Recently by http://www.wvec.com/blogs/profiles/barrett.js
6:09 PM Fri, Jan 18, 2008 | Permalink
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I put the question mark there on purpose.. as in, is there a Morgellon's Disease or isn't there? Yesterday, the CDC announced it would launch a study of the mystery illness called Morgellon's Disease. People with Morgellon’s say they have fibers and other inorganic things growing out of their skin.
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7:12 PM Fri, Jan 04, 2008 | Permalink
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I know what type of news report elicits the most viewer response. They are stories about people- people with an emotional, sad, sentimental, poignant, reflective, motivational or tragic story to tell. Find that person's eyes through which to tell the story and that's what viewers remember, latch on to and are moved by. Viewers were certainly moved by Roman Grandy's successful weight loss of nearly 200 pounds and how he became a perso...
5:58 PM Mon, Dec 10, 2007 | Permalink
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I've always said that a being a journalist gives you a front row seat to some of the most interesting events and people of our time. Recently, I met a future fashion designer at, of all places, Mt Trashmore in Virginia Beach. How often do you get to meet a woman who has immersed herself in creating a clothing line during the course of doing a story on weight loss!
Virginia Beach is home to many rising fashion superstars. Sherreth Stew...
6:55 PM Tue, Dec 04, 2007 | Permalink
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One of the most common questions I get when I'm at a speaking engagement or visiting a school or group is, "How do you decide what story to do for the news each day. Do THEY tell you what to do?" ( I always like that "they" because if there was a "they" I would hope "they" would do my research for me.)
The question is always a hard one to answer because a variety of factors go into determining what topic to cover that day. Studies com...
5:39 PM Tue, Nov 27, 2007 | Permalink
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So I asked longtime acquaintances and cancer survivors Roger and Kathy Cawthon of Hampton, VA, "Once you both survived cancer, why did you start the Cancer Crusade instead of putting the disease behind you and moving on to something else?"
Kathy teared up. Roger was silent. I had caught this funny, upbeat pair, always ready with a quip, off guard. But only for a sec.
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5:53 PM Mon, Nov 26, 2007 | Permalink
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Every day brings more e-mails from people moved by our report on MRSA. I appreciate the notes of thanks and the feedback. It appears that an awful lot of people know and care for Margo.
I've also heard from another family suffering with MRSA acquired in a local hospital. I'm not ready to publish that e-mail, however, until I look further into the situation.
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5:57 PM Wed, Nov 21, 2007 | Permalink
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The other day I reported on a new state law that is to go into effect in 2008 that suggests hospitals voluntarily report infection rate data to the state Board of Health. Most of the responses aren't about laws or infections, they're about the patient in the story who barely survived and who is in a wheechair, paralyzed, because of the MRSA infection that ravaged her body.
We didn't plan the report to air the week of Thanksgiv...
7:34 PM Mon, Nov 19, 2007 | Permalink
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A report I aired tonight on health care associated infections featured a Virginia Beach couple, the Bavrys. As is often the case, there's a lot more to the story than we can fit into the time allotted for a TV news report.
Margo was a homemaker in Virginia Beach who was very involved in her church, her friends and her quilting group. Larry was a systems engineer with Northrup Grumman, I think he told me, and the group he worked for di...
