The death of firefighters vs. a bunch of rich dog owners in Manchester-by-the-Sea

It's interesting to compare the second-day coverage of the report on the dead firefighters - and see how the Herald is taking the lead on the story.

The Herald blared it across the front page: WHITEWASH - and disclosed the board of inquiry heard about the toxicology reports but chose not to include the results in its own report. The paper also reported on some Newburyport state rep who may call for hearings into the whole affair. Peter Gelzinis wondered if the two firefighters were impaired and sided with Fire Commissioner Rod Fraser in calling for a re-opening of the inquiry. The Herald editorial board also chimed in (unlinked because it's not on the paper's editorial page online).

The Globe did have a follow-up story - but in the City/Region section, rather than on the front page. It's understandable, of course, because the Globe's suburban readership would obviously be way more interested in two other stories the Globe put on the front - one on people who drink unpasteurized milk on purpose, the other on a fight over whether dogs should be allowed on Singing Beach in Manchester-by-the -Sea in the winter.

The Globe editorial board did editorialize, calling Fraser courageous but saying he should forget about re-opening the probe and instead wait for Boston Police and the Suffolk DA's office to conclude their own probes into the fire.

What of the Globe's metro columnists? Isn't this exactly the kind of story you would have expected, gasp, Mike Barnicle to have written about - on the front page? Eh, they have schedules to keep. I'm sure they'll get around to it one of these days.