"Brace yourself for a future where local news is a big collection of whatever the websites can scour up for free, with a little sprinkling of 'investigative' reporting as a fig leaf."
-- Anonymous@8:21 p.m., in an especially prescient comment on June 27, 2008. Around the middle of next month, I've now confirmed, several dozen editors from Gannett's biggest U.S. newspapers will once more gather at Corporate's headquarters in McLean, Va. -- this time, to hear a major report from the Content Evolution Team.
Except the background noise to this meeting at the Crystal Towers is going to be the Q2 results, which I am not expecting to be very good. I am predicting another sharp decline in revenues beyond what is to be expected in this relatively no-holiday ad period. This team is going to have to be incredibly creative with plans to somehow boost revenues. I wait in anticipation that this company's brains trust will discover the way.
ReplyDeleteInvestigating reporting, is pretty much dead, among the smaller papers. From a business point of view, its to costly, with all the time that has to be used in checking facts, and their always seem to be legal bill. In so far as newspapers taking news off the web, your going to see some slip ups as far as actual facts is concern.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to note that certain "projects" reporters and editors in NJ remain sacred cows, while the municipal reporters are treated as expendable chaff. Gannett is completely tone deaf to the fact that the only reason people consistently buy your newspaper is if you consistently provide them with local news worth reading. Look at the papers now. They're as thin as they've ever been, ugly, with miniscule stories that offer no depth, no context. The papers cling to their Sunday packages now, which is the only time the newspaper vaguely resembles something worth buying. And that's often when the sacred cows trot out their long important pieces about this and that. But that's not enough to sustain a daily newspaper. Gannett needs to wake up about this. People see what's going on with these products and don't want to buy them because they've become completely devalued.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see Gannett run a simple experiment. Take one single news site and staff if properly, with at least a reasonable amount of reporters, photographers and copy editors to properly cover a geographic area. I bet if you kept this up long enough, people would buy this paper.
Q2 revenue has been the worst drop in a long time. Can't wait to see what B.S. they spit to make it look like it was good.
ReplyDeleteA major daily has repeatedly poached breaking news from the CN, with the line "according to mycentraljersey.com ..."
ReplyDeleteNot so late Saturday, when the competing daily had photos from the scene of a fatal shooting, taken by a photographer the CN laid off, and a story all their own. Not a mention of the shooting in the CN today. How times change.
9:02 Who cares about facts anymore? Read these papers and you can count the number of facts on your fingers. I think that's the problem the readers have with adjusting to the changes they really notice. How many times have you heard someone tell you there's nothing in the newspaper anymore?
ReplyDeleteListen to Jim on this. "Passion Topics" is the next great buzz word that corporate thinks will save our newspapers but really has no chance of succeeding because we do not have the staffing left to pull it off. Editors around the company have been wasting time trying to put together bullshit reports on how they are going to restructure their shrinking staffs, knowing there is no way in hell they can make this work. But the editors have families and mortgages and big salaries they don't want to lose, so they do what they are told by corporate and write their reports. Hopefully, this crazy idea will die before being implemented. But don't ignore this topic or the problems it will bring to your newsroom. Just like the abomination know as design hubs, topic passions are here to stay. For now at least. Here's hoping the project never takes flight, because there is no way to make it work with our staffing situation.
ReplyDeletePassion topics? Yikes. Good journalism has always recognized its audiences. Corporate will never acknowledge that the wealthy people they hope to draw to their websites want to read sophisticated, well sourced and informed news, particularly First Amendment and watchdog work. They want to better understand their connection to the communities. They are not going to turn to a daily website or newspaper if they continue to find drivel and errors and rewritten press releases from people who don't know what they are writing about. Provide solid, well-written and well-planned news content about the community along with plenty of sources and names. The readers will come, and so will the advertisers. It's not an unknown equation, but it does require leadership at each of the sites to plan and carry out. Corporate: it's not a one-size fits all plan, other than a leadership directive to provide timely, relevant news.
ReplyDeleteEditors like Carolyn Washburn and Julie Engebrecht in Cincinnati are passionless souls to begin with, passionless both about news and about people. One doesn't "learn" passion. Gannett needs to hire editors who get off on breaking news and who know how to hire and retain breaking news talent. Hint: It has nothing to do with the ability to tweet, tumble or socially network.
ReplyDeletePassion topics? Sounds like another Kate Marymont special. Just like the MoJo reporters in Fort Myers that go her so much initial attention then fell flat on its face.
