Tuesday, November 18, 2008

fast break

Thirty years ago, the city of San Francisco underwent ten days of unfathomable tragedy, bookended by the Jonestown mass suicide of 900 members of the People's Temple (many of them with family in San Francisco) -- and the murders of S.F. Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk by Dan White, a former member of the Board of Supes.

The SF Chronicle has run a three-day series on those "Ten Days That Shook the City". Today's final piece is written by the reporter who dashed to City Hall to cover a police action, not knowing that the mayor had been shot.

Read closely and you will feel the adrenaline rush that comes with covering fast-breaking news. You'll also catch a glimpse of police beat reporting at a pretty horrific moment in time. bk

2 comments:

Lotta K said...

The Sean Penn movie, Milk, looks good.

Anonymous said...

I can't even imagine being in that situation, and still having to do your job. It would be terrifying. His description seems like the scene lasts for a long time, but it was really within a span of 20 or 30 minutes. I can't even conceive the emotions he must have been feeling.