New Search for Jimmy Hoffa: a Page One Story, or 'Big Fat Nothing'?

By: Joe Strupp Is Jimmy Hoffa still front-page news in Detroit? Well, yes and no.

Reports that FBI agents had begun digging up a farm in a Detroit suburb Wednesday afternoon in the latest effort to find the long-missing Teamster leader's remains prompted different reactions from the city's two major papers.

The Detroit News ran the story as one of only three Page One pieces today, with related elements on its Web site that included a review of the numerous theories about Hoffa's demise that have arisen in the past decade.

"The feds have raised the level of interest on this," Dave Butler, who has served as editor and publisher of the News since it was purchased by MediaNews group last year, says about his paper's larger approach. "The site is reasonably close to where he was last seen."

The Detroit Free Press, however, had no front page mention of the newest Hoffa search, with not even a teaser to its inside story. The paper chose instead to run a special report on a track coach's sex-filled parties, General Motors problems, and the Detroit Piston's playoff woes. On the Web, meanwhile, only a single story about the search could be found, with no additional links.

"The Hoffa story was talked about, we thought it was given the appropriate play," said Free Press Executive Editor Caeser Andrews. "The people who have been in town for a while can cite chapter and verse of when there were [past] twists and turns and excavations [in the case] that have led to a big fat nothing."

Following an afternoon FBI news conference, the Free Press increased its coverage with a top Web story noting that an FBI agent had called the latest tip "the most credible information he has received in the case in years." The paper also linked to an Associated Press story on rumored locations for Hoffa, a past Free Press story on Hoffa's legacy, and a CourtTV Web site page about the case.

David Shepardson, an 11-year News employee, has been covering the Hoffa story since 2001 when his paper raised national interest with its scoop that DNA evidence had matched hair samples from Hoffa with those found in a car belonging to a former friend. Ironically, the News had gotten the scoop by working sources after the Free Press sued for access to the FBI's Hoffa files. Editors at the time said the Free Press' interest in the file prompted News reporters to dig deeper.

"It is one of those mysteries that people are constantly intrigued by," said Shepardson, who wrote a story just last month about a new book that claimed a recently deceased mob hit man had confessed to killing Hoffa. "Since 1975, it has always been a big story."

In addition to its Page One piece today, the News also has an online listing of previous Hoffa theories, as well as links to past stories and a comments page. "This is more significant [than past Hoffa searches] because the FBI is doing it," added Shepardson. "The odds of finding anything resembling a body is fairly remote, but given that the FBI has not done anything to this extent in a decade, it is significant."

Shepardson added that the Free Press in the past had offered heavy coverage of such searches. "In prior stories, they had dominate displays on A-1," he said. "Maybe they have Hoffa fatigue." Countered Andrews, "It got played in a way we felt was appropriate."