Memoirs lead readers through local vocations

From inside politics to inside the fire service, two local authors share recollections in newly published books.

Fresh out of the Army and 24 years old, Vincent P. Carocci arrived in Harrisburg in 1961 to cover Capitol Hill for United Press International news wire service. He envisioned the Keystone State stint as but the first step in a career that would take him to the nation's capital "to work and walk" among the journalism luminaries and political movers and shakers.

Instead, Carocci carved an impressive career in Harrisburg as a reporter for UPI, the Associated Press and The Philadelphia Inquirer, a member of the Democratic staff in the state Senate and a senior staffer for Gov. Robert P. Casey during his two terms. He retired in 2003 after eight years as director of government affairs with Capital Blue Cross.

In his 298-page book, "A Capitol Journey: Reflections on the Press, Politics and the Making of Public Policy in Pennsylvania" (Penn State University Press, $39.95), Carocci looks back on his career, the reporters and photographers with whom he worked and the operation of state government.

Carocci assesses how journalism has changed in 40 years. "Reporters of my generation ... really did try to deal in facts. Our treatment of the news contained a premium on accuracy and balance," Carocci writes, adding that "our first and most important mission was to inform; we left opinion-making to the editorial page."

Contrast that with today's television-driven melding of news and entertainment, Carocci says, which has blurred the line between reporting and editorializing. "Newspapers are no less driven to compete with their electronic brethren in their entertainment value."

While the public might be "more informed" in this new media atmosphere, Carocci doubts it is "better informed." Listeners and readers, overwhelmed by analysis, opinion and repetition, quickly tune out and become indifferent -- a tragedy in a democratic society.

You do not have to be a journalist or a politician to savor Carocci's book, just a reader who wants to tune into a memoir that is simultaneously informative and entertaining, and for this publication, that's good...

MARY O. BRADLEY: 255-8147 or mbradley@patriot-news.com