Amid a recent management shake-up at USA Today's Travel Media Group, Hilton Hotels and Resorts says it will "continue to have a relationship" with the paper -- denying a published report to the contrary today.
The report by blogger Jim Romenesko quoted an unidentified source saying the hotel chain "is about to cancel their contract,” and that “serious panic and scrambling [are] going on inside Gannett as we speak."
Romenesko didn't identify the contract, but I suspect it may be for bulk print sales under the so-called Blue Chip program, which has been struggling as hotel chains reassess agreements with newspapers.
USAT's circulation slide in recent years coincided with the loss of the exclusive Marriott International account in 2009, costing the paper its status as the nation's No. 1 paper in overall circulation. The Wall Street Journal now holds that ranking, although USAT continues to lead in print circulation.
Davis, and information vacuum
The Travel Media Group should have been responsible for any negotiations with Hilton. Its president for just two months, Rudd Davis, abruptly left the paper last month under still-unexplained circumstances. The paper never responded to my request for comment about Davis when I contacted spokeswoman Heidi Zimmerman.
Naturally, that information vacuum has fueled all sorts of speculation about the causes and fallout behind Davis's departure, and likely contributed to the Hilton talk. Romenesko's source, for example, "claims that an exec was fired after 'something went horribly wrong' with the negotiations,'' his report says.
Indeed, Zimmerman only fanned the rumor mill today when Romenesko asked her about Hilton. “We don’t comment on or confirm the status of any customer or partner relationship,'' he quoted her saying. ("Really?" an evidently frustrated Romenesko wrote. "That’s the best you can do?")
Later, Hilton spokesman Scott Carman told Romenesko that his source was wrong.
Perhaps Zimmerman meant to say the paper doesn't comment on market speculation. I say that because, of course, USAT often discusses customer and partner relationships -- when it wants to. Only last month, for example, the paper said it had agreed to partner with Learning.com on education resources for teachers.
The media contact for that announcement? Zimmerman herself.
Earlier: Exhibit A in Corporate's failing public-relations practices.
Romenesko didn't identify the contract, but I suspect it may be for bulk print sales under the so-called Blue Chip program, which has been struggling as hotel chains reassess agreements with newspapers.
USAT's circulation slide in recent years coincided with the loss of the exclusive Marriott International account in 2009, costing the paper its status as the nation's No. 1 paper in overall circulation. The Wall Street Journal now holds that ranking, although USAT continues to lead in print circulation.
Davis, and information vacuum
The Travel Media Group should have been responsible for any negotiations with Hilton. Its president for just two months, Rudd Davis, abruptly left the paper last month under still-unexplained circumstances. The paper never responded to my request for comment about Davis when I contacted spokeswoman Heidi Zimmerman.
Naturally, that information vacuum has fueled all sorts of speculation about the causes and fallout behind Davis's departure, and likely contributed to the Hilton talk. Romenesko's source, for example, "claims that an exec was fired after 'something went horribly wrong' with the negotiations,'' his report says.
Indeed, Zimmerman only fanned the rumor mill today when Romenesko asked her about Hilton. “We don’t comment on or confirm the status of any customer or partner relationship,'' he quoted her saying. ("Really?" an evidently frustrated Romenesko wrote. "That’s the best you can do?")
Later, Hilton spokesman Scott Carman told Romenesko that his source was wrong.
Perhaps Zimmerman meant to say the paper doesn't comment on market speculation. I say that because, of course, USAT often discusses customer and partner relationships -- when it wants to. Only last month, for example, the paper said it had agreed to partner with Learning.com on education resources for teachers.
The media contact for that announcement? Zimmerman herself.
Earlier: Exhibit A in Corporate's failing public-relations practices.
"Unidentified sources" come on Jim everyone in the know knows who created the rumor. Talk about a crappy job of reporting. You've missed the juiciest story of all time. It's time to stop phoning it in or doing Newseum stories. Get your head in the game man.
ReplyDeleteGuess it's time for Rudd to exact revenge.
ReplyDelete8:23 Z-z-z-z-z-z-z.
ReplyDeleteI've been blogging too long to rise to that kind of bait.
Jim you are going to eat those words. Folks print out this string and put it on the frige. Your hero just proved he is a fool. Jim a major player suddenly disappeared and your response is zzzzzzz. You just jumped the shark. You should be embarrassed and ashamed.
ReplyDeleteOk Jim. So what did happen to Rudd?
DeleteHilton is a HUGE revenue source for USA Today and Rudd knows everything. Hunke's job will be on the line when this all spills to Wall Street. The cat's out of the bag and Rudd's looking for blood.
ReplyDeleteYou've got that backwards. It's not Rudd that's out for blood. Yo Mr.. Zzzzz are you listening?
Delete6:07 you're saying Hilton is doing this?
DeleteNo I'm not. Chase the story. This blog is visited by countless journalists. Do your jobs.
