Just the Facts, Mam    

   If you are over 60, you recognize that line from Dragnet, a TV program in 1951-59 and 1967-70. When Detective Joe Friday, played by Jack Webb, encountered a WWW (wordy woman witness 😊), he cut to the chase: Just the facts, Mam.  

   Wouldn't it be neat if all of us waited for the facts when we're digesting news, statements and associated commentary? That's what journalists are supposed to do, get the facts and report, just the facts. 

   In today's 24/7 news cycle, the winner is the person or news team that breaks the story first. They can correct the facts tomorrow. Few will notice. 

   Here's a small but tragic example from Tampa Bay. June 26, a garbage truck backed away from a dumpster, hit a retired teacher, 65, and dragged her 20 or 30 feet. 

   On seeing the TV report, we wondered, didn't she hear the backup alarm garbage trucks have? 

   A witness reported, and TV repeated, that she wore earbuds, a risky habit on city streets. People went online to criticize the deceased woman for using earbuds, further upsetting her family members. 

   Days later, the medical examiner reported that she wore hearing aids - a 180-degree difference. The report didn't mention backup lights or alarms, but said the impounded truck has two back-up cameras. 

   The apparently inconsolable (not yet a fact) driver is on paid leave. He has four citations on his driving record over 10 years. Investigation continues.

   We confess to reacting quickly to information from politicians and news outlets. With leisure time in retirement, we're getting better at withholding judgment. 

      Jimmy