TO give front page status to a fracas between a has-been snooker player and the referee (Echo, June 12) begs many questions as to why?

Is our love of celebrity, no matter how small, such that newspaper sales are determined by the antics of these people?

Is the newsworthiness of an act of mindless violence, no matter how minor, such that the readership will be impressed by that intuitive cutting edge reporting that makes an exclusive?

Is it symptomatic of the falling standards of gentlemanly behaviour that is now prevalent in all sports by both players and spectators really worthy of such headlines?

Is it, Heaven forbid, an indication of the area and its people that we need to be fed such stories to pamper our more basic instincts?

Let's hope that it was just a slow news day and nothing meaningful or newsworthy was happening locally or, indeed, nationally and that normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.

David T Colling, Bishop Auckland, Co Durham.