Covering the Big Story

What's it like to cover the big story? Budding journalists will find out in this montage of interview clips with reporters, photographers, engineers, editors, producers, and bureau chiefs parked in front of an L.A. court house on the morning of October 3, 1995. For those whose memories are a little shaky, that was the day of the "not guilty" O. J. Simpson criminal, not civil, verdict. Most interviewees agree on the basics: the circus atmosphere of the "big story" tends to bring out the best and worst in journalists, and reporters need to be aggressive, stay informed, and keep their eyes open. All in all, pretty standard stuff, which is why this is an optional purchase for larger journalism collections. A better choice, which is twice the price (but also 15 half-hour videos as opposed to one) would be News Writing (VL-11/95) which has individual episodes available for $39.95, and includes some of the biggest names in the field, as opposed to whomever the producers could wrangle up on the morning of the Simpson verdict. Aud: H, C, P. (R. Pitman)