June 29, 2024 3:39 PM • Last updated: June 29, 2024 7:11 PM
Bill Donovan of Waterford is a retired teacher and coach, also known as “Mr. Ocean Beach,” and a longtime local high school sports announcer. He’s an avid reader of The Day, and we value his opinions. He often compliments our news and sports coverage, and occasionally texts or calls us when he thinks we’ve messed up.
Donovan texted us Tuesday morning to comment on two of our stories about East Lyme Police Chief Michael Finkelstein’s domestic violence case. Reporter Greg Smith and cameraman Sarah Gordon covered Finkelstein’s court appearance on Monday in Middletown. Day staffer Elizabeth Regan reported breaking news about the investigation into how East Lyme police handled the Finkelstein case.
Donovan wrote: “Karen: From what I read in the article, it appears that both Greg Smith and Elizabeth Regan have mailed in on EL Chief. Bill.”
I read the piece before driving to the office, and Donovan seemed to be implying that the two reporters had “mailed it in,” i.e., hadn’t done a good enough job.
It was a classic example of text communication gone wrong: I dictated a response and asked Siri to send it as I was pulling out of the garage.
“Hi Bill. I don’t quite understand what you mean. Greg has provided us with some very detailed information about what it was like inside the quarto room, as well as the charges. Elizabeth is following up on the town angle. Is there anything else you would like to see and what you think the follow up should be? Of course we are working on a follow up. We also have exclusive, professional still photos from the court appearance.”
In addition to the spelling mistake — Siri heard “quart” instead of “court” — my statement may have come across as more defensive than necessary. Bill always compliments our work, so when he is critical, he deserves our full attention and respect.
Donovan quickly replied, “Very well done! I’ve got a couple of pictures for you, Bill.”
He continued, “I should have read nailed it instead of mailed it. Sorry,” and added, “I wasn’t trying to complain, I was just sending the text to support what they wrote.”
I was convinced he was trying to boost The Day and criticizing our reporting.
Donovan said that cell phones have their own spelling system and pointed out that the text I sent him contained a mistake, even though tone can often be misunderstood in texts.
Technology, like people, is imperfect.
My interaction with Donovan was a reminder to fully understand what people are saying before responding, to thank people for feedback, whether it’s a compliment or criticism, and to ask follow-up questions before jumping to incorrect conclusions.
I called Donovan on Friday to talk about the column, and he answered the phone and said of Smith and Regan’s latest article on the Finkelstein case, “Another spot-on piece.”
We appreciate Donovan and all our readers, and we want to hear your thoughts, even if you don’t like what you read.
This is an opinion piece by Editor in Chief Karen Florin. She can be contacted at k.florin@theday.com or (860) 701-4217.
