I’m just gonna throw this question out there. Should reporters be treated differently? I’m going to narrow it down a little bit now. Should tv reporters be treated differently. The reason I said tv reporters is not because we’re any different from our print and radio colleagues, but we tend to be more recognizable.Â
 This is why I’m asking this question. Yesterday, I was working on a story in Bossier City. It deals with a $10,000 Powerball ticket that was sold at a store there. The owner of the ticket still hasn’t claimed the money and they’re running out of time. If they don’t claim it by July 3rd, it goes to the state lottery. It’s not what we call in the business a “bad” story. It was sold at a Circle K store at the intersection of Airline Drive and Brownlee Road. I thought it would be interesting to go to the store and talk to some people and get their reaction, who knows maybe they bought a lottery ticket there. I walk into the store without a camera. As soon as I explain to the clerk who I was and what I was doing. She didn’t want to hear it and went to the backroom to get her manager. A minute or so later, she returned with “we don’t talk to the media, you have to contact our corporate office.” That’s well and good, and a response I’ve heard many times before. But here’s the ringer, she said she didn’t have the number to their corporate office. When I asked if the manager had it she said, “we don’t talk to the media, she didn’t give it to me.” She didn’t offer to go ask her for it, nothing! Imagine what would happen if I had pulled up in a station truck wanting to fill up the gas tank and the pumps wouldn’t work? I could ask the clerk, but I’m sure they would have said, “we don’t talk to the media!”
 Then I started thinking, this is not the first time this has happened to me.
 Case in point. Earlier this year, I was covering the shooting of a Shreveport Police Officer. I was stationed outside LSU Hospital, where the officer was being treated. Since I work early in the morning, I drink a lot of coffee. And with that comes the bathroom breaks. I had asked one of the PR people at the hospital if it would be okay if I went inside and used the restroom. He said sure and gave me directions. Well, if you’ve never been to LSU Hospital, it’s easy to get lost. Which I did. I eventually found a restroom did my business and was leaving the building.  That’s when I was confronted by two LSU cops wanting my ID and questioning what I was doing inside the hospital. Last I checked, this is a public building, that my tax dollars pay for! Yes even reporters pay taxes. I guess the fact that some guy dressed in a suit and tie with make up on is out of the norm for the hospital scene. But why go through the bother of asking for an ID when the officer even said he knew who I was. And yes, once again, I had no camera with me.
I’ve found that even in social situations, some people are very careful what they say to me, especially if they work for a government agency, whether it be local, state or federal. I guess they don’t want some national security secret to slip out. I guess they think just because they’re talking to me, it’s news. Then there are those who jokingly add, “you’re not gonna put this on tv?” When I’ve tried to strike up a conversation with others, just to make small talk, I’ve been told point blank, they can’t talk to me about this or that. I’m not stupid. I know it’s because of my job.  I wonder if I would get the same response if I did something else?
It’s not always that bad. Those are just two extreme examples. Being on television does have its benefits. For the most part, people are nice and they’ll stop and say hi or ask a question.Â
I’m just like any other person, the only difference is I work in tv news.