Mullings: An American Cyber-column By Rich Galen

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Mockingbirds

Friday June 13, 2003

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Two deaths and a retirement occurred this week which have caught my eye. David Brinkley and Gregory Peck passed away and the New York Times' Adam Clymer is retiring.

All three have influenced me in fundamental ways.

Gregory Peck's portrayal of Atticus Finch in the 1962 film "To Kill a Mockingbird" (based upon the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by Harper Lee) was as powerful a portrayal of a good man doing the right thing as I have ever seen. If you watch the film (or read the book) forty years on, they still hold up.

In the movie, following the conviction of Tom Robinson, Finch's daughter is sitting in the balcony with the Black spectators. As Atticus leaves the courtroom everyone in the balcony stands. The man next to Finch's daughter (who is named Scout) tells her stand up because "your daddy is passing by."

The lesson? Doing good can have great rewards.

Scout, called her father by his first name. I thought - being a child of the 60's - this would be something I would want my child to do should I ever have one. When the Lad was born - some 14 years later - I was discussing this with an older friend who said, "There are a lot of people named 'Rich' with whom your son will come into contact. There will only be one person with the title, "Dad."

This is the lesson I learned from David Brinkley: I had just joined the college radio station and my very first assignment was to interview Mr. Brinkley who was coming to Marietta, Ohio to give a speech.

As I had never interviewed anyone before, I was appropriately nervous. I checked the batteries in my portable, though sewing machine-sized, tape recorder so many times that I was in danger of wearing the batteries out in the process. Catch-22 was a big book in those days, too.

I met Mr. Brinkley at the gate, and interviewed him in the car during the 15 minute trip from the airport to the hotel.

It was awful.

I can't remember the questions I asked after all these years, but I can remember his answers: They were all "Yes" or "No" or "I don't agree with the premise."

On the road, if a young reporter wants to interview me, I always remember my Brinkley interview. In trying not to have the same effect, I have gone so far as to say (gently, I hope) "Ok, now why don't you ask me about this?" and help them move the process along.

I'm sorry David Brinkley has passed away; but he was not kind to a kid trying to learn a craft. Remembering that has helped a significant number of other young people.

Which leads me to Adam Clymer.

In early 1996, I was traveling with Speaker Newt Gingrich to an event in Seattle, Washington. I had been out of politics for a number of years, so when I saw Clymer at the event I was eager to renew our acquaintance.

As part of his standard speech at that time, Newt quoted from the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights ..."

Following the event, Adam joined us in Newt's suite for a chat. Later, as we were getting out of the elevator, he handed me a slip of paper with one word written on it: "unalienable."

The next morning I gave it to Newt telling him it had come from Adam. He read it, nodded, and put it in his pocket, quoting the Declaration of Independence correctly from that point onward.

Clymer didn't make a big deal about it. In fact, I'm not sure he ever mentioned it again. The lesson was: No matter what, it's worth the extra effort to get it right.

On the Secret Decoder Ring page today: The quote from "To Kill a Mockingbird" which led to the title; additional anecdotes about interviews I have and haven't done; Adam Clymer; a Mullphoto and a Catchy Caption of the Day.

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