Of all the days to do a sports report...

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, it amused me to be known as "the voice," thanks to my radio reports at a previous sports data-gathering job.  On September 11, 2001, however, I felt especially ill at ease being "the voice" on the air.  I know there's a case to be made that continuing a normal routine after a tragedy might give you a sense of normalcy.  Looking back, though, broadcasting sports scores and highlights just felt wrong then, given their insignificance on a day when nearly 3,000 lives were lost.  The news anchor mentioned that although some events had been cancelled, quite a few games were still played.  With an edge in my voice, I began my report, "Yes, amazingly, quite a few teams took to the field today..."  I couldn't say on the air what I was thinking then.  I wanted to disregard the sports scores and highlights I'd compiled that day and tell the audience,  "Everyone, read a paper.  Read several newspapers.  Listen to and/or watch the ongoing coverage of today's horrifying events.  Seek out credible sources online and track their updates about those whose lives were lost, the aftermath of the attacks, the suspected motives of the attackers, and the heroic efforts of the firefighters, police officers, and volunteers at Ground Zero.  If it's too painful to contemplate, remember how comparatively easy it is to immerse yourself in the news coverage when you aren't one of the victims or a loved one or close friend of the victims."  It wasn't my job to break protocol, though, so my ad-libbed prologue had to suffice.  At least, it conveyed the same sense of perspective in fewer words.  I'm still glad I started the report that way.  On that day of all days, I couldn't have imagined launching into such a report with false enthusiasm about Team A defeating Team B.