News dispute

For a time, I had what I considered a very good editor. This was back in Texas, after the first editor I worked for was given the boot. (It was about time, too.)

The paper I worked at was at its best under this new editor and one of the things stressed to us was to get ahead of the curve. He didn't want us to merely follow news. He wanted us to let people know what was happening so they could actively particpate in meetings and events or make an informed decision.

I miss that.

I recently had a dispute with Verizon, which is beginning to offer its fiber optic service here. To make a long story short, my problem was that although new customers are given a 30-day window in which to cancel a two-year contract for Fios, the company reps (we spoke to four) never tell you that it's impossible to return to old service levels because they are yanking out those old wires. So it's Fios Internet or nothing.

I thought this would make a good news story. Obviously, Verizon isn't going to tell anyone up front. A google search revealed a handful of articles about the exact same issue in other parts of the country where Verizon had installed this same service.

I've heard nothing from the H-T, which doesn't surprise me as they don't really bother covering North Port. It's why I don't bother to take their newspaper. The Sun isn't going to do a story either. They turned my e-mail over to their consumer columnist. He explained to me that he couldn't do a column either because it only affects certain parts of North Port right now.

True, but this is where my old editor would pipe up and say, "Yes, but they'll be expanding. It will be affecting more and more people." Even if the story didn't go immediately, I know I would have looked into it. I'm sure the Sun felt it was just poor old me in a conflict with Verizon. I still want to know what the point of this 30-day grace period is. And I'd like to know why, after asking three Verizon reps whether I could return to my old levels of service I was repeatedly told yes when that wasn't the case. This is the crux of the story to me. Not my personal dispute.

But newspapers like the Sun have more important things to write about. Like no less than four separate Easter Egg hunt stories.