Scottish Festival Story Fell Short

I am writing to express my displeasure with your May 25 coverage of the Scottish festival at the Orange County Fairgrounds.

I had attended the festival with my family on Saturday and at first was excited and interested to see what highlights I may have missed. The only things about the article that lived up to my expectations--or the event itself--were the placement (at the front of the Metro section) and the photographs.

Apparently while capable of researching Scottish culture and history, you cannot even feign any interest in it. You apparently succeeded in finding someone to interview with almost as little interest in the proceedings as yourselves (the supposedly reluctant observer of the athletics whose faint praise was that it was better than listening to the bagpipes).

To “balance” the attitude that reeks from the article, you included one bagpiper and one dancer. (There are many more pipers and dancers involved in the event than athletes.) You didn’t even mention folk music, the alternative (Celtic) rock music, or the cultural roots scene (dozens of family clans with booths attracting hundreds of distant relatives and interested parties). All were at least as big a part of the festival as the sports.

Even the athletics weren’t covered well. You played up to the historical macho aspects but didn’t even mention that females also participate. And--the biggest of the list of shortcomings--no mention was made of the fact that the woman pictured on the front page broke a world record in the hammer throw for height that very day!

MARK A. MALIA

El Toro