Nearly every reporter learns that a news story should follow the “5 Ws and H” rule – who, what, where, when, why and how. Old as it is, it remains a good rule of thumb. What happens when the rule is not followed – particularly the H part – was demonstrated by a recent story in The Telegraph.

On the day after the bill to raise the national debt ceiling passed, it was reported in The Telegraph that Sen. Kelly Ayotte was one of 19 Republican senators to oppose the bill. In the story, Ayotte said “the final agreement does not cut federal spending enough and fails to get serious about reforming entitlements such as Social Security and Medicare.”

So we know why the senator voted against the bill. But what is missing is the H – the how.

One wishes the reporter would have pursued the how by asking such things as:

• Was Ayotte prepared to maintain her position even if it caused the nation to default on its debt?

Many had warned this would probably touch off a worldwide economic crisis and throw millions more Americans out of work. Or was this a symbolic vote, easy for her to make because she knew the bill would pass anyway, and she could throw some red meat to her most conservative supporters?

Principles or cynical politics? Which was it?

• It’s easy to say “more spending cuts,” but the details of how you make cuts is the tough part. So I wish Ayotte had been asked specifically which programs she thought should be cut. Education? Job training? Grants for low-income students? Heating oil assistance programs?

It’s great to be for more cuts – as long as no one asks for details.

• And the big one: Entitlements reform. Social Security and Medicare. “Reform” is nowadays just a genteel way of saying “cuts.” So I wish Ayotte had been asked to specify what her vision of “reform” is.

Is she in favor of the plan put forth by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., to end Medicare as we know it and replace it with “premium support” for private insurance? And Social Security – whose benefits would she cut and how? Does she believe, as some have suggested, the retirement age should be raised? Is she in favor of privatizing Social Security?

In the same story, Republican Rep. Charles Bass brags about his vote in favor of the bill by saying that he didn’t return to Washington to “avoid making tough decisions” about spending.

Too bad the reporter didn’t press him on that point. It’s easy to brag about tough decisions when no asks exactly what that means.

So, the five Ws and H: Still a good rule, and the readers suffer when it is not followed.

Who or what is AAN?

Many local residents got a flier in their mail recently claiming that “Congressman Charlie Bass is fighting to protect Medicare.”

Since Bass had joined a just about unanimous Republican vote in the House to back Ryan’s budget, which replaces Medicare with a plan of “premium support” for private insurance for seniors that wouldn’t keep up with the cost of health care, this claim had to cause some raised eyebrows.

The rest of the flier was mostly a claim that President Barack Obama plans to “balance the budget on the backs of seniors.” The basis for this claim is a charge that Obama supports changes that would increase the cost of the Medicare prescription drug benefit.

But there are few specifics in the flier beyond the claim (with nothing to back it up) that the drug benefit is “one of the most successful and efficient” government programs ever. Since the program included the notorious “doughnut hole” in benefits – closed by the health care reform law Republicans want to repeal – and bars the government from negotiating drug prices, some might argue that it is most efficient at transferring tax dollars to drug companies and insurance firms.

But also on the flier is the tiny type that tells you it comes courtesy of the “American Action Network.” Sounds good, if a bit vague. What is the American Action Network?

According to factcheck.org, it’s a group formed in 2010 by ex-Republican Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota and Rob Collins, former chief of staff for GOP House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va.

As a 501(c)(4) group, it does not have to disclose its donors, but according to Sourcewatch.org, it is closely linked to Karl Rove’s American Crossroads group and shares office space with it.

Board members of the American Action Network include Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Ed Gillespie, former chairman of the Republican National Committee. AAN said in 2010 that it planned to spend $25 million on the 2010 election and, as the recent flier illustrates, it apparently aims to play a big role in 2012.

So do the anonymous donors who bankroll AAN just want to see New Hampshire seniors protected or do they have a different agenda? And how indebted is Bass to the anonymous big spenders who made this broadside possible?

Gary Vincent spent 21 years in newspapers before leaving for a career in high tech. The longtime Hudson resident isn’t an employee of The Telegraph and is free to act independently. Readers are encouraged to bring any issue to his attention at readeradvocate@nashuatelegraph.com.