COMM 337: Pls read, discuss in class and file under 'Doc's bromides about 'surprise,' working edges of crowd'

The little green book that wouldn't go away? Well, it hasn't gone away. Let's read a financial crisis story in Tuesday's Washington Post (Oct. 14) and discuss what Don Murray would say about elements of surprise in it, plus narrative line. The head: "At Indian Call Centers, Another View of U.S." And the second deck: "As Economy Falters, Debt Collectors Hear Sobering Stories From the Land of Plenty."

Written by Emily Wax of the Washington Post's Foreign Service, the story begins:

GURGAON, India -- With her flowing, hot-pink Indian suit, jangly silver bangles and perky voice, Bhumika Chaturvedi, 24, doesn't fit the stereotype of a thuggish, heard-it-all-before debt collector. But lately, she has had no problem making American debtors cry.

That bit of description sets a lot. Including what Murray sometimes calls the "tension" in the story. Other times he speaks of it as "surprise." (You may have noticed that.) More immediately, it sets up a narrative lede.

The nut graf, like so many, is actually two grafs:

Few places in India absorb and imitate American culture as much as call centers, where ambitious young Indians with fake American accents and American noms de phone spend hours calling people in Indiana or Maine to help navigate software glitches, plan vacations or sell products. The subculture of call centers tends to foster a cult of America, an over-the-top fantasy where hopes and dreams are easily accomplished by people who live in a brand-name wonderland of high-paying jobs, big houses and luxury getaways.

But collection agents at this call center outside New Delhi are starting to see the flip side of that vision: a country hobbled by debt and filled with people scared of losing their jobs, their houses and their cars.

Oh, let's just read it and discuss it in class.

This story, by the way, is a perfect example of what I call working the edges of a crowd ... or the "edges" of a story. What better vantage point to explore the U.S. economy from than a call center located halfway around the world?