An intimate look at a tragic disease

In more than 30 years as a photojournalist, KARE's Jim Douglas has shot countless stories on death and dying, but his upcoming portrait of Alzheimer's sufferer June Seery came with a unique challenge.

Seery was Douglas' aunt.

"It was tough because I was wearing two hats. I'm her only nephew, but I'm also a journalist," said Douglas, who has collected more than 30 regional and five national Emmys. "There were days I had to bite my lip and force myself to ask questions."

Among the hardest: Have you thought about suicide?

I've only seen a rough draft of half the piece, but it's quite obvious that Seery, who died this past summer, has left us with a gift, one that a wide variety of viewers will relate to because it's almost impossible to find a family that hasn't been touched by the disease.

"There was a time 20 years ago when everyone had either been to Vietnam or knew someone who had gone to Vietnam," said Douglas, a veteran himself. "It was that personal. Today, it's Alzheimer's."

What makes the piece even more notable is that KARE is airing it during November sweeps, a time when advertising rates are determined and stations seem to compete to see who can churn out the most exploitative pieces they can. (Yes, I'm well aware that hotel sheets are disgusting. Now shut up and let me sleep in peace.)

"There's some truth to that. It wouldn't be a stereotype if there wasn't," said KARE's Boyd Huppert, who provides the narration to Douglas' project. "But this is a unique piece because of the access and because of the personal investment."

Here's hoping all future sweeps stories are as important and impressive as this one.

Handing out hardware

Huppert continued another stellar year, one that saw him earn a national Emmy earlier this month, by being named best general assignment reporter at the regional Emmys on Oct. 20. Other notable winners: WCCO's Mark Rosen as best sports anchor, KSTP's John Mason as best news anchor, KSTP's Jason Davis as best program host, Fox Sports Net North's Anthony LaPanta as best play-by-play announcer, TPT's David Gillette as best commentator and NBC North Dakota News' Kevin Lawrence for best weather anchor.

"WCCO 4 News at 10" won the granddaddy of all the awards -- best evening newscast -- but it was KMSP that went home with 17 awards, the most of any station.

In all, more than 75 trophies were handed out, which seems awfully excessive. Of course, I'm probably just bitter that they haven't found room to recognize the area's favorite TV grouch. My acceptance speech is ready, just in case.

Cosmo Kramer

Minnpost.com, the new online news venture headed by former Star Tribune publisher Joel Kramer, is teaming up with TPT's "Almanac" for a fascinating experiment. About every other week, a writer or editor from the site will appear on the Friday-night program to promote an upcoming piece, usually along with five or 10 minutes of video. The inaugural appearance will take place Nov. 9, one day after the site launches.

History lesson

The Holocaust story has been vividly told through film, TV and music. In an effort to reach more young people, it's now being told by podcast. KVSC 88.1 FM, the St. Cloud State University radio station, is airing the story of survivor Henry Oertelt through 12 weekly podcasts, of which six are already available at www.kvsc.org. The entire series will be posted by mid-November.

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