Have you ever been to Haiti?

Ken: Yes, about 20 years ago. It was a poor country then, but the people we met were friendly and very nice. They certainly don’t deserve the conditions and circumstances they have been dealt. The Haiti earthquake has to be the world’s worse natural disaster since the 1931 China floods which is estimated to have killed up to 4 million people.


Don’t you think the media should leave Tiger Woods alone? Whatever he did was a family matter, why does the media have to stick its nose into everyones business?

Ken: The media was minding its own business until Tiger Woods apparently got into a public fight with his wife. If you are a public figure you have to accept some loss of privacy, it comes with the territory. Of course in the grand scheme of things, the Tiger Woods story, and stories like them actually have little real impact on our daily lives, and there certainly are far more important issues that should be addressed by the media. However, Woods could have prevented the media circus by remaining true to his marriage vows. He could have ended all the speculation early by holding a news conference and admitting that he did wrong, like David Letterman, John Edwards, or Mark Sandford. To run and hide only fuels the controversy. It amazes me how many politicians, athletes, school officials, and other public figures love to talk to the media when things are going well, but when the situation becomes difficult they plead for privacy and make themselves “unavailable” to the press.

Ken: Here's hoping that 2010 will be much better than 2009.



I heard you guys education series a few months ago. What do you think about charter schools and education reform?

Ken: I think more should be done to encourage charter schools as a viable alternative to public schools. The more choice students and parents have the better. We have choices when it comes to almost everything in life except K-12 education. Families are routinely assigned to failing schools only because they live in a certain district. Education funding should be allocated to the child, and not the school district so the child can attend the best school for them. And schools should compete for students instead of being a monopoly. Education will only improve if there is competition in the marketplace.


How do you know what questions to ask in an interview?

Ken: Traditionally, we reporters start by asking the 5 W’s. Who? What? When? and Where? But a good interview goes beyond the basics. An important part of that is actually listening to what the newsmaker has to say. If needed, follow up, by asking the subject to explain their statement or answer. Sometimes you must challenge the newsmaker, to get the reasoning behind the point they are trying to make. Also, reporters may need to ask a question several different ways to get the newsmaker to speak the most clear, concise, and understandable manner possible, so that the broadcast audience can easily understand what the story is about.


Was that you on the Nancy Grace Show? How did that happen? How do you like being on TV?

Ken: Yes, I’ve made two appearances on HLN’s Nancy Grace Grace Show, and one on HLN’s Jane Velez-Mitchell Show so far. It all started when the Sowell case broke, and CNN wanted to talk to someone who had covered the story on the scene. I also got to do an interview with Radio New Zealand. Being on television brought back memories of the 5 years I had a local talk show on Time-Warner Cable for the Akron Area Association of Churches. TV is a more complex medium, but a nice change of pace from radio.

When you were growing up did you watch a lot of TV news? Assuming they had TV when you were growing up. Just kidding. But I wondered what network TV news did you watch back then.

Ken: I started watching NBC’s Huntley-Brinkley Report back in the mid 60’s. When Chet Huntley left the newscast, I began watching ABC’s nightly newscast which featured a very young Peter Jennings, and one of my favorite newscasters Howard K. Smith. I mostly watched ABC through the 70’s and 80’s. Smith often played the role of newscaster in TV shows and movies. Below is one of his ABC newscasts.



As you watch this clip, notice the crisp, clean, no-nonsense writing and presentation style of this early 1970s newscast. It’s refreshing to hear just the facts, without needless conjecture, and minus the flashy pictures and video for the attention impaired. Unfortunately, Smith seldom solo anchored, despite having as rich and varied a career as Walter Cronkite. At first he was paired with Edward P. Morgan, and then Harry Reasoner, and was finally demoted to just a commentator after Barbara Walters became Reasoner’s co-anchor


Texting and driving is now illegal in Cleveland, in Summit County too. Politicians are also looking at banning it statewide, and the feds are considering that too. What do you think about texting and driving?

Ken: While people should not text and drive, I think there are already enough laws covering traffic accidents, and the failure to control motor vehicles. This seems like just “piling it on”. I would rather that legislative energy be spent on creating laws to protect the public from the financial scammers that got us into this recession. Of course, it’s easier for lawmakers to focus on something simple like texting, than something complex like financial or consumer fraud.


What do you think of the fluorescent light bulb distribution from FirstEnergy? Is it a rip-off?

Ken: I think FirstEnergy is charging far too much for bulbs you can buy at any store for a fraction of what they are charging. Plus, the fluorescent lights that FirstEnergy is touting are basically obsolete. New LED lights are now hitting the market and are available in a number of stores. They use far less electricity than fluorescents, and can last 10 to 25 years. LED's have been used in vehicles for years, and are slowly making they way into homes. The only problem with LED's is that they are about as expensive as fluorescents were 15 years ago, and light output remains about as low. It would have been better for FirstEnergy to offer subsidized LED’s as an option to its customers so this technology can be improved and costs reduced, than to impose two fluorescent bulbs on consumers at inflated prices.