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The process of researching virtually every article produces far more material than can possibly fit into the finished piece -- and a lot of the leftovers are every bit as interesting as the stuff that makes the final cut. That was certainly the case for the May 8 Message column, which dealt with cutbacks in travel being made by local news organizations.

Below, find additional information gleaned from conversations with six of the executives who play a big part in determining what news makes its way to you via traditional media means: Channel 9 news director Patti Dennis, who details planned Olympics coverage to be anchored by anchor Mark Koebrich (pictured); Denver Post editor Greg Moore, who expands on his theory about why the paper needs to send reporters to coverage major sporting events even if Denver teams aren't participating; Kris Olinger, director of AM programming for Clear Channel, who reveals the leanness of production teams that cover out-of-town games; Rocky Mountain News editor John Temple, who talks about the differences he perceives between TV sports coverage and the kind offered by newspapers; Channel 7 news director Byron Grandy, who concedes that he's seldom sent his personnel out of state of late; and Channel 4 news director Tim Wieland, who says his decision about whether to put talent on-site at the Olympics has a lot to do with which network has rights to the contests.

The only thing these extras lack is a commentary track:

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The Rocky Mountain News is hardly the only news organization saving a few bucks by pushing staffers to tackle tasks outside their area of specialty -- the topic of a May 6 More Messages blog. On May 8, viewers who tuned in Channel 4's morning show saw traffic expert Lynn Carey (pictured), who can usually be found standing before street maps in the CBS affiliate's studio, on location in Arapahoe County, updating the latest developments in the trial of Sir Mario Owens, who's facing a first-degree-murder charge in the 2005 killings of Javad Marshall-Fields and Vivian Wolfe.

Clearly, this tale has nothing to do with blocked intersections or road-construction projects. But there's another reason that assigning Carey to cover the story is unusual: She has little background in news reporting.

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The age of specialization in newspapers may not be over, but given the strained financial situation in which the industry currently finds itself, staffers are frequently being asked to move outside their comfort zones.

The May 6 edition of the Rocky Mountain News is a case in point, with several scribes, including theater pro Lisa Bornstein (pictured), ranging off the paths they typically beat. Meanwhile, the Business section is absolutely dominated by copy that didn't originate in the Rocky's newsroom.

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Few stories illustrate the different gauges broadcast media and newspapers use to determine newsworthiness than the one involving a May 4 Allegiant Air flight from Las Vegas to Fort Collins. During the landing at the Fort Collins-Loveland Municipal Airport, the plane overshot the runway by approximately ten feet, but none of the 145 passengers or five crew members were injured. Nevertheless, most of the Denver-area TV stations either led their newscasts with the tale or placed it near the top of the roster. In contrast, the two local dailies more or less shrugged it off.

Why the different approaches?

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May 1 marks the official release date of Final Salute, former Rocky Mountain News scribe Jim Sheeler's expansion of an article about the way families of Marines are informed that their loved ones have died, which won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for featuring writing. The book arrives on a wave of glowing reviews and publicity of the sort that's usually to be found only in authors' dreams.

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On the April 29 edition of ESPN's Pardon the Interruption, Michael Wilbon, who co-hosts the yakfest with Tony Kornheiser, requested a moment of silence for the Denver Nuggets after the team was swept from the playoffs in four games by the Los Angeles Lakers. A nanosecond later, the quiet was shattered by a single, sustained "Booooo!"

Seldom has silence spoken so loudly. -- Michael Roberts

Writers at the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post appear to have very different ideas about newspaper circulation figures released on April 28 by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, an industry-supported monitoring organization. The Rocky's piece, "Denver Papers' Circulation Falls," penned by the prodigious David Milstead, puts the bad news up front, pointing out that "Denver's newspapers posted double-digit circulation declines during the six months ended in March, compared with the same period in the year before." In contrast, the Post's version, "Circulation Stabilizes For Post, News," penned by staffer Aldo Svaldi, portrays the glass as more than half full. "Circulation counts at The Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News have stabilized over the last six months," the report begins, while "visits to websites run by the Denver Newspaper Agency, which handles business operations for The Post and the News, increased 22 percent over the same period, according to Omniture Website Traffic Reports. Average weekly unique visitors were pegged at 1.1 million to the DNA websites, which include the websites of The Post and The News."

So do the latest digits constitute a positive or a negative development? Well, things could be worse -- but they could be a whole lot better, too.

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On April 25, Denver's mainstream media weighed in on syndicated yakker Rush Limbaugh's recent wisecrack about dreaming of riots in Denver at the time of August's Democratic National Convention. In the Denver Post's piece, for example, interview subjects included Glenn Spagnuolo, spokesman for Recreate '68, an organization whose moniker specifically references the last Democratic convention that got out of control. (The confab gave birth to the Chicago Seven, whose members, including Abbie Hoffman and former Jane Fonda spouse Tom Hayden, were eventually acquitted of conspiracy charges.) "We don't need another 5,000 illiterate Limbaugh listeners coming to Colorado," Spagnuolo commented -- and while the statement doesn't make much sense, it earned points for equating Limbaugh with his brother in blather, state rep Douglas "Illiterate Peasants" Bruce.

