Recently, the Marin Radio Communications Volunteers team got some press. The first story appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, while the second appeared in the Marin Independent Journal.
It’s interesting to compare the two stories. If you were a member of the team, which one would you prefer? I think I’d go with the second one. Even the title indicates that it’s a more appealing story.
Old-time ham radio operators are go-to communicators in earthquake prep drill
At 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Skip Fedanzo is expecting an 8.0 earthquake on the Hayward Fault. Assuming his Corte Madera home doesn’t slide down Ring Mountain, Fedanzo is set to make his way past his cell phone, laptop and landline, heading to his garage for the only communication method he can count on to be still working — a ham radio.
Setting up in his rocking chair, at a window with a view stretching from Mount Tamalpais to the bay, Fedanzo will push the power button to announce: “This is Skip, KJ6ARL; is anybody out there?” That is the call that brings a response from any or all of 15 ham operators spread from Novato to Point Reyes Station — and Operation Golden Eagle, an orchestrated region-wide emergency response exercise, will be on the air.
Marin enlists volunteer radio operators for emergency team
A new band of amateur radio operators in Marin is ready to support the emergency response when the power goes out or phone lines and cell towers go down.
A pilot program of the Marin County Department of Public Works, the 16-member Marin Radio Communications Volunteers team has formed to send and receive messages between Marin community organizations and government agencies during disasters or long power outages.
Anthony Fedanzo, the lead volunteer, said that after the planned power outages during the 2019 fire season, he and other local amateur radio enthusiasts, or ham radio operators, saw there was a gap in communications among nonprofits and community organizations. They teamed up with Marin’s branch of Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, or VOAD.
Frank K4FMH says
Clearly, the second would be preferred. But does the ham actually sit in a rocking chair at his shack operating position? He’s not helping the story, lol!
Bob K0NR says
I once heard that news reports can be biased.
Bob, W6BP says
Both are competently-written articles, but #2 is a dry recitation of facts, while #1 is a story that pulls you in. I’d go with #1, but I’d drop the headline’s “old-time”.