How social media helped me get the story
Sometimes we miss things on first glance.
Maybe we weren’t looking in the right place, or we weren’t using the right tools. Either way, sometimes it helps to step back and have someone else do a look-over.
That’s precisely what happened when I was trying to pinpoint the location of the coming York-area Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant. Despite official denials, several commenters on Facebook said the company had already decided on a Springettsbury Township location and one commenter mentioned that the company had already applied for a liquor license.
I’ve had to search for several liquor licenses using the PLCB website before, so I got to work.
But I came up short. I even called the PLCB offices, and they couldn’t find a record of an application.
So I reached out to the commenter, leaving my email address and mentioning that I hadn’t seen anything.
Monday, I received an email from that commenter – with a link to the website and saying to give it another search on the PLCB licensing system.
I did, trying various combinations that might lead me to the Buffalo Wild Wings application and lo and behold – I found it.
The company uses “Blazin’ Wings Inc.” to apply for their licenses, and a search for all “B” applications in Springettsbury Township revealed what I had been looking for: the “trade name” was listed as “Buffalo Wild Wings Bar and Grill.”
It was a gratifying moment – not just because I had found out the information I wanted, but because a reader, through the power of social media helped me find it.
That’s a cool thing about being in journalism now, a simple message or comment can lead to a world of possibilities – or, at least, some tasty chicken wings.