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Monday, April 23, 2012
67 comments:
Jim says: "Proceed with caution; this is a free-for-all comment zone. I try to correct or clarify incorrect information. But I can't catch everything. Please keep your posts focused on Gannett and media-related subjects. Note that I occasionally review comments in advance, to reject inappropriate ones. And I ignore hostile posters, and recommend you do, too."
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Note: My laptop is still in Apple's repair shop, so my posting is limited to what I can do with my iPhone.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you should take a furlough like the rest of us, Jim.
ReplyDeleteToday's Arizona Republic had a full-page ad touting the newspaper's finalist status in the Pulitzers. Then, inside the Metro section was a long story on the awards the paper has won this year and ones the paper is a finalist for.
ReplyDeleteDo readers care about any of this? I can see running a full-page ad if the paper had actually WON a Pulitzer. But I guess I just don't get touting, in a full page, being a finalist.
And the story about the prizes won this past year went on and on and on. Just seemed like so much inside baseball. I think they must be doing this for Gannett mucks to prove the paper's worth, or something.
But honestly, the paper is a shadhow of its former self and is a very sad read on most days, because there is so little in it.
What do others think?
Revenues are down 50% over last 5 yrs, layoffs, furloughs, early retirements buyouts.. I got idea lets start charging for the websites and raise prices and kill affordable ad programs!1
ReplyDeleteI have been trying to puzzle out a letter on the new rates. The current rate listed in the print edition is $14.35 per month for seven-day home delivery. Unless the subscriber signs up for EZ Pay at $20 per month, the increase for Full Access at $25 per month starting May 1 is 74 percent. Kind of steep.
ReplyDeleteAny word on the publisher in Lafayette, Ind.?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteA comment was made about a Big hire in Nashville, ANY word on what this is?
ReplyDeleteCongratulations USA Today, a new low in advertising pages. More comp pages than paid ads. Way to go. Can you say third quarter furloughs too?
ReplyDeleteFuck GPS and Evan Ray..you are clueless, Mr. Ray and your days are numbered
ReplyDeleteWe get it, you don't like Evan Ray or GPS. Today, yesterday, or the day before that....
ReplyDeleteHere's a gem from a story online today.
ReplyDeleteThere were 14.3 teachers for every student in 2003-04, according to the DPI figures. The ratio has hovered between 13.2 and 13.9 teachers per student ever since.
It's supposed to say 14.3 students per teacher, according to the next graf. But why let facts get in the way of shoving a story out the door?
And they think people are going to pay for this sorry crap?
Editor Carolyn Washburn shares news about a new Enquirer political column and changes coming to the print newspaper. You can chat live with her at 11 a.m. today at Cincinnati.com.
ReplyDelete• Carolyn Washburn chats at 11 a.m. today
More bad new for the people of Cincinnati as she try's to sweet talk the locals
OK boys and girls. I realize times ain't what they used to be but.....
ReplyDeletePage 4C of today's Florida Today's Sports section is the baseball page. Imagine my surprise when I realized I was reading recaps, box scores, and other tidbits....of April 16th's date with the 15th's results, etc.
They have made mistakes before but never this egregious. A WHOLE PAGE!
10:31 is that the page that's downloaded from USA Today? Somebody probably downloaded the wrong page, or used the page from the day prior, without looking at the date.
ReplyDeleteWho needs quality control? Is Florida Today produced at a design hub, or still onsite?
12:51, I agree. No one cares about the also-rans. You win a Pulitzer or you don't.
ReplyDeleteIn the days of industry layoffs in the surpassing 20,000, the fact that the disgusting White House Correspondents Dinner goes on is shameful. Martha Stewart is a guest of USAT, by the way.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/reliable-source/post/oh-you-again-celebs-making-repeat-appearances-at-white-house-correspondents-association-dinner/2012/04/22/gIQAZkDhaT_blog.html?hpid=z14
Cincinnati customers LOVED IT. LOL
ReplyDeleteDid anyone really expect the Enquirer to admit anything but yesterday? Of course not as doing so doesn’t FIT Buchanan’s Lifestyle change for the Enquirer nor how she desperately needs to sell how fuller usage of color and photos really are worth the costs of even less content (hint: it’s not).
