Saturday, July 25, 2009 | Ink By the Byte

“Never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel” – newspaper adage

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

“Love letters: Of handwriting and perfume”

COMMENT: Letter writing is making a comeback in Afghanistan because of the country’s isolation and less-than dependable Internet, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports. Letters are a much better form of communication than e-mails, and presumably webcams, the paper argues. The editorial comes off as an Olds v. Youngs rant at times, but it does make the valid point that letters last. They are handwritten and were touched by the person who wrote them. It’s a delayed intimacy that deserves appreciation when you are away from those your love.

“Start them off right”

COMMENT: Rather than let the children play video games this summer, the editorial writer will make them read The Outsiders with their parents. Each day, the family members will read a chapter and then talk about it that night. I predict the parents will enjoy the experiment and the kids will hate it, at least on the outside. Then, as adults, the kids will have a memory to laugh about and savor for decades – “Remember that summer they made us read The Outsiders … Our parents were so weird. I miss them.” Some, but few, video games compete with that sort of memory.

The Morning News of Northwest Arkansas

“Proposal hampers justice” (Link not available)

COMMENT: Circuit Judge Robin Green should rule against an effort by the Benton County Prosecutor’s Office to limit access to taped interviews of victims of sexual crimes, The Morning News argues. The prosecutor’s office may be well-intentioned in trying to protect the identity of the victim, but no breach has ever occurred before in the area and it hampers the defense’s ability to evaluate the evidence and even provide it to an expert witness, according to the paper.

The Northwest Arkansas Times

“A local presence: Expansion into UA’s backyard would (likely) be a good thing”

COMMENT: The Northwest Arkansas Times thinks it would probably be a good thing for the Northwest Arkansas Community College to expand further into Washington County since 40 percent of its students come here. The paper agrees with the school that now is not a good time to ask for a millage increase to fund expansion, but says long-term the school could find a complimentary home alongside the University of Arkansas.

Ink by the Byte is an ‘almost daily’ media criticism and editorial roundup column focused on three newspapers in Northwest Arkansas, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, the Morning News of Northwest Arkansas and the Northwest Arkansas Times. All comments reflect the opinion of Christopher Spencer, publisher of Ozarks Unbound.

SIMILAR POSTS

• Sunday, July 26, 2009 | Ink By the Byte at 10:30 pm on July 26, 2009
• Thursday, July 23, 2009 | Ink By the Byte at 2:26 pm on July 23, 2009
• July 9, 2009 | Ink By the Byte at 12:34 pm on July 9, 2009
• Monday, July 20, 2009 | Ink By the Byte at 12:54 pm on July 20, 2009
• NWA newspaper merger becomes “officially” official as papers drop simultaneous press releases | Ink By the Byte at 6:30 pm on October 26, 2009