DeleteRudd Davis was only trying to clean up the messes Left by Michael Davidson and Jill Heymer. Those two lost Marriott and Choice for us. At least PR hack Ed Cassiday told the media the truth and didn't give cave into the latest duck and hide spins of Hunke/Banikarim/Micek forced on Heidi Zimmerman. Where is Robin Pence when we need her?
ReplyDelete6:17 you aren't even close. This is going to get very intense very soon.
ReplyDeleteJust a matter of time before chains start to cancel their USA contracts. Once one does, the others will follow shortly. Can't be stopped.
ReplyDeleteI stayed last week at a Hilton Garden Inn in Orlando. USA Today was outside all the hotel rooms every morning. I had a room at the very end of a hallway and had to walk past about 15 rooms on my way to the elevator. In three days, never saw a single USA Today that had been picked up. In other words, there were no empty doorsteps -- each one held a USA Today waiting in vain to be read.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the source of rumors about Hilton:
ReplyDeleteWhen executives at Davis's level leave, they typically reach a severance agreement that allows them to save face and collect some money.
For the employer, the agreement includes a non-disparagement clause preventing the executive from bad-mouthing the company.
There are some circumstances where that doesn't happen: i.e., someone is fired for such egregious behavior, no agreement can be reached.
I don't know what happened in Davis's case. But we'd all like to learn more.
That's it? We'd all like to know more? You're just playing now right?
DeleteHilton and all hotel blue chip partners have a 30 to 60 day out clause on their print distribution. Brad Jones and Jill Heymer will confirm that. So Hilton may say yes now but in two months? David L Hunke will have our blood on his hands.
ReplyDeleteAnd on a somewhat related subject, whither Davis associate Ross Schaufelberger?
ReplyDeleteIt's not Hunke who has been writing the mindless newsless crap that makes USAT such a worthless rag.
ReplyDeleteWhat happened to the army of cronies Davis hired for his hotel project before he got fired? Are they gone too?
ReplyDeleteHold on, is Hunke behind all this brouhaha and leaking to the press? Is this some kind of cover-your-ass strategy?
ReplyDeleteHunke is incapable of skulduggery. Davis fucked up royally in assorted roles for USA Today, butat the end of the day, it wasn't incompetence that got him shit canned.
ReplyDeleteHeidi Zimmerman has no independent voice on what managemnt decides to spew. She does as she is told. Nothing more.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking for Wall Street:
ReplyDeleteIf USA Today loses Hilton, Hunke is done.
If all the blue chip hotels follow, Gracia is gone.
Heck, incompetence got Davis promoted, not fired. He screwed the pooch with his hotel thing.
ReplyDeleteThe hotel project is not dead, but it is in a state of extreme disarray. Too complex to get into the details and the deal that Davis made to keep the Hilton contract alive. Let's just say that it's "Rudder-less"and failure is very likely. USAT has a couple of more months to deliver but the project is doomed. Truth be told, it's all about exec suite politics.
ReplyDeleteSomeone earlier said that Hunke would take the fall for this. Not true since Martore will be the one that gets hit if Hilton cancels. And certain execs knows this.
Susie Ellwood is now in charge of the project so everything is in good hands.
DeleteJust to note, Hilton has both a circulation and an advertising contract with USAT and the circulation contract can be canceled but Hilton might still maintain the advertising contract with USAT. So, when Hilton says they will "continue to have a relationship with the paper" it may mean just an advertising relationship.
ReplyDelete3:09 AM-interesting stuff, especially the term "disarray". That would be a perfect term for the GPS fiasco too. Everything from incompatible computer systems to late printsite departures to untrained managers seem to be the rule now.
ReplyDeleteAny significant loss of Hilton properties changes the USA Today ballgame though.
Susie Ellwood? The only thing in her hands is trying to hold up and protect Hunke's reputation. But she does smile a lot and seem concerned and talks a good game about nothing. Like that Italian cruise ship, USAT has run aground and there's no salvaging.
ReplyDeleteAnyone ever deal with Zimmerman? If so, you'd know her comment was right in character. Know nothing....do nothing.
ReplyDeleteWorst management team on the planet. Bar none. They will destroy this brand with their collective incompetance.
ReplyDeleteAssuming you are correct and the big chain hotel contracts are so critical to survival of USA Today, why would Hunke/Dubow/Martore put someone in charge of that business that is still wet behind his ears, with no prior newspaper experience and in fact no business experience at all, beyond starting a mediocre website and selling it to chumps?
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI've now been given one account of the circumstances surrounding Davis's departure. In this version, it doesn't directly and solely relate to Hilton.
ReplyDeleteBut the story is unconfirmed, so I'm not comfortable posting any details.
You are going to see major exec level changes at USAT this year. But, not to worry. We have plenty of VPs around to take their place.
ReplyDelete