The story was practically served to Bill Kates on a silver platter.

A Syracuse University cheerleader being charged with murder? During a week when the NCAA tournament was in town? On the eve of the university’s 135th anniversary? And the suspect was in a fraternity? Stories like this just don’t happen every day. On the novelty scale, this one was off the charts.

Or so Kates thought.

Without thinking twice, Kates, an Associated Press correspondent for the Syracuse bureau, decided that this story – unlike so many the bureau catches wind of – was worth looking into.

‘There are no real firm guidelines,’ Kates said. ‘A lot of it is up to my judgment or the editor’s. It’s got to be of a more unusual nature. And this one has a couple of those elements.’

So last Thursday, he hit the streets reporting, eventually churning out 551 words – an unusually high count for a wire story – on Brian T. Shaw’s arrest.

Then he waited.

As a writer for the New York bureau, Kates knew the story would at least make the state newswire. But given the unique nature of it, he figured it would be picked up by some surrounding states as well, more than likely ending up on the regional wire, or possibly the national one.

‘I thought maybe they might pick it up as a brief of some type,’ he said.

Instead, only one outlet picked up the story. With limited effort, Newsday.com posted Kates’ story – but only because the site automatically posts anything from the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut AP wires, according to Tracy Swartz a news producer at Newsday.com.

Looking back on his story, Kates understands why it might not have gotten the attention he first thought it would. After all, he conceded apologetically, murders happen all the time.

‘It’s unusual,’ Kates said, ‘but it’s not that unusual.’

And when a story doesn’t make it past the state newsier, it’s just part of the job.

‘We just move on to the next story,’ Kates said. ‘I don’t fret about it.’

If he did fret, though, he didn’t have to for long. On Monday, Kates finally did make it to the national wire after writing a story about two men forcibly tattooing a third across his forehead.

Now how’s that for novel?

PETE FREEDMAN IS A JUNIOR NEWSPAPER MAJOR. E-MAIL HIM AT PJFREEDM@SYR.EDU.

Published on March 29, 2005 at 12:00 pm