I started writing news stories for radio in 1974.  One of the most difficult decisions any journalist makes is how to determine which stories are most important and which are not.

How do I make that decision today?  I do not argue that my decisions are always correct, but I do my best.  Basic journalism, plus my experience of living in Fishers for more than 30 years all is factored-into any decision about what to include and leave out.

Sometimes I think I know what most readers of this blog want to know.  But every now and then, I get it wrong.  A story I think is important doesn’t get much traffic while another story I may not think is as important will draw plenty of eyes.

So, there is no magic formula.  But I learned an important lesson as the morning news anchor and reporter for WCSI Radio in Columbus, Indiana.  I started there in late 1977 and left in late 1982.

I covered plenty of controversial subjects, like school board elections and school closing decisions.  Again, I thought I had a feel for what our listeners wanted to know.

That was until a story came to my attention about White Castle.  Yes, White Castle.  Columbus up until that time had never had a White Castle restaurant.  I caught wind of the fact that White Castle planned to locate in Columbus.  I interviewed a company  spokesman  for confirmation and put the story on the air in the afternoon.  I thought a few people in town would be interested.

Let’s just say I was very wrong.  We had no direct phone line into our newsroom so you had to go through the secretaries in the front office to reach the newsroom during office hours.  The secretaries came back to the newsroom telling me that they had been inundated with phone calls from the public about White Castle’s plans to open a restaurant there.

I was told at least five people visited the station in person to verify the White Castle story.  We were on the second floor of a bank building and there was no elevator at that time.  People walked up several flights of stairs just to be certain White Castle was, in fact, coming to Columbus.

So, I do try to make news judgements about what the public wants and needs to know.  I do not always get it right, but do my best.

Every time I make a decision on what to cover, I think about White Castle in Columbus.