, the editing and kept a close ear to the police scanners for any overnight activity of interest.  And that wasn’t just this morning.  Jayme does that every  day.

Before too long, Jayme was joined by producer Cooper Banks, then E.J. Becker, then yours truly and Ellen Schenk.  Mark shows up when he darn well pleases.  (He’s from New York.  What can I say?)

It didn’t take long for us to figure out the big story of the morning.  Just as we were holding our big morning meeting (4 a.m.), we heard on the scanners that a pedestrian had been struck on I-35 northbound near Admiral Boulevard.  The entire interstate was being shut down in that direction.

From there, we all sprung into action.  Jayme and Cooper stayed on the scanners and the phones, all the while keeping the show running at top speed.  E.J. and Ellen took the anchor desk and I took to the streets.

I reached the scene and was greeted with both flashing lights and traffic flares.  I could tell from past experience that this was a situation that was going take awhile to get under control.

In the pouring rain, I grabbed my trusty KMBZ microphone, put the flashers on in Cruiser 980 and made my way toward the emergency.  Following a brief but detailed conversation with those working the scene, I headed back to the car to call in my first report.  Live at 5:02, I laid out the situation for our listeners.

This process repeated itself throughout the morning.  I was there for our listeners when things re-opened at 6:30.  I stayed on top of the situation via telephone after that as I checked on several other breaking news situations.  Then, I made my way back to the scene on word that police had been talking to someone who might have been responsible for hitting the pedestrian.  I again kept our listeners up to date as we made our way through the morning show.

Back in the newsroom, we got word of President Obama’s Supreme Court nomination.  With Jayme and Coop working hard in the newsroom, E.J. and Ellen got the word on the air, followed by expert analysis.  Mark flew the plane as Mark often does.  (Again, he’s from New York.)

The bottom line is that our morning show is a team effort full of hard working professionals who know how to get the job done.  I couldn’t be prouder to be a part of it.

I felt a bit like a middle linebacker. I was crouched and ready, focused and fearless. I knew Michael Vick was coming. I just couldn’t see him. I saw a blinding flash of red and he was gone. I, meanwhile, was face down in the dirt.
These are allegorical statements, of course, but they perhaps describe my recent pursuit of former NFL star Michael Vick as well as an escapade such as that can be described.
I waited with other local media for his 4 a.m. release from the state penitentary at Leavenworth. He escaped.
I waited outside his hotel room, had an unpleasant altercation with the concierge, talked with several of his handlers, enjoyed an “apology” coke courtesy of the concierge, and eventually, my shift ended. Still no Michael Vick.
He’s back in Virginia this morning, or so I hear. I can only wish him well.
Where were you, Michael Vick? I called, but you didn’t answer. I pursued, but you evaded. I dove, and you made me miss.
Man, it must suck to be a linebacker.

One of our interns here at KMBZ, Devin Price, has taken it upon himself to travel into the unknown world of “Dark and Early” radio.

On his own accord, Devin has volunteered to join me in Cruiser 980 on Fridays, hoping to get a chance to see what life is like reporting on the streets.

Devin joined me for the first time this past Friday and while the news day didn’t bring him anything too exciting, I found him to be a hard-working, energetic young man.  He asked good questions, was eager to learn and wasn’t afraid to approach strangers for our “man on the street” interviews.

I thoroughly enjoyed working with him and want to welcome him to the KMBZ family.  He has a bright future in this business and helping him through the process will be an honor.

When it comes to deciding on Cruiser 980’s mission for the morning, it seems like everybody gets into the act.
On those mornings when there are breaking developments such as a fire or a major accident, what I’m doing and where I’m going are pretty obvious.
But on those morning where my story of choice is debatable, we do just that.
E.J., Ellen, Jayme, Cooper and myself often have different ideas, all good ones, about the best way to utilize Cruiser 980 until the next breaking news event.
Sometimes opinions lead to lengthy discussions, and even I don’t always get my way. But more often than not, the question we always try to answer is ‘what are people talking about’? If we can answer that, we can usually answer the question of what I’m doing, and ultimately, we can better serve you. I guess that’s the point in the first place. We tell you all you need to know, and we keep you talking about it all day long.

While you gave new meaning to the phrase “couldn’t put it down”, I don’t recommend reading while driving on the interstate.  When I saw you from Cruiser 980, I had to do a double take.

I’ve seen some interesting activity behind the wheel in my time…..women putting on make-up, men shaving, teens texting….but never have I witnessed someone with their novel so evenly positioned on the steering wheel.

Did you see the tractor trailer you almost hit?  Did you realize you changed lanes several times?  Did you finish the book?

I woke up at 2:45 this morning to the realization that the power was out, my kid was scared and my wife’s 30th birthday hadn’t gotten off to the best start.  Things only got worse when I stumbled to the garage and had little luck finding the cord that would allow me to open the door to drive to work.

About that time, E.J. Becker called me.  Turns out he woke up to no water.  So much for a shower and teeth cleaning.

We both made it in, and started the morning show on time.

By five-thirty, I was at the scene of a fatality accident.  Could this day get any worse.

It was a few hours later, however, when I got the reason to smile I was looking for.

A man on foot wearing headphones walked up to Crusier 980 and motioned for me to roll down the window.

“Great,” I thought.  “What now?”

“Put on my headphones”, he said.

“What do you have there, man?” I asked, not sure what to do.

“Put on my headphones,” he said.

I took the phones and listened in.

I immediately heard E.J. voice, talking about the Royals.

The man smiled, gave me a thumbs up, took back his headphones and kept walking.

You never know where you’re going to find a listener, or a change in your day.

I just finished working on my second multi-part series since coming to work at KMBZ more than a year ago.
The topic is foreclosures, how they impact all of us, and a local look at a national problem. It airs on Monday, and I hope all of you will tune in during Kansas City’s Morning News.
What I learned from this process, however, had as much to do with editing as it had to do with the housing crisis.
The process of putting together something like this takes hours behind the scenes. There is tedious editing, scheduling interviews and trying to put what is in your head into something that can air on your radio.
Once I was finished, I had gained a new respect for the documentary films many of us found boring when we were younger. Regardless of topic, these film makers spend what I can only imagine are years upon years behind the scenes so you and I can enjoy something informational on the Discovery Channel for a couple of hours in the evening. A quality product does not come without quality labor. My hats off to these professionals and the work that they do.

It had a good run.
The Oldsmobile Alero that spent time as the fabled “Cruiser 980″ has announced its retirement. Something about spending more time with Momma Alero.
In any event, “Cruiser 980″ now has a more fitting identity. Once I finish my series work and get back on the morning shift, I’ll be doing the dark and early thing in a PT “Cruiser”.
I’ll be sharing the new version of the morning show favorite with our own Eric Bushman. He’ll use it in the afternoons.
Eric has a beard. I do not. Eric carries a brief case. I use a bag. Eric wears khakis. I prefer jeans. Eric is single ladies. I have a wife, a child and a schnoodle. We couldn’t be more different. But our car is one.