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Thursday, Jul 9, 2009
USA Today invades the pilot's turf. Outraged readers rise up in unholy wrath. Mongolia and Finland are somehow involved.
Oct 8, 2004 | "Look what you've started!" read the subject line of an otherwise anonymous e-mail. Inside was a link. Sometimes -- and maybe I'm alone in this regard -- those little blue strings of characters seem to give off a smell: a sweet, morbid odor that invites and repels you at the same time. Do you dare?
I dared. And reaching for the mouse there came a feeling -- just a feeling -- that I wasn't going to like it. Then the page began to load, and clearly it was gin and tonic time. Ladies and gentlemen, click here to meet Capt. Meryl Getline, USA Today's answer to "Ask the Pilot."
What's that they say about imitation and flattery? Well, yes and no. Granted there's plenty of room in this field for Getline and me to duke it out amicably, and our approaches are stylistically very different. But it's the name that irks me. Ask the Captain?
I know, sour grapes, but try to feel my pain: A major U.S. newspaper chooses to run a series strikingly similar to my own column and book, using almost the identical name? This "Ask the [pilot, captain, lion tamer, etc.]" concept is never the most imaginative choice of wording, but feathers get ruffled when both the topic (air travel) and arena (news Web sites) are snugly mutual.
Speaking of wording, here is the leadoff question from Getline's column above: "I am nervous every time I fly because of turbulence. Should I be afraid?" Haven't I heard that somewhere before?
I thought so. Direct cut from one of my older columns, also available on Page 44 of my book: "Turbulence scares me to death. Do I have reason to be afraid?"
I won't go throwing around the P-word, but still. And how about this, from just below Getline's byline: "Is there something you want to know about air travel? Send her an e-mail, and she may publish it in an upcoming column." My ears are ringing again. Compare and contrast with: "Do you have questions for Salon's aviation expert? Send them to Ask the Pilot and look for answers in a future column." You've been reading the latter for two and a half years at the bottom of my articles.
Meryl Getline is 51 and lives outside Denver. She says she wasn't aware of "Ask the Pilot" prior to commencing her gig. "I didn't know about the book or the column," she tells me.
Fair enough. USA Today, on the other hand, ought to have full knowledge, having penned an above-the-fold review of my book this past summer. The column was also cited in the paper's Feb. 20, 2004, "Weekend" section.
Something tells me I won't be the paper's go-to guy next time they need a quote.
I'm in a tough position here, coldly peeved at USA Today while trying to preserve some pilot-to-pilot camaraderie. Getline has been cool to my olive branch, but in a perfect world we'd be sharing expertise and reaping some mutual exposure.
