Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1915-01-24
The ASSIGNMENT
MAN HAS TROUBLES
But He Is Not a Bit Modest
About Telling
1t.
CBy c. E. ROGERs.)

"a necessary cog in the complicated
machinery" Of a newspaper. lie is an
accessory. The animal is to the sheet
what a fancy horn is to an automobile
"a sort Of luxury If the word be
taken at it's literal meaning, namely,
something not needed.
Here | am one Of those things try
ing TO tell the hungry reading public
something about which l know noth-
ing-writing In the very first person
Now. II | were writing about an un-
usual scientific discovery concerning
which | could interview some special
list whom / could quote or great
economic project being pushed by
politician who would tell me all about
ii, | could "bulr' you till you were
blue in the face. But in my own spe-
cialty ] am not scientific ana am
really extremely modest.
Before / was out of school / got my
first assignment. / was handling cor
respondence for q metropolitan paper,
The White Sox, just back from the
worlds tour were scheduled to play
an exhibition game with our basepaIi
team. The day they arrived l got
wire from the sport writer on my
paper which read something like this:
"CoVer game and get interview from
Callahan"
A First Interview.
Now, I was never much OF base
ball fan. / had very indiStinct idea
as TO who the great manager was.
But | inquired and learned that he
was the leader of that team which
piped the great American game to the
whole world. So | framed my ques-
81 I uroc n Z
to tell me about his world tour and
secondly, | was to ask him what he
thought Of the college as q training
for big leagues.
The interview was brief found a
very average man more than willing
to talk to a newspaper man, while l
had pictured him as veritable j.
Pierpont Morgan in accessibility to
the journalistic profession. The rea-
son | had drawn such fanciCs were
merely because 1t was my first assign
ment. | landed two double-column-
head stories on that interview. He
told me merely that the trip was a
success and that colleges provided a
good training field for the big Lacquer.
| filled in enough to make over q col
umn Of reading matter.
Learned His Lesson.
The lesson given me by this first
| interview is that which every special
assignment man learns Before he
goes for the story he must know what
his story Is going to be. His talk with
the subject Of the interview is almost
always only an incident. The assign
ment man knows he will say yes or
no. IL matters not, for there is a
story either way he goes. A bit of
| local color, feature here and there
gained from the talk often gives the
| final story some extra punch.
a special assignment man is a re-
porter without q run. 1t Is almost as
bad a plight as the man without a
country. A run, as a small boy Of
| If am not too immodest-as George
AIDE would describe it is a place
whereon lie certain stations which
{ are periodically visited for the pur-
| pose OF obtaining the commodity of
news. These places become accus-
| toned TO being annoyed or compli-
mented, as the case varies, by the Wis
itatons. They are prepared for the
ordeal.
Now, the world in general is diff
ferent, II you can fancy 12.5g3 I
| believe that is our sworn circulationl
fastened upon you, the feeling will
match that which comes TO the aver
age person not accustomed to report
ers at the moment a special assign
ment man interviews him. That is
1 why the papers do not carry more
feature stuff. They won't let loose
| you see. These 1858 pairs of eyes
! frighten just the average man or
woman.
Some Hard Ones.
So, you see, there are really certain
tumblingblocks In the way of this
accessory to the newspaper game. He
has multitude Of troubles. If he, is
sent out for an interview with a
woman she is likely to beg him 10
leave 1t out" and IL detailed to get
a story from a man who is afraid of
such an audience as the newspaper
affords, he enrolls in the Annantas
club is he Is not already a member.
But there is a ray OF light in all.
The field OF the special assignment
man Is without limit. Life in its Wild
est aspect Is at his disposal and lies
miserables" love to read of life. The
average conception of the reporter IS
mean enough, and especially is this
true OF the special assignment man;
yet his opportunity to learn from
every phase of humanity is illimitable.
greater, / think-if you will pardon
my lmmodesty once again-than auv
phase OF any profession.