A sad event.

As of Thursday, the Little Rock Police Department had not found a motive for the attack early last Monday on Anne Pressly, morning anchor for KATV-TV, Channel Z

It has been speculated that Pressly's celebrity as a television personality could have led to the attack. If so, it would be unusual but not unprecedented.

Al Tompkins of the Poynter Institute, a journalism think tank in St. Petersburg, Fla., said it is fairly common for TV personalities to experience fans who are a little too fanatical. Most are harmless, but a few have taken their interest to the point of obsession, he said.

Tompkins has 25 years of experience working as a television reporter and news director in various markets. During that time he's had several nuisances, he said, but none whom he felt might harm him. Being known and threatened by viewers is an unfortunate part of the business, he said.

"Journalists can't lead a sheltered life and still be a journalist," Tompkins said. Well-known people in any walk of life--"athletes, teachers, politicians," he said--sometimes have fans who go too far.

Tompkins, who writes "Al's Morning Meeting" for Poynter.org, said he has hecklers even though he's no longer on TV. A recent e-mail read:

"So shoot yourself in the cajones with a nail gun, or get a frontal lobotomy, or electrocute yourself with some copper wire ..."--and that's just the part we can print.

It's rare that a heckler takes it beyond incendiary e-mails, though, Tompkins said.

Luckily, most viewers have nothing but appreciation for television personalities, and a flood of them has shown appreciation for Pressly. A Web site created by KATV for viewers and friends to post comments for Pressly had received more than 300 posts by Thursday morning. You too can write Pressly a message by visiting www. katv.com.