Missourinet

Newsroom renovation

For the first time in 17 years, the Missourinet newsroom and its studios are on different floors of our building.  Not since we moved from the old house downtown to the then-modern Learfield world headquarters at 505 Hobbs Road in 1989 has the news staff been forced to ascend or descend stairs to go back and forth to the places where we did our newscasts.  Our move 17 years ago gave us studios mere steps from our newsroom desks.    

It won’t be this way for long.  By the end of the day our news booth will be installed in the basement of the world headquarters, a short jaunt down the hall from the temporary newsroom, or “news closet” as we call it.   

All five us, including sportsoid David Sprague, are now in a room slightly larger than a two-man cell at the new penitentiary, a cozy arrangement that will be our temporary home for at least two months while our old newsroom and our old studios are destroyed and turned into an antiseptic modern newsroom that the sales department is not ashamed to take potential clients through on tours.  The sales folks seem to think an antiseptic newsroom is a key to greater commercial sales. 

Of course in the 17 years that the newsroom has been a working pig sty, Missourinet commercial sales have been pretty good (the traffic directors at our affiliated stations who have to insert our commercials into their daily broadcast schedules can testify to that).   

So here we are in the basement. At least when we look out a newsroom window we’re not seeing the Sears store in the mall across the highway. Our view now is of a narrow expanse of grass and then a couple of acres of newly-installed gravel where there used to be trees.   That’s because the owners of the property think they are going to put up some new buildings that will increase their incomes considerably.  Someday. 

Later today our colleagues from the Brownfield network, the farm folks, will be moving themselves and their stuff to a couple of rooms next to ours. 

When David took the picture of the new “newscloset,” as we call it, he said it looked as if we’re in jail.  The engineers tell us we have been sentenced to these facilities for 60-90 days until we can move back upstairs to the new News Exhibit area. Bob Priddy and Brent Martin get a break, however.  Since they cover the legislature, they will be allowed out on work-release until the legislative session is don so they’ll be doing a lot of work at the Capitol studio which, by the way, is available for affiliate stations’ use if they ever want to come to town and originate some talk shows---which the folks from Farmington and Festus did earlier this year. 

We naturally look forward to returning to the upper floor in a few months and we’ll welcome guests, including potential commercial-buyers, who want to see us on display. The only drawback is that all of the stuff we’ve hauled down here for the last several weeks will have to be hauled back up to the new newsroom. And it will be much heavier going up. 

Reporting from somewhere in the Learfield Underground, I’m Bob Priddy.

Opening day at Busch Stadium III

There are times when a job just doesn’t seem like a job. I probably say that more than most people. Monday, April 10, 2006 was one of those days. My assignment: Travel to St. Louis, attend the Cardinals’ first game at Busch Stadium III, write and talk about it.

There is nothing quite like a home opener. The sky is bluer, the sun is warmer, the breeze is crisper. Perfect white lines outline a pasture which is greener than green. Even the dirt looks clean. The mouthwatering aroma of sizzling meats, popcorn and beer covers you like a warm blanket upon entry. Balls hit bats, vendors bark their product and in the background a soft organ floats out note-after-note of bouncy music.

Now multiply those feelings by about 100. That was the scene, as the Cardinals played their very first game at Busch Stadium III. Gone was the old round metal building, which housed the club for 40 seasons. In, is the brand new, and might I suggest, warmer brick structure.

As you look up the brick façade, you see intricate carvings of the bird on the bat high atop the structure. The lights stand tall in square banks, much like they did in the old ball parks. Along the sidewalk is a mosaic of bricks with names of those who paid good money to forever be a part of the new ball park.

Walking into the place, there was this amazing feeling. You realize that you are one of the first of millions and millions of people who will come to this place. The first of who knows how many wonderful memories were made that day.

The ballpark is beautiful. Some kinks need to be worked out, still. Seats in left field still need to be installed and the view just past the seats in left field is a lovely mix of work trucks and rubble. Not quite Waveland Avenue, the Citgo sign or McCovey’s cove, to be sure. But it is hard not to be struck by the beauty on the inside and out. Once the so-called “Ballpark Village” is completed, it will be perfect.

Inside the view is tremendous. The shiny buildings, the old courthouse and of course the arch provide the backdrop for the outfield. At night this place will be jaw-dropping. Unlike the old stadium, which was closed off, the new stadium is wide open. Almost eternal. It’s not as much a structure in Downtown St. Louis is it is an extension of Downtown St. Louis.

This is not a stadium….it is a ballpark.

There were more than a few people who watched the game through the view finder on their digital cameras. Almost everyone was snapping a shot of someone or something, trying to capture moments that may be lost later in life. I doubt those pictures will ever tell the story as vividly as the people who lived the experience though. Days like this don’t fade easily. Someday, when this beautiful piece of architecture is deemed useless—and it will---old men and women will tell their grandkids—and anyone who will listen, for that matter---that they were there when the “old” place first opened. In full detail they’ll describe all the things I’ve described, only with embellishments.

And, oh by the way, the Cardinals beat the Brewers 6-4. Mulder went eight innings and hit a two-run homer. Pujols also went deep. Looper and Isringhausen almost blew a four-run lead in the ninth. But that was all a side note. When the story of going to Game 1 at Busch Stadium III is retold by the 41,000 people who attended, it won’t be about balls and strikes. It will be about laughs, and wow’s and smiles and friends and family and tradition. For me, it’ll be remembered as a great day at work.

-- David Sprague, Missourinet Sports Director

Webcast of Bush stop in Jefferson City

President Bush was in Jefferson City, Missouri, today to take part in a public "conversation" designed to promote the new Medicare prescription drug program. We streamed the audio but had some problems. Drop-outs, buffering. Seems we lost one of our T-1 lines (big pipe to the Internet) in the middle of the event. The archived audio is fine, however. Runs about 40 minutes. We also have a page set up for media pool audio. Frankly, we're all a little relieved to have gotten the thing up at all. Lots of obstacles.

President Bush to visit Jeff City

President Bush will visit Jefferson City on Tuesday (April 11, 2006) and plans to visit a senior center and participate in a forum about the new Medicare drug benefit. The Missourinet will be providing pool coverage for radio stations as well as streaming the audio of a speech by the president. Still trying to find out exactly when that will be but you'll post something here and on our home page when we know.

Phishing scam alert

Subscribers to our daily News and Sports email lists have been targeted by "Phishing" scams. What appears to be an email from The Missourinet shows up in your in-box, prompting you to enter a username and password. We're not sure what password they're "phishing" for but the email is not from The Missourinet. Just delete it and/or report it to your Internet service provider. We will never ask you for a username or password in an email.