Sleuthing The Sleuths

Last evening I stopped by the SPCA’s Paws Cause event–not only for the free wine, but also to show support…and glance at silent auction items from afar.

One must live in a world other than journalism to bid on, well, pretty much anything–including rusted radiator parts.

At one point in the evening I overheard two PR types gossiping about the Dallas Morning News’ incoming food critic, Leslie Brenner. The good news: several restaurateurs are apparently fearful of her tough reputation. Too many dailies have responded to falling revenue by quietly urging their staff to avoid upsetting potential advertisers–so the hiring of a lively and demanding critic is an encouraging sign, if true.

The bad news: one flack told the other a photograph of Brenner was making the rounds and she would make certain to pass it along.

Sometimes there’s just no place to hide. Publish a book, they want an dust jacket photo…which ends up online. Go to a party, someone snaps a cell phone image…which ends up online. On the plus side, I always found it difficult to identify people from event the most recent shots (constantly having to ask Penn State’s sports info people to point out certain players for post-game interviews…when I covered them every week). Hopefully harried wait staff struggle, as well.