And that’s what all will be watching as unless Buchanan is allowed to return to her days of buying paid copies, paying customers will have the final word and what they’ve been saying for some time about the Enquirer and its already shrinking content offerings is anything but LOVE.
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20120422/NEWS/304220039/Editor-shares-Enquirer-updates
10:41 Martha Stewart will have plenty in common to talk about with USA today's executives.
ReplyDeleteHer media company's stock is trading for less than $4 share, down from $20 a share five years ago, because business never recovered from her time spent in prison for insider-trading.
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc., (MSO) was just above $35/share in the first quarter of 2005. Like her, it has fallen tremendously.
ReplyDeleteOk, Im done bashing Ray, it is getting old I know. But at least I got the word out. I'm done
ReplyDeleteThe Publisher in Lafayette, In. is gone this week along with the rest on the list posted lasted week.
ReplyDeleteAs a point of fact regarding the stabs yesterday:
ReplyDelete- Sue CJ did not leave of her own accord.
- While Evan was originally her pet, they hadn't been on speaking terms for years.
- And this not a fact, but an opinion: Nothing at the top is any prettier than at the bottom. I used to really like Evan. But all those left now have sold their souls.
Wrong. She quit when things got tough. Couldn't or wouldnt handle the heat.
DeletePublisher in Appleton was on that list, she's on vacation. Try again.
ReplyDeleteWhat do I think of the Arizona Republic? It will be a casebook study on how to kill a newspaper. "A shadow of its former self" is putting it lightly. Gene Pulliam has been rolling in his grave since 2000.
ReplyDeleteFrom today's USA Today...
ReplyDelete"Citi's shareholder rebellion prompts new look at CEO pay"
... but unfortunately, not Gannett's. Yes, by all means, focus on those damed banks!
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/story/2012-04-22/say-on-pay-CEO/54475374/1?loc=interstitialskip
...and an opposing view (but not really) And Gannett wonders why their employees are pissed off!
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/story/2012-04-22/Executive-Compensation-Employee-Benefits/54474954/1
Again, at least one of those sites doesn't even have a publisher.
ReplyDelete11:48 said: "Nothing at the top is any prettier than at the bottom. I used to really like Evan. But all those left now have sold their souls."
ReplyDeleteI agree. For instance, I used to really like K. Marymont. But she seems to have sold her soul as well.
10:31: Check Florida Today's web site. They have a PDF of "Today's Baseball Page", with no explainer why that PDF is in a prominent place on the site or the mistake that was made.
ReplyDeleteThe best part is when you open the page, the page-topper is from the St. Cloud Times.
There's your "local-local" (or is that buzzword dead yet?) newspaper ...
Survey is in
ReplyDelete2.9 regarding workload rebalance
2.8 regarding gannetts willingness to invest in people (3.3 for their willingness to invest in technology)
What stood out to you all?
I don't live in Wisconsin any more, but I do read the papers online. Who does the web prep? One person for all the sites? I read misspelled headlines on some of the sites almost every day.
ReplyDeleteLike this one.
Judge's ruling creates confusion over union status for public emloyees, local government 11:17 AM
Holy S---....
ReplyDeleteI hadn't read this blog for a few months. You people are making yourselves miserable. Yes, you're doing it to yourselves. Every major media company in the western world has a ton of crap inside it. The difference is you're wallowing in it.
Jim, I would think you'd aspire for this to be something a little more progressive, more aspirational in ideas than just miserable bitching from folks in an industry going through a revolution.
@3:22 p.m. I didn't take the survey. What do the numbers you posted mean?
ReplyDelete2:25 your dead on. FT is gone!
