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Tuesday, July 10, 2012
33 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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New editor at USA Today being announced this morning.
ReplyDeleteWhere does yesterday's USA Today executive appointment leave Laura Del Greco? She was rumored to have left the paper this spring.
ReplyDeleteIn a news release yesterday, USAT disclosed: "Eric Johnson has been named vice president of client solutions for USA TODAY and USA WEEKEND. Johnson will be based in New York and report to Sandra Micek, senior vice president of marketing."
In August 2011, USAT said: "Laura Del Greco has been named to the newly created position of vice president of client solutions for USA TODAY. Del Greco will be based in New York City and report to Sandra Micek, senior vice president of marketing."
Yesterday's release made no mention of Del Greco, and her LinkedIn profile still shows her as a USAT employee.
The July 8, 2012 column by David Carr (NYT) is an interesting read.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/business/media/newspapers-are-running-out-of-time-to-adapt-to-digital-future.html?_r=1&ref=media
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ReplyDeleteDavid Callaway, editor in chief of Marketwatch, named editor in chief of USA TODAY.
ReplyDeleteAnother review done, another year without a raise.
ReplyDeleteEchoing 4:59's comments yesterday, but with a slightly different twist.
ReplyDeleteI was a loyal Gannettoid, and good employee. I proudly served my masthead for nearly 25 years until July 9, 2009.
That day, like many others across the country, my phone rang asking me to come to the Publisher's office.
Did I see it coming?
In hindsight, sure I did. But, like everyone laid off, I was still shocked. How could this happen to me? I worked, slaved, gave up a marriage and a personal life in pursuit of Defending The Faith and supporting The Company at all costs. I think I was a good manager, but in the end, the phone still rang. I got my walking papers and left the building without saying a word to my staff or friends. I just left.
Six months to the day of being laid off, I was on the payroll of another media company. This time, it was hundreds of miles from home and I was a stranger in a strange land. But, I was in charge of a project that used my skill set and used it well.
But, for various reasons, I left that media company and have since called two others home. Both did not end well, again for various reasons. It's hard to teach old dogs new tricks, and Gannett did a good job teaching once upon a time.
Unlike 4:59, I thought I WOULD retire from Gannett. I was a loyal staffer and one who knew my building, its staff and products better than most. Was I perfect? Hell no, but I was good. I still am. For the newspaper industry.
A lot of us have skills honed that the rest of the world doesn't care bout. The world wants certifications, letters behind your name and advanced academic credentials. When I was growing up in newspapers, my editors and bosses cared more about the fact I could get the job done and not credentials.
It's a cold world outside Gannett. Now and, after three years, I still miss the thrill of putting out a paper. The late night phone calls. The need to protect the community and honor the Constitution.
Silly? Sure, but once CMYK gets in your blood, it's almost impossible to get rid of it.
So, now, three years later, I'm a hired gun for other media companies. I make enough money to live well, but there is a sadness that will never go away. It's like that when you work in an industry where there is only one print media outlet in town. And once you're laid off from that media outlet, you either turn to a new career or become a hired gun.
It's rough, and I know many will say Gannett is a terrible company. Well, guess what? There are others that are just as bad or worse.
The staff will say conditions suck and that the company doesn't care any more. That may be true, but we are victims of our own greed as an industry.
Greed that sucked the life out of the product. Greed that meant profit per page was more important than the people who produced those pages.
What we need is a ballsy CEO who will stand up to Wall Street and proudly say that our profits are going to decline, but will NOT sacrifice the quality of the product, or the people, any long in order to maintain 35% margins. Someone who will take a stand and stand up for what we were taught in J School, or Mass Communication or Liberal Arts or anything else that taught us lessons.
Where is that person? Who knows. Maybe he or she doesn't exist. But, it's a nice thought. Just like the memories of the pressroom at startup, or delivering the paper in a blinding snowstorm, or the sound of the pasters as they fire during a pressrun.
Those of you left in GCI units across the country -- hang in there. You're brethren and what you do for the communities you serve is needed -- and gallant.
For those who have left, or will leave, remember the happy times and keep your head high. You defend the Constitution every day you go, or went, to work -- and not many people can say they've done that outside the military.
God's Speed to all.
#30#
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ReplyDeleteThanks, 11:21, I get what you're saying.
ReplyDeleteWilmington OC members who have left/fled since the arrival of HG:
ReplyDeleteBraun
Pinto
Roselle
Kane
Mika
Lemire
Who's next? Who's left?
