Shuttered Washington Bureaus   

Iwas one of George Condon's reporters in the Copley Washington bureau. He was a wonderful bureau chief and he remains a wonderful person. So I'm thrilled to see your fine piece ("Endangered Species," December/January). It will serve as a sort of eulogy for the bureau, which George is now closing.

Jerry Kammer

Rockville, Maryland

I appreciate your piece in the current AJR. I was a Washington correspondent for ten years (1978–1987) for newspapers in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. My clients were family-owned papers, and I published a biweekly newsletter for the region and produced and hosted a weekly radio show that aired on public stations in the same states.

Unfortunately, the man who bought my bureau was unable to make a go of it. I am keenly aware of what we miss without coverage such as that.

One of our company's papers – the Capital Press of Salem – is a regional agricultural weekly. As you might imagine, Congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture figure large in that newspaper's coverage. We have an enterprising reporter who is building contacts on Capitol Hill and with the Congressional Research Service and USDA. We'll probably send him back to make personal connections with those people.

There is more than one way to skin this cat. But the overriding point of your article is on target. We miss a lot without some customized coverage of our reps and senators.

Stephen A. Forrester

President & CEO

East Oregonian Publishing Co.

Astoria, Oregon