O.J. release...(Jeff Rossen)

Let the circus begin! Right now I can barely hear myself think. News helicopters are buzzing over the jail right now…just waiting to get THE shot! OJ Simpson walking out of jail. I guess I shouldn’t complain. I’ll be depending on those pictures to top my 5:00 piece this evening. And heck, I’ll probably throw those pictures into the 6:00 piece, as well. Why not, right? After all, that’s the news today. OJ Simpson released on $125,000 bail. We also have our Eyewitness News cameraman, John Carozelli, staking out the back exit. I’m at the front door with an ABC News crew. Either way, it’s hard to imagine OJ Simpson getting out of jail today privately. We have this jail covered. And we’re not alone.

These stories are a bit like “reunions” for reporters. A friend of mine from CNN is here. We were just discussing the frenzy. He worked the morning show and just left for the day, handing it off to another reporter. His parting words to me, “Good luck with alllllll that.” And that is the general sense when you cover these stories….following OJ Simpson’s car to the airport, monitoring his every move, is…in a word…tiring. But, there’s some excitement, too.

At this moment, my 5:00 piece is still fluid. Not sure where OJ is going…or when he’ll be released. So, I’m working on the back of the piece first. Working backwards….it’ll have to work today.

Oh, and how can I forget the “OJ freaks” who parade around here…some of them in actual chicken suits…either protesting Simpson or supporting him. They’ll make an appearance tonight at 5:00, as well. Ahhh, Las Vegas!!

And if you have any questions for me…about what it’s like out here…or just want to share your thoughts…feel free to email me: Jeff.A.Rossen@abc.com

See you on television.

Not Quite Viva Las Vegas...(Jeff Rossen)

As I write this note, I’m sitting in a cramped satellite truck…in a long line of satellite trucks…just one mile from the Las Vegas Strip. We may as well be 100 miles away from the slots, and blackjack tables and lighted marquees. Here, there is only one show we’re watching….OJ Simpson. And what a show it is.

Even a seasoned judge here in

Las Vegas

walked outside the courthouse yesterday and proclaimed, “I have never seen a media frenzy like this.” I guess she’s never been to an OJ Simpson event.

What’s great about these stories, frankly, is watching them develop. I was just re-reading my scripts from yesterday morning and then working on my script for today’s 5:00 news. What a difference…the anatomy of a story.

On this day, I’m working with our friends at ABC News on some exclusive reporting from “Good Morning America” that gets into the details of the moments before the hotel confrontation.

On another note (and this is directed at all my friends and family who don’t work in television)….if I hear this one more time, “Oh, you’re so lucky being in

Las Vegas

,” I’m going to scream. Allow me to take you behind the scenes of my last 48 hours:

Sunday 8am: I wake up

Sunday 7:30pm: On a flight to Vegas

Monday 1:30am: Arrive in Last Vegas

Monday 3:00am: Arrive at Hotel

Monday 3:05am: Shower FAST

Monday 5:00am: Arrive at satellite truck for morning show

Monday all day: File for Eyewitness News This Morning, Noon, 5 & 11

Monday Night: SLEEEEEEEEPP!!!!!

Tuesday: Wake up…grab coffee…start again.

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE traveling for work…especially on big stories. I love the challenge. I love diving headfirst into details of a case competing against some of the best in the business. I love the confusion…where we’re going…how to get there…how to extract information in a city I don’t know know very well. It’s fantastic. But, gambling at all ours of the night, throwing back Martini’s, and rolling the dice at the Craps table, I ain’t. Though, I will admit I lost 20-bucks in 3 minutes on my way to sleep last night on blackjack. I blame the dealer.

In any event, I’m refreshed…and ready to report for you tonight on Eyewitness News. And we’ve also learned, the District Attorney here in

Las Vegas

may also release the official charges today around newstime at 5pm. So, we are preparing for that Breaking News, as well. Another exciting day….one mile from the Las Vegas Strip. See you at 5.