In scanning the various posts re the (pick one: a. epidemic, b. non-existence) of exotic snakes in the Everglades, and in seeing many other posts on the various sites here, I want to comment on and make a suggestion about the wild and sometimes distorted stories that so often appear in media accounts related to snakes. Quite often I see posters complaining about "sensational reporting," etc. All true . . . but consider that the average reporter for a local daily paper or television station is essentially the same as the average person when it comes to snakes . . . uninformed, perhaps frightened. I worked for a number of years as a crime reporter for a daily newspaper and I also knew something about snakes . . . and sure enough, along came a story involving an Indian cobra being kept by a graduate student that escaped. It was late fall, and I knew enough to add to my stories that the cool temps would likely soon kill, or at least make sluggish, the snake, which was recaptured within a few days without incident.

But . . . most reporters don't know these things. They see "Anaconda" or "Snakes on a Plane." Here's what every herper ought to do: call or write the city editor of your local paper(s) and the news directors of your local TV stations and tell them to feel free to keep your name and phone contacts on file as a "snake person." They will very likely call you when a snake story pops . . . "As local snake fancier Joe says in this special report, rat snakes are NOT dangerous and actually help control rodents." So stop complaining and tell your local media where to find you and you will see more sensible and balanced reporting about snakes.

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• Bizarre media stories - MikeinOKC, Thu Jun 1 15:31:06 2006