Bing!

Wednesday night’s are usually a slow time for downtown Spokane, but last night was unique. Sorry, AC/DC wasn’t headlining at The Factory last night, but at the Bing, Howard Berkes, a national reporter for NPR, was putting on a show.

Arriving late I was surprised that the only seats in the house were in the upper level. With the lights dimmed and the presentation already in full swing, it was interesting to see and hear Berkes present audio clips from past news stories. After playing several moving audio excerpts, he then presented insight. His explanations brought deeper meaning to the stories, and he even admitted that he was amazed about the new ability to present reports on the internet, which to him seemed to be a great way to involve the NPR audience.

Growing up in Denver, a stone’s throw from Fort Carson Army Base, I know first hand about some of the Western stories Berkes mentioned in his presentation. The local news does a good job reporting on family members who have been impacted by the loss of a loved one, but nothing compares to the way Berkes audio clips captured children impacted by the loss of a father in Afghanistan.

The lights went up and the night concluded after a question and answer session. As I was leaving, it became apparent that the night brought a mixture of new and old, and I am not just talking about the audience. The Bing is a theater enriched by tradition. The presentation referenced the internet as a growing news outlet and used contemporary technology to exhibit what is considered, to some, old technology in radio. Berkes presentation highlighted a key point that no matter the medium in which the news is presented, old or new, it should be presented as complete, impartial, and as fair as possible. I became aware last night of the importance of radio as a news outlet. I receive my news in many ways, but, sometimes, you need the impact that radio provides.