For elections, North Country press puts craft before competition

We in the press are accustomed to the intrinsic competition that comes with the information game. We are regularly massaging our sources and probing new angles in the hope of getting something new, unreported and fresh.

The driving paradigm in the news business is be out in front of something and make it yours.

But New York's North Country is a geographically huge yet sparsely populated region with a limited supply of advertisers and/or donors to prop up the bottom line. Because of this reality, when it comes to things like Election Day coverage, it would be almost impossible for a news outlet like the Adirondack Daily Enterprise or WNBZ to cover everything in the manner that our audience deserves.

Should only urban populations living in places capable of supporting massive newsrooms enjoy the fruits of wide-ranging and comprehensive coverage? I think not.

This belief is shared among all of the area news outlets -- NCPR, The Malone Telegram, etc -- and this dedication to our craft is harboring some interesting relationships that will be on display this evening.

WNBZ has teamed up -- as we often do -- with our public radio friends. While WNBZ will be covering Bill Owens's campaign headquarters in Plattsburg, NCPR will be at the HQs of Matt Doheny and Scott Murphy. We will all keep in steady contact throughout the evening and swap material and observations if and when this whole thing comes to a conclusion. WNBZ and NCPR will also be providing each other with live look-ins from the campaign HQs.

Similarly, the ADE will have reporters in Plattsburg and will swap 23rd Congressional race material with the Watertown Daily Times, who will be at Doheny's HQ.

The ADE will also trade comments and information about the Franklin County races with the Telegram.

All in all, what we are seeing tonight is the collective press working together so the rural population we serve gets what every citizen deserves. We are putting aside our competitiveness because we see what we do as important and necessary.

And, for me, it's a damn beautiful thing.