Times’ Staffer Is Lauded for Letting Story Tell Itself

A few years ago, for a small Montana newspaper, I had a brief stint as a sports reporter. It was fun, but I had a major weakness: I knew no shorthand, had no gift for the extended quote and had a broken tape recorder. I relied on paraphrase or brief quotes.

I felt a special appreciation, then, for T.J. Simers’ wonderful re-creation of Joe Vitt’s voice (“Biggest Victory,” Aug. 13). The story of Vitt’s battle with cancer is of course inspiring, but much of the reader’s pleasure is hearing Vitt’s own voice.

Simers set the stage with four brief paragraphs, then let Vitt tell his own story without a single interference in the remaining 27 paragraphs.

Thank you, Simers and editors, for staying out of Vitt’s way.

KEITH B. FAHEY

Encino