Lots to celebrate

People have a pretty good idea what Christmas and Hanukkah are about, and may know about Kwanzaa or about pagan solstice traditions. New Year's Day, however, seems to have no actual festive content, unless you count the wearing of lampshades. It's like the big signs placed at arbitrary lines on the map: Welcome to New York, the Empire State. The line could be anywhere. But if you are feeling let down by the end of the holiday season, cheer up--the entire year is holiday season. Here are some reasons to celebrate in January.

Among other designations, January is officially Celebration of Life Month, and California Dried Prune Digestive Month, and International Wealth Mentality Month, and National Clean Up Your Computer Month, and National Hot Tea Month, and Oatmeal Month. For those with shorter attention spans, January encompasses the mysteriously named Silent Record Week, as well as Cuckoo Dancing Week, National Handwriting Analysis Week, World Leprosy Week, and National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week.

Or you can take your festivities one day at a time: the 3rd is Memento Mori (Remember You Die) Day; or Tolkien Day. The 5th is Fruitcake Toss Day, the 12th is Penguin Awareness Day. Not to omit imaginary creatures, the 16th is Appreciate a Dragon Day; also, it's Nothing Day. My list shows the 17th as Judgment Day, but we can hope that that's a typo. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. shares the 21st this year with National Hugging Day, and Squirrel Appreciation Day. For those who find the notion of Celebration of Life Month too exhausting, they can just gear up for Celebration of Life Day on the 22nd. Next comes National Pie Day, the 23rd, cruelly followed by Women's Healthy Weight Day, the 24th. Or you just forget about what everyone else is celebrating, and throw a party on Freethinkers Day, January 29th.

In the family again

All week I have been looking at the home page at NCPR, seeing the holiday themed Photos of the Day, the winter reading list, a gingerbread house slideshow, the holiday specials schedule, etc. Everything you would expect for the holidays, except for the ongoing coverage of a dispute with our public radio neighbor to the south. I had planned to give the matter a rest today, and write some holiday anecdote here, such as an account of my marathon journey across the North Country in belated search of a Christmas tree.

Instead, a real holiday story has just fallen into my lap. As of 1:30 pm, NCPR has reached an agreement in principle with WAMC, Northeast Public Radio, that will settle the conflict to the benefit of all. Read the joint press release outlining the agreement.

Our warmest thanks to all who showed their concern and support. And best wishes to everyone for a joyous holiday season.

In the family

How you report the news when you have become the news is one of the most ticklish problems in journalistic ethics. A case in point is a story that will air in a few minutes on All Before Five, and again tomorrow (Friday) during the Eight O'Clock Hour. Recently, in a rare FCC "filing window" for applying for broadcast licenses, NCPR applied to upgrade its facility in Lake Placid to a higher-power license. Our public radio neighbor to the south, Northeast Public Radio (WAMC), also made an application that, if successful, would transfer the Lake Placid 91.7 fm frequency from NCPR to them.

The news was first aired in the region this morning on Saranac Lake station WNBZ, in a feature story by Chris Knight who, in addition to his duties at WNBZ, is a frequent freelance reporter for NCPR on Adirondack issues. While NCPR is committed to retaining the frequency on which it has served Lake Placid for over twenty years, we needed to find a way to cover the story in a fair and balanced way that would place the public interest ahead of the institutional interests of the station. Toward that end, the station manager and the news director sought advice from the Poynter Institute, an organization that provides training in journalistic ethics. They recommended that we use an outside editor with no connection to either of the parties to the dispute to oversee NCPR's coverage. Suzanna Capelouto, news director of Georgia Public Broadcasting, agreed to fill that role. The reporting by Chris Knight that you will hear on NCPR tonight and tomorrow was edited by her.

NCPR's position on the dispute and links to other coverage, including Northeast Public Radio.

In their own words

A couple of weeks ago I was bemoaning the effects of the Hollywood writers' strike on the one-eyed monster in my living room. But as the labor action continues to drag on, and the world has not come to an end, I have had time to consider the possible benefits of being bereft of words. In particular, bereft of words put into the mouth by others. Consider the possibilities of a political speechwriters' strike. Would candidates just do reruns of previous speeches, or would they take the gamble and communicate with constituents in their own words? And what if talking heads had no one to write their talking points? What if the slick hired guns of Madison Ave. walked off the job, leaving products stripped of all pizzazz? Would we just buy last year's model? Would we forget to go shopping altogether? Silence speaks, as any poet could tell you (as long as the poets aren't out on strike.)