Laura Del Greco has left the building.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.journalregister.com/press-releases/journal-register-company-appoints-jan-dewey-publisher-of-new-york-properties-2/
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteDear colleagues,
ReplyDeleteOn Monday, July 16, we will announce our second-quarter earnings results and hold an earnings conference call with analysts at 10 a.m. (ET).
Following the conference call, please join the senior management team and me for a live, company-wide employee Town Hall webcast at 2 p.m. (ET). I encourage you to submit questions either in advance of the webcast or during the live discussion via this link.
For those of you in McLean, please feel free to join us in the auditorium. I look forward to seeing you there.
Warm regards,
Gracia
11:21 - Enough drama already, get over it their are other things in life than your job. I used to be like you, not any more..just a pay check bro, that's all it is. Enjoy the day leave work at work and forget about GCI
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteSports columnist Tim Sullivan to join Courier-Journal staff
ReplyDeletewww.courier-journal.com
Sports columnist Tim Sullivan to join Courier-Journal staff
ReplyDeletewww.courier-journal.com
Tim Sullivan, formerly with the San Diego Union-Tribune, is the new sports columnist for the Louisville Courier-Journal. Previously, Sullivan spent 25 years with the Cincinnati Enquirer, 18 as a columnist. In San Diego, he was named one of the 5 best sports columnists for 2009 by AP Sports Editors.
ReplyDelete3:32, Dear "Bro", I no longer work for Gannett and would quickly fire anybody who viewed their employment as "just a paycheck". Not having an interest in your professionalism, or the company you work for would get you fired at most places. Saying "Bro" makes me think you're probably wearing a hat sideways.
ReplyDeleteYou forgot a few:
ReplyDeleteAntoinette F
Junior Rosario
Got good ole' Bob who is hanging on by a thread since he knows nothing about IT. What does this man do anyway?
Anonymous said...
Wilmington OC members who have left/fled since the arrival of HG:
Braun
Pinto
Roselle
Kane
Mika
Lemire
Who's next? Who's left?
Got my review today at The Republic in Phoenix and learned I got a 7 percent raise.
ReplyDeleteThanks 11:21 a.m. As a person facing a consolidation RIF in a newsroom, your final graphs rang well and true with me. It was a pick me up. I've been telling myself whatever happens in the next few weeks that I'm going to make every second count in the newsroom. I want to remember going out on a high note if I go. In rodeo terms: "This may be the my last ride, so make all eight seconds count."
ReplyDelete@5:13 . . . very entertaining AND informative. Seemed to have buffering problems about halfway in. The question for the lump sum of course is, what percentage rate do they use to "deflate" the expected payout?
ReplyDeleteFor example, I'm 55, and my former employer offered to buy out my pension for about 15% of the amount I might expect to receive over the 20 years (a typical life expectancy for a 55-year-old) from 65 to 85. I said "no thanks."
GM workers seem to have a hell of a pension, based on Leon's continued use of $500,000 - $1 mil lump sum example. No wonder they went broke.
Has anyone heard if there will be furloughs in the third quarter?
ReplyDeleteOr layoffs in the third quarter?
ReplyDelete2:40 since we are already in the third quarter the answer is no we aren't
ReplyDelete2:40
ReplyDeleteIt's happened before,don't be so smug.
2:40/10:05, what's with the never-ending obsession with furloughs and layoffs?
ReplyDelete3:58 - I need a week off to keep looking for another job.
ReplyDeleteRe: Furloughs and layoffs. Obsession? Golly, we've had plenty, so it's always a fair question. My answer is yes, just a question of when. Some forecasters are talking of recession, and when that happens, just what do you think corporate will do? They'd do well not to cut but to let the profit margin take a hit so we keep faith with our customers, both readers and advertisers.
ReplyDeleteWilmo? From the OC and just beyond you've forgotten:
ReplyDeleteMatt S
Greg B
Jill F
Amy N
Tom S
Doreen
Junior - I miss him
Where does the OC meet now? Broom closet?
What they neglect to mention about Eric Johnson is that he (and Mary Murcko) were dismissed from their positions at Rodale for being ineffective leaders. Having worked with both of them and watching their floundering, it was all style/no substance that was thankfully grounded by a team of intelligent sales reps/marketers under them. Johnson would be considered unhirable without the coattails of Murcko to cling to. Time will tell if they are truly able to bring something to the brand or if they will once again frustrate and alienate those who work for them.
ReplyDelete