ReplyDeleteEveryone is too worried about more layoffs to be able constructively do their jobs.That's what happens when layoffs are always the next corporate solution.
ReplyDeleteIf you are in fear of being unemployed next week or next month would you care about the long term of the corporation? Hell no!
TPP running low, not a single decent job lead. Still have to say I'm probably better off.
ReplyDeleteYou think The Pub in Appleton is on Vacation....Not at all , she is done
ReplyDelete>>>>>Jim, I would think you'd aspire for this to be something a little more progressive, more aspirational in ideas than just miserable bitching from folks in an industry going through a revolution.<<<<
ReplyDeleteThat's the truest thing anyone has posted here in months. Totally and completely true.
This blog is like a bunch of old railroad guys complaining about air travel.
The company is changing. It is very hard. It is not bveing handled very well. But none of that equals the unrestrained bitching and moaning here that makes this Blog such a sewer.
Jim, rethink what you're doing. Because aside from bits of info here and there, this is just a mess.
When you are worried constantly about being layed off your work ethic goes to hell.That says it all.
ReplyDeleteDo you care whether or not the corporation does well if you are not a part of it and unemployed .Hell no!
re-published from a Gannettblog entry from August 28, 2006 (almost six years ago!)
ReplyDelete*****
Jim,
Smaller newspaper. Less, worse content. Increased price. Outsourced (or non-existent) customer service. And now, no re-delivery.
Most Gannett employees have no control over these changes and policies. We speak up here, but the devolution continues to occur. I guess we can continue to bemoan our industry's state and wait for everything to hit rock bottom... and hope something good rises from the dust.
But what role does the customer play in all of this? I know it's on the borderline of blaming the victim of all this nonsense, but where is the collective outrage?
Customers, be they reader/subscribers or advertisers, should be up in arms about this stuff, calling and writing publishers and corporate... I'm afraid they're too complacent and indifferent to do so.
Not as businessmen, but as servants of our readers, how do we remind people how important local journalism is? How screwed people will be when we're extinct...
Would love to know your thoughts... sometimes I just wonder if we're all barking up the wrong tree. There are days I want to write a letter to the editor under a pseudonym asking readers to get angry about the state of American journalism across the board, not just Gannett... and to stand up and help journalists fight for it because we really can't do it alone.
But they'd never publish that letter...
QUESTION
ReplyDelete"Note: My laptop is still in Apple's repair shop, so my posting is limited to what I can do with my iPhone."
Are you using a BlueTooth keyboard? Might help.
"THE ANTI-GANNETTOID"
We would like to see Banikarim's guest list for the worthless White House correspondents dinner. What has that $100,000!ever earned us?
ReplyDeleteShameful waste of resources b
It's actually $1500 per table of 10. Know what of you speak.- or don't speak. Thanks.
DeleteGina the Appleton publisher should be gone. All she did was fill a spot at the 10 Gannett Wisc papers, and if the Crystal Palace is pulling the strings they don't need those payrolls.
ReplyDeleteNow some editors at most sites should also be cut instead of the people doing the work.
Come on guys. Be positive. We'll always have DealChicken!
ReplyDeleteAnyone in Detroit have information about Steve Neavling?
ReplyDeleteFrom his Twitter account: "Cowardly dismissal" is exactly what it was. City Council didn't like my reporting? Oh no. Better fire the reporter.
So who are the Gannettoids attending this year's WHCD ? Does Hunke get to go again, or is he still partying on his Asia trip?
ReplyDelete6:57,
ReplyDeleteAnd how much for our Cannes participation? My guess is we won't get those numbers so quickly.
Doesn't matter...I'll tell you: easily north of $100,000 before anyone checks-in.
I read this blog so I don't feel so bad about my company. Really. We all have it tough, but some of you come up with conspiracies from tough news. Layoffs, furloughs and more are just the state of Gannett. Your bosses wish they had a moment for strategy. No one teaches "How to gently give people bad news". Sure, some are better at it than others. Some actually can show their feelings while others are reticent and afraid. Damn it, they are human too.