Still, what may be most interesting about this dustup is the response to it by Clear Channel Denver, the corporate entity that broadcasts Limbaugh's program on its flagship station, KOA. On April 24, the firm issued a press release attempting to clarify the comments at roughly the same time that another Clear Channel host, KHOW's Dan Caplis, was scolding Limbaugh.

Here's the release:

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April 21 was a day of introductions at KCNC-TV/Channel 4. The CBS affiliate broadcast its newscasts in full HD for the first time, unveiled new graphics, and welcomed recently hired anchor Karen Leigh, an Arkansas native most recently seen in the Minneapolis market, who takes the place of male co-host Jim Benemann's previous sidekick, Molly Hughes. Given this rash of newness, it's no surprise that the 10 p.m. program proved a bit clunky. Still, the technology seems promising, as does Leigh, despite some opening-night awkwardness.

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April 20 wasn't just a day when pot smokers congregated to celebrate their need for weed; it was also the ninth anniversary of the slayings at Columbine High School. Because nine isn't a number that typically demands commemoration -- and because it immediately precedes ten, which does -- some of us hoped that the Denver dailies would downplay massacre coverage on the date. But no such luck. As it has for every year this century, the Columbine tale dominated the front pages of the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post on or near the day in question. And unfortunately, the resulting pieces, several of which focused upon the Columbine Memorial, which was formally unveiled last September, came across as entirely rote, offering precious little insight into the shocking event and its dreadful legacy.

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Nothing emphasizes the benefits of newspaper websites over physical newspapers more than a late sporting event -- and few games are as tardy as the most recent contest between the Colorado Rockies and the San Diego Padres. The game started on April 17 but didn't end until almost half past 1 a.m. Mountain time the following morning. That's when the Rockies finally earned a 2-1 victory after 22 innings and six-plus hours of play.

The Denver Post put up its piece about this baseball war of attrition with lightning quickness -- the first posted comment about the article came in at 1:48 a.m. -- and the Rocky Mountain News did almost as well; its account went live at 2:32 a.m. But because the physical papers had to go to press long before the conclusion, readers who opened the sports section looking for a Rockies score that morning were sorely disappointed. The edition of the Post that landed on my driveway featured a story that went through the 16th inning, while my copy of the Rocky filled an entire page with a photo of Matt Holliday. By the way, that slide took place during the top of the second.

The Rockies came out of this marathon as clear winners. And the losers? The Padres -- and the folks selling newspaper subscriptions. -- Michael Roberts

Correction, April 19: A reader points out, accurately, that the time noted above is incorrect. The game ended at almost half past one Pacific, nearly half past two Mountain. As a result, the comment on the Denver Post site at 1:48 a.m. most have been affixed to the in-progress article, not the final version. As for the Rocky, the tab managed to get its account online just ten minutes after the final out -- an even quicker turnaround than I thought. Apologies for the error. -- MR

Thank goodness the market for public-relations experts appears to be holding steady, or else all those journalists who've left their newspaper jobs of late would be in even tougher shape than they already are.

Witness Patrick O'Driscoll. As noted in this December 20, 2007 Message column, the longtime USA Today scribe was among 43 editorial types at the publication to accept a buyout offer. Since then, he's been looking for a new gig, in between undergoing a pair of total-knee-replacement surgeries, and he just succeeded. He is now a public affairs specialist with the National Park Service, operating out of the Lakewood branch office, and he sounds mighty happy about it, in part because he sees connections between his duties and his previous career.

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All too often these days, the memos at the Rocky Mountain News concern folks who've chosen to leave the paper or the entire journalism profession. However, a recent pair of notes reproduced below actually focus on more upbeat developments: promotions for folks such as Gil Rudawsky, who's been named Deputy City Editor, Janet Reeves, just handed the Senior Editor for Photography and Multimedia title, and Dean Krakel, the new Director of Photography.

Granted, the extra duties come along with the new responsibilities, as does resource-stretching. But the Rocky's looking to fill a few other positions, too. An ad sent out to individuals on a prominent journalism-school e-mail list also follows.

Here's the Rudawsky memo:

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Haters of 9News sportscaster Drew Soicher (of which I'm not one) often characterize him as little more than a jokester whose pranks and gimmicks detract from the information he's being paid to dispense. However, his acerbic wit often enhances rather than detracts from his presentation, as viewers saw clearly during the outlet's 5 p.m. newscast on April 15, when he reported about Denver Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony's arrest early the day before on suspicion of DUI.

Rather than simply running video of Anthony's mea culpa press conference, Soicher created a montage of all the apologies the baller's had to deliver since becoming a Nug. (He elaborates on the various incidents for which Anthony has expressed regret in "Very Sorry Story," an essay posted on the station's website.) The effect was funny, certainly, but it was also pointed -- an eminently fair shot at the sort of hometown hero who typically gets a pass in these parts.

When Soicher's at his best, the laughs he generates can leave a mark. -- Michael Roberts

Max Karson, the University of Colorado student whose attempts at satire have made him a press darling/whipping boy over the past couple of years, has no back-down in him. After an essay he wrote about Asians sparked an uproar that's put CU's Campus Press publication in a good many crosshairs (click here and here to learn more), he could have run for cover, hunkering down until after the media storm subsided. Instead, he's recorded a new rap album, Heavy Flow, which juxtaposes his scabrously tongue-in-cheek worldview with rhythms and beats.

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