From The Publisher: Nov. 4, 1991

Good reporting is seldom easy or comfortable. But for correspondent Ted Gup, getting to the bottom of this week's BUSINESS story about life and hard times in a West Virginia coal community was especially unsettling. "The first time I entered a low-seam coal mine was one of the most claustrophobic experiences of my life," says Gup. "You lie on your back on a metal sled, and the distance between the floor and ceiling is never greater than 40 inches. You're in utter darkness -- except for the light on your hard hat. You eat your lunch on your back with your...

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