ReplyDeleteNow, are these real life passion topics, or real news passion topics?
ReplyDeleteThey mangled our sales, circulation and design teams. They introduced the what-in-the-world ContentOne debacle. Now they must pollute the emaciated newsrooms that they have proven they know nothing ... no thing ... nada ... about.
ReplyDeleteIf the board of directors doesn't see this as just the next episode of corporate incompetence on parade, why would anyone want them on a board -- any board, anywhere? Their names should go down in infamy.
Are all boards of directors afflicted with this kind of absentee landlord mentality? Or is it our special blessing?
Executive editors ... please spit this phlegm out of our mouths. If you don't stand up to this madness, who will? You will see one journalist after another walk out that door. And you can't fill the positions when they're gone. Have some self-respect. Make them do the right thing.
You want us to work smarter? Show us you know what that means. If any of you is pushing back, you've sure kept it quiet.
11:33 Moments of circular passion, arrranged pyramid-style?
ReplyDeleteWashburn and Engebrecht are clueless about news and people. They've let some staff go this year that boggles the mind yet kept others who have been cruising for years.
ReplyDeleteA good example of their news judgement came last week when it was learned a prominent state rep was busted by police for DUI and was in the car with a much younger adult entertainer in another state late on a Friday night. He refused a breath test so they took a blood sample which showed .097 alcohol content. The test also showed Viagra in his bloodstream yet they didn't allow reporter to print. Why? It was in a court document and it could help the readers try to sort out the state rep's situation in light of the fact he's not talking.
I have to disagree with the comments regarding Julie Engebrecht. She has always shown class and respect for those she works with and is very good at her job. The decisions regarding the positions to cut come at a higher level, I know she has questioned and tried to save staff. Buchanan brought in Washburn to join her in destroying the once proud local paper. Well Margaret you're done a fine job of that.
ReplyDeleteThat fatal shooting Bernice spoke of was in Plainfield, New Jersey, where the Courier News was published prior to the 1970s.
ReplyDeleteEngebrecht was fine when she was sports editor. Only when she was promoted out of her element and over her head did we see how her personal shortcomings result in petty favoritism, clouded judgment and a steep decline in product quality. A look at her keepers tells us all we need to know about her ability to assess talent. Weak, insecure managers like JE fear the presence of strong competence around her. By getting rid of experienced editors below her, more stories will be edited out of fear. The removal of the Viagra revelation is but one prime example. That's a front-page lede item in most other papers.
ReplyDeleteThe executive editors are not in a position to tell corporate to shove passion topics where the sun don't shine because they are like about 99 percent of us still working for this failing company -- they need the job. And in their cases, they make a shit-ton more money than most and really don't want to lose those jobs. So they call their newsrooms "information centers" -- what a crock that is, huh? -- and whenever corporate puts out a new initiative they do as they're told, no questions asked, and write their reports and tell the minions what they will do next to appease the Crystal Palace. Hell, they even talk about Deal Chicken with a straight face. That alone is all you need to know
ReplyDeleteI disagree that Engebrecht shows class and concern for her employees. You obviously only observe her from afar. During recent rounds of layoffs, HR VP was a lot more sensitive than Engebrecht who in many cases refused to look at the people she was letting go. As far as being good in her job, she's good at attending meetings. She doesn't elevate stories, she doesn't inspire staff and she can be as mean as a snake if one does not agree with her.
ReplyDeleteI recall an employee who was laid off in 2009. He talked about how she came over to him at the time and told him she was sorry. She hugged him. He later e-mailed her a number of times. She never responded. She might have been hugging people two years ago but now she doesn't have the courage to look them in the eye.
@1130. You're right. Anyone who can say 'information center' and 'deal chicken' with a straight face is not going to question 'passion topics.' Sigh. I keep hoping ... but I think you're right. Can this marriage be saved?
ReplyDeleteThe worst thing I've encountered in a new room is the executive editor who still yearns to be a reporter. When the EE gets stuck in traffic, it's an instant drop-everything-stop-the-presses story. If his or her taxes go up, it's an immediate investigative piece. If their kid gets benched on the rec soccer team, there must be corruption a foot. Now amplify that to the Crystal Towers and we (those overworked few left)are liable to be stuck writing the most amazing dreck to hit the printed page (or website).
ReplyDelete"Hello, yes this is the scrap booking desk, what's your story?"