I'll miss Peter Jennings

Peter Jennings was a fine journalist, and his loss is a loss to the world of journalism as well as a loss to his family, friends, colleagues and viewers. Former President Clinton made some excellent observations about how intelligent his questions were.

Once again, I would question the Cape Cod Times story judgment. The story of his death ended up on Page 2, instead of Page 1, where it belonged. I wonder if the person in the slot on Sunday night didn't want to change the pre-planned layout when the news of Jennings' death broke late Sunday night. Having been in that situation, I know those are tough calls to make. I made plenty of wrong decisions in my time in the slot.

Cape Cod Times story choices

Thursday night, Aug. 4, there were two big explosions at Camp Edwards in Bourne. We heard it all the way in Dennis. People were shocked and surprised by the noise from the explosion. In Friday morning's Cape Cod Times the story was buried on an inside page. I thought it should have been the lead story on Page 1. It affected a lot of people on Cape Cod. The next day --Saturday, Aug. 6 -- the Times ran a follow-up story, and it was, indeed, the lead story atop Page 1.

The Sunday Cape Cod Times, Aug. 7, included AP coverage of the British rescue of the submariners aboard the stranded Russian submarine. Because the Boston Globe's deadline is much earlier, all the Globe could report is that the rescuers were "racing against time."