A gentle, loving gripe

Let’s kick off this blog entry with a gripe. (Ah, yes, friends, I’m afraid that that kindly fellow you see hosting the Journal has a not completely hidden streak of the curmudgeon about him.)

We love to hear from viewers, whether by mail, e-mail, comments on the street, or, now, this electronic forum.

We love to hear from viewers and usually they are gratifyingly complimentary, so who wouldn’t love that.

But, also, often, they get the name of the program wrong. “We just love your West Coast Journal program,” they’ll say. Or “Left Coast Journal.” Or “Suncoast Journal.”

The name’s GULF COAST!!! A Gulf Coast Journal.

Actually, when it was still a glimmer in WEDU executives’ eyes, the working title for the program was --- ready for this? --- “Sarasota/Venice Today.” Doesn’t that make you want to rush to your set? To change channels?

Actually, though I’m glad to take credit for anything good about the broadcast, the fact is that I shouldn’t, because the producer and all the field producers and the camera crews and editors are the ones who do the work and have the vision. I get to stand up and pretend it’s mine. That’s the joy of hosting.

So I shouldn’t take credit for much about the show but I can take credit for the name. My idol in this business was always David Brinkley. I worked for him in my early years at NBC News, worked with him in years to follow, and to this day have never known a better writer for television than he was. Once, for a few years, he hosted a brilliant magazine program called “David Brinkley’s Journal.”

I flashed on that when sitting in an early WEDU meeting discussing our proposed broadcast and so urged the tentative name be changed. And it was. “A Gulf Coast Journal.” To which title the bosses asked if I’d mind if they added the phrase “with Jack Perkins.”

Well, not totally without vanity, I humbly acceded to their importunings.

Hence the title. So please: Gulf Coast, not West or Sun or Left but GULF. Although if you’re sending a compliment, call it whatever you want.

Cheers