ReplyDeleteGet over it. Gannett is not one big conspiracy. Everyone is trying to figure out the next move.
Some fo the bitterness in your hearts needs a check. Did you rise to the challenge. Did you find a way to push whatever initiative asked forward? If so, OK. Time to bitch. All others? Take a break.
11:35, you need to give that claim about publishers a rest.
ReplyDeleteYou have no proof to back it up. You have been smacked around like a pinata more than once.
All you are doing now is making Jim look foolish for continuing to allow your silliness.
Screw Gannett, I put in 4 years there and got out. Reading this blog keeps me informed and 100% convinced that I made a good choice. If you hate Gannett as much as I do, keep looking - there are jobs out there. You will L-O-V-E being out of their cold, dead clutches.
ReplyDelete10:33, with all due respect I think you are suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. The people delivering the bad news make plenty more money/benefits than you and will do anything to hang in a little longer. The really good leaders quit or got a job outside the industry because they no longer had the stomach to participate in the slaughter.
ReplyDeleteHi, 6:57. Does Gannett/USAT get more than one table at the celebrity kiss up White House Correspondents Dinner? Do they pay for a pre or post reception? How about expenses for the wannabes or hasbeens on their guest list?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteDubow update:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/planned-palace-upsets-some-neighbors-in-tony-dc-suburb/2012/04/23/gIQAeeb5cT_story.html
6:57 pm. What about that big party throws at WHC for all those "clients"
ReplyDeleteMaybe Micek knows the budget for this senseless expensive USAT indulgence.
Banikarim, it's best you know of what you speak or don't speak. Though we all know that's near impossible for you to do.
Party on Gannett gals.
Love that Washington Post story. We can only hope that Craig slips into one of his many goldfish ponds and drowns.
ReplyDeleteThe White House correspondents dinner was hijacked from the news team years ago. "clients"? not a chance. Nothing more than a family and friends party for our execs.
ReplyDeletejust watch that stock transformation into pennies. atta girl, Gracia!
ReplyDelete4/23/2012 7:56 PM You will have to check in with MB on this. No doubt certain she is holding all tickets for wives and husbands and girlfriends.
ReplyDeleteand just who is being held accountable for this failure?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
Congratulations USA Today, a new low in advertising pages. More comp pages than paid ads. Way to go. Can you say third quarter furloughs too?
4/23/2012 8:55 AM
I would bet that the design areas and studios are very busy.
ReplyDeleteCreating new and exciting house ads,fill ads and unpaid promo ads does take time.
Soemthing has to be on those pages and there certainly is very little paid advertising.
This seems to be nationwide and not just at any given site.Something has to accompany the little content that is otherwise there.If your site has more fill than paid ads ,it would be good to post that here.
6:35 a.m. Thanks for the link to the story regarding Dubow's house woes. What goes around comes around!
ReplyDeleteThe foundation for all that is wrong in the newsroom at USAT was laid a long time ago by a handful of out-of-touch and downright emotionally flawed editors and managing editors. They were in the right place at the right time and got credit for successes that they had little to do with.
ReplyDeleteGiven how Dubow led the greatest decline in Gannett’s treasure and employees in its history, it’s more than fitting that he now suffers with having to watch the “sylvan character” of his neighborhood being taken apart tree by tree from his own home. LOL!
ReplyDeleteIt’s also fitting that the principles of contract laws he used to protect the outrageous fortune his severance package extracted from Gannett will be used by his new neighbor to ruin the views and home value that Dubow claims to enjoy now. To many, dropping that value to even zero will still be not enough.
True @103. If I could, I'd set up a few port-o-johns on the neighbor's property, too, put floodlights on them so they'd have a nice homey glow all night, invite OccupyVirginia over for a few months and give them all free bullhorns.
ReplyDelete