Sunday, May 24, 2009

Memorial Day coverage

Many of you who are working tomorrow will no doubt be assigned to cover a Memorial Day tribute.

The thing to remember is that stories like these are photographers stories, and for those of you who are one-man-bands, you need to let your cameras do the talking.

You need to let the sound and pictures carry the story. You'll get a bugler blowing taps, or someone on bagpipes playing Amazing Grace. You'll see some crusty old veterans in wheelchairs, and some young ones missing limbs. You'll see widows wiping away a tear.

Words are not necessary.

Keep the copy to a minimum. You don't need to do a standup.

And remember, there's a difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day. If you don't know what it is, look it up.

While many see this day as something to create a long weekend or a shopping bonanza, make sure you do justice to the real meaning of Memorial Day.

And to those of you who've served, thanks for giving us the freedom to write whatever we want.

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