Case in point: In his News Watch article yesterday about this week's Information Center teleconference, News Department Senior Vice President Phil Currie (left) has the gall to write the following: "Riding a wave of accomplishment and innovation, Gannett Information Centers soon will move to the next level of operation that builds on an impressive base and capitalizes on success thus far." (Emphasis added.)How about backing up that lede? The only specific example of "accomplishment and innovation" I could find in Currie's piece is a reference to the mom's sites. Puh-lease. Nearly two years after Gannett finally began merging print and digital, that's the best he can offer?
Earlier: Lost readers: Why we gave up on News Watch
I would love to know how much Currie gets paid. $250,000? $300,000? Your thoughts, in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, use this link from a non-work computer; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
I don't know how much he gets paid, but I am in awe of his ability to craft a lead.
ReplyDelete"Riding a wave of accomplishment"
"Move to the next level"
"Builds on an impressive base"
That's impressive writing.
Hey!
ReplyDeleteAt least he's still thinking smarter inside of the box.
*Are databases really the answer?
ReplyDelete*If they are, is that how we're going to connect with readers? With spreadsheets?
* ``And we are saying, `Yes, public service journalism does matter, and it remains a must.'"
Awesome.
It's no joke that one of Currie's heroes is ... Mickey Mouse! He used to brag about it in the days when he had the guts to make site visits to the different locations. I was at a meeting where the ME presented him with a Mickey Mouse T-shirt.
ReplyDeleteHe is an competent in his position as a mouse. Or maybe the cheese it eats!
He writes (with my comments added after):
"We are proud of what has been accomplished thus far in our Information Centers and salute all who made it happen.
(We've been able to accomplish our goal of reducing circulation by 10-30 percent at most of our papers, We've been able to accomplish our goal of driving off quality reporters. We've been able to accomplish our goal of drastically reducing costs at all costs through attrition, shamefully low mileage reimbursement, no meal reimbursement, no training, asking reporters to work off the clock. Thanks to those who have been asked to perform three or four tasks at a time for every story they do from writing a print version to doing an online version to grabbing sound bits and taking their own photos. Thanks to those who give up time on their beat to post the latest church picnic release online )
We intend to remain industry leaders in this challenging time of change, and our digital efforts will be extensive as we accomplish that.
(We are a leader in layoffs, pension freezes and completely turning our back on the staff who desperately need help in meeting unreasonable demands and goals.)
And we will enhance and advance our Information Centers and the First Amendment-public service journalism that is so important to us and to those who depend on us for vital news and information every day.
(We do this by using unedited government-fed news releases online as real news. We overinflate our online numbers by counting page views instead of unique visitors in order to deceive advertisers into thinking have more eyes on a site than is really the case. We post public data without the necessary story to explain it, therefore letting the public come to uniformed conclusions of what they are really reading.)
God help us all. M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!!!
If it wasn't him, it would be some other ox born of the likes of the NAA staff. What else would be say anyway while he waits for retirement? The salary is inmaterial. Just more dead weight spinning the yarn.
ReplyDeleteKate Marymont is the most likely Currie successor. Bound to be an improvement if she considers it a destination position. Kate has a rock-solid news foundation, and she is plenty innovative. Her big problem is when she views her present job as a stepping stone and spends too much time reaching for the next rung. Been there, seen her do that.
ReplyDeleteWhat about Jennifer Carroll? She seems to play a big role in all of this? I know she was Corporate Staffer of the Year a couple of years ago, but is she really who we want driving this train? I shook her hand once at corporate event a few years back, but that's been my only experience. She seems nice enough, and that she genuinely cares.
ReplyDeleteRe: "Nearly two years after Gannett finally began merging print and digital, that's the best he can offer?"
ReplyDeleteIt may be all he mentioned, but it's hardly the ONLY thing that could have been cited. For example:
http://tinyurl.com/53s2xm
"Three finalists were selected for APME's second annual INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR Award: the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel for its watchdog team in print and on the Internet; the Las Vegas Sun for Web innovations, including a history of Las Vegas; and Florida Today of Melbourne, Fla., for a "mission control" approach to print and online coordination.
Anon 12:51...Jennifer is good, but she has been shipped off to digital so it looks like Marymount would be Currie's successor. I have worked with Jennifer and I think she is very competent. She has a good relationship with the Chief of Digital. They visited us in Fort Myers and I think it was the most productive and best conversation I have witnessed among two Gannett executives.
ReplyDeleteI have also had the opportunity to work with Kate and she is very good as well. I believe the combination of Carroll in Digital, Marymount in Newspaper is a huge win for the newspaper folks.
Paulson, Ryerson, Anger, Eberle, Silverman or Ivory could be in the mix. Could be they have already been told and have their tix for the tower.
ReplyDeleteWill the people who keep standing up for Jennifer please tell us even one original thought the woman has ever had? All I've ever known her to be good at is throwing people under the bus and if you don't believe it make sure you aren't between her and an ass to kiss.
ReplyDeleteAgreed anon @ 9:06. All I've ever seen Jennifer do is claim other people's ideas for her own, then throw them under the bus. Too bad this mentality is rewarded in Gannett - while those truly deserving of credit remain anonymous plebes awash in the wake of those like Jennifer
ReplyDelete