I received a phone call last night from a reporter friend who was covering a firefighting story in his city. We exchanged a few pleasantries, and then he got to his point: He explained what had happened and the story he was covering. The story concerned a firefighter who was injured. To the best of his ability, he gave details of what he saw and then asked, "Should firefighters ...?" I get a lot of these calls. I usually find myself talking around what I really think and want to say for several reasons. First, most reporters have no idea of what it takes to get the job done on the fireground. This makes what they tell you somewhat suspect. What appears straightforward to a civilian can really be very complicated. Often, it is sweeps week or ratings are low, and reporters may want dirt, stones, something to make a headline. Most importantly, I usually don't have all the facts yet, and what they saw and often what they think they saw can be two entirely different things.
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