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It is something I have wondered about so many times as I watch courtesy carts, loaded with passengers, fly down crowded airport concourses. Those golf-cart-like shuttles weave through weary passengers as people tug heavy bags, try to manage hyperactive children or listen to MP3 players.

I wondered if the carts ever hit pedestrians.

WCCO-TV's David Schechter did more than think about it; he went after it. He found that, at the Minneapolis airport, the carts have injured 60 passengers in the last four years alone. Some of those victims were little kids and old folks.
 

It just makes you wonder what you might find at your airport.

ReadTheBill.org

A Web site, ReadTheBill.org, has begun banging the drum to force Congress to post the wording of proposed legislation online at least 72 hours before a floor debate. The notion behind the movement is that, too often, legislators do not read the very legislation they are voting on -- so the public should be able to. The Washington Post, Roll Call, Investor's Business Daily and The New York Times have taken notice.

There are alternatives, but none of them do what ReadTheBill.org is suggesting. The Library of Congress's Thomas search engine tracks all legislation, but last-minute amendments might not be posted until after the vote.

GovTrack.us and a Washington Post page also have tracking programs for legislation.

The Simpsons v. the First Amendment

The Associated Press reports:

Only one in four Americans can name more than one of the five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment (freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition for redress of grievances). But more than half can name at least two members of the cartoon family, according to a survey.

 

The study by the new McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum found that 22 percent of Americans could name all five Simpson family members, compared with just one in 1,000 people who could name all five First Amendment freedoms.  

Blogging the Trial

Trials that do not allow cameras in the courtroom can be deadly dull to cover. But that has not stopped enterprising journalists from generating a lot of interest in the Enron trial.

One of the most talked-about blogs these days is the Houston Chronicle's Enron trial blog. (See the impressive stats.)

The trial itself is sometimes about as interesting as watching banks merge, but the Chronicle staff has filed the snarky, if sometimes less-newsworthy, minute-by-minute details of what is really happening in the courtroom for the four months it is likely to last. There are usually several posts each day with telling details that would never make it into print.

The blog describes seating patterns and apparently growing friendships on the jury. The blog describes the cowboy boots being worn by an L.A. attorney who has "gone Texan" for the trial. It also describes how some people sleep in the courtroom. 

For example, read these passages: 

February 27 -- Enron Task Force Director Sean Berkowitz has now used shoes and groceries to try to make sense of Enron's complex business and finances for the jury.
 

Today Berkowitz, whose home office is Chicago, asked witness Wesley Colwell to use grocery store finances to explain reserves. Thus the jury was educated about a business holding cash in reserves to cover future liabilities with discussion of produce spoilage and returned groceries.

A pretty bright idea given that rotten tomatoes and dairy sold after the expiration date is a lot easier to understand than the trading, hedging and commodity world of Enron. Heck, even some analysts admitted they didn't understand everything going on in Enron's books back when the company was a respected powerhouse.

On Feb. 14 Berkowitz asked then-witness Ken Rice to explain gross margins and "income before interest and taxes" by using a shoe store. Again, the cost of making shoes and the sale of shoes -- so much easier to get your head around than the sale of some asset to a side company run by Andy Fastow. 

A lot of the entries are details of testimony. But then there are details like this too:

One of our loyal blog readers with a good eye noticed in courthouse sidewalk photos from last week that Jeff Skilling's lawyer Daniel Petrocelli was sporting cowboy boots.

It's true -- this Jersey native who lives in the Los Angeles area no less has gone Texan with his footwear.

"They were a Christmas/'going-off-to-trial' gift from my father-in-law," Petrocelli said.
 

Made from alligator, he finds them comfortable and he states "I'm not taking them off until Jeff is a free man." Since that would make sleeping potentially uncomfortable and showering quite messy, we'll assume he doesn't mean that literally.  

Look at this passage from February 23:

While (Paula) Rieker shows little emotion, the pressure of testifying under (Dan) Petrocelli's sometimes grueling cross has made its mark.
 

Rieker does have a nervous quirk that appears to be have risen in frequency as the intensity of the questioning has increased -- she presses her tongue between her lower cheek and gums, sometimes swishing it along the bottom row of her teeth.  

This is just part of the Chronicle's massive coverage. Look at these other online features:

Blogs:

• Full Disclosure: Business writer Loren Steffy at the trial.

• Legal Commentary: Lay-Skilling trial analysis from Texas attorneys

• Gallery of key Enron players

• Catch up in chron.com's Enron archives

• Talk back in our Enron forum

• Get Enron stories via RSS

Juror Pay

One story idea that I picked up from reading the Chronicle's blog on the Enron trial is the issue of juror pay. It is something to consider when you are covering a long trial, or even a trial that lasts a week. Jury duty is a sacrifice. Read this: 

An attorney wrote to the court on behalf of the worried juror. Before court began today, Skilling's lawyer Daniel Petrocelli mentioned to the judge that there could be a concern about the juror feeling too much pressure.

The law states that an employer must hold your job open when you are on jury service but it does not require that an hourly employee be paid for hours they are not working. It might be different for non-hourly workers depending on terms of the employment.

 

Jurors sometimes are told they won't be paid in long cases and usually an attorney or the judge himself or herself calls the employer and breathes some civic duty into them.

 

In the Enron Broadband Services trial last year, U.S. District Court Judge Vanessa Gilmore said she contacted the employers of two jurors who complained they were going broke while they serve on the jury. Gilmore said the companies "are not mom-and-pop" operations, and it appeared she convinced them to pay the jurors during their absence.

 

That case lasted 3-1/2 months and unlike this trial, jurors did not always have Friday off to at least check in at work one day each week.

 

The amount the federal courts pays jurors is minimal -- $40 each day you come to the courthouse; 44.5 cents for each mile driven. And if you come from more than 50 miles away, $146.00 for hotel lodging, or $38.00 subsistence if you stay with a friend. Other expenses including road tolls, parking and public transportation may also be covered.

 

Some employers who pay employees for jury duty do require that the employer get that $40 a day.

 

A Radio Story for Teaching

Once in a while, I come across a story that is so well told I just pass it along to you, not to localize, but to learn from or to use in your newsroom teaching and discussions. This story is from my friend John Burnett at National Public Radio.

The piece explores how commercial fishing boat owners in New Orleans are still waiting to salvage their vessels. The story hones in on one boat owner, a Vietnamese immigrant who watches as a crane untangles his boat from the wreckage of others.

Listen to John's precise descriptions that paint pictures and "take the listener there," rather than merely pointing us toward a scene. The soundbites are subjective and explanatory rather than factual. You will hear rich sound that places the listener at the scene. I especially like the crackle of the two-way radio and the sound of a boat being set down by a crane.

Teachers: You can use this in your classroom a demonstration of how to start a story quickly then pay it off with a strong end. There are many magic moments in this story that surprise and engage the listener. Listen to the copy talk about a "ball" of boats, then a soundbite explains what the copy means, it does not merely repeat the phrase, as so many soundbites do. 

Newsrooms: This can be a great tool to discuss how to enrich podcasting with more than the drone of a narration or endless soundbites.