I guess I shouldn't be shocked that the Morning News is shocked so easily

The Dallas Morning News ran a series of "tipping point" articles a couple of years ago that criticized in every way possible the manner in which the folks at Dallas City Hall managed the city. Perhaps some of what was in those series of articles was true -- much of it was exaggerated -- but the Morning News probably believes every word of it was gospel then and believes it's gospel now.

In today's Letters to the Editors section on the Morning News' editorial page, a letter appeared from one Shirley R. Sloat of Dallas who wrote in to say that Sunday she noticed her gray city-issued garbage roll cart had a huge split. She wrote that she called 3-1-1 to request a replacement and her request was treated courteously and promptly. Two days later, her replacement cart was delivered and two days after that someone from the city (probably from its crack Sanitation Services Department) came to her home to make sure the cart had been delivered. Ms. Sloat was writing to commend the city and to say how pleased she was by its responsive service.

This type of service should come as no surprise any longer. City Manager Mary Suhm, the best thing to ever happen to this city, has stressed customer service from every city department. This is not lip service. Customer service is something she demands, insists on from every city employee.

But it obviously surprises the headline writers on the editorial page of the Morning News. The headline one of them wrote for this letter was "Shocked at prompt city service." The word the author of the letter used to describe her reaction was "impressed," which, to my mind at least, means something other than "shocked." A more accurate headline would have been "Pleased by prompt city service."

As someone who spent 16 years as a reporter/writer/editor for a major news service and the Dallas Morning News, I used to try to defend the media against charges of bias. But stunts like this headline on this letter make such defenses far more difficult.