'Virginian-Pilot' Covers Sniper Trial With Blog

By: Justin Bergman, Associated Press Writer (AP) A newspaper in Virginia is trying some unusual coverage of sniper suspect John Allen Muhammad's trial: online minute-to-minute updates that read like a courtroom transcript.

The Virginian-Pilot of Norfolk started the online updates on the first day of jury selection Tuesday, filing 25 snippets on its Web site every 10 to 30 minutes while court was in session.

Kay Tucker Addis, editor and vice president of the newspaper, said the instantaneous Web dispatches give the paper a way to compete with 24-hour television coverage, "plus this goes them one better since they're not allowing cameras in the courtroom."

"We weren't sure what the level of interest would be in the trials," Addis said in a telephone interview Wednesday. "This was a good way to satisfy those folks who have an inordinate level of interest in the trials, and it serves a national audience as well. It was worth trying."

While live television coverage of Muhammad's trial in Virginia Beach is not allowed, a camera in the courtroom provides a direct video feed to a viewing room in the media center a few blocks away. Reporters are permitted to take a laptop computer into the viewing room to take notes, but not audio or video devices.

The Pilot's online news coordinator, Kerry Sipe, uses a high-speed wireless Internet connection to file his reports directly online from the viewing room.

The online journal offers a detailed play-by-play account of courtroom action. A sampling of events from Wednesday's journal:

* 9:45 a.m. John Muhammad is dressed this morning in a neat brownish suit with a white shirt and tie. ... The lawyers have asked to approach the bench and Judge (LeRoy) Millette has cut off the sound system while the conference takes place. ... A group of five is gathered in front of the large, white-painted bench. Muhammad is the tallest of the group.

* 9:59 a.m. Prospective Juror 62 has been brought back into the courtroom for questioning. Millette asks her if she was able to avoid seeing or hearing any coverage of the trial since yesterday. She said she was able to do so. "Good," the judge responded.

* Noon. "I think the death penalty is something that is very difficult to make a decision on," Juror 263 said in response to questioning by defense attorney (Peter) Greenspun. "I see pros and cons, so I leave it to people who are in that profession to make the decision."

Howard Finberg of the Poynter Institute, a journalism think tank in St. Petersburg, Fla., said he knows of no other newspaper offering online minute-to-minute updates from the courtroom before.

"It gives online news a real competitive advantage," he said. "This is coverage uniquely suited for the medium in which it's being presented."

However, Finberg noted a few concerns. He said the public could quickly become overwhelmed by the amount of information being presented. The editing process could also become compromised by the speed of the postings.

"I'd like to know what's the process for how this information is getting published," Finberg said. "Having an editor read behind you is important, even for a Web journal, if nothing else than to prevent silly mistakes and other things that could damage your credibility."

Sipe said The Virginian-Pilot decided an editor would slow the process down.

"There are some people looking over my shoulder who occasionally e-mail me to tell me if I misspell a word," he said.

Addis said the online journal would continue at least through the end of the Muhammad trial, expected to last six weeks. After that, the newspaper will gauge reader reaction before deciding whether to continue the journal for fellow sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo's trial, slated to start Nov. 10.

The Gazette newspapers, serving several Maryland counties in the Washington suburbs, are offering similar Web updates from the trial, though not as frequently as The Virginian-Pilot. The Gazette updates its site a few times a day.