Wednesday, October 03, 2012

Oct. 1-7 | Your News & Comments: Part 3

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35 comments:

  1. Today's Gannett PR story full of too many buzzwords:
    http://finance.yahoo.com/news/usatoday-com-creates-better-viewing-120000506.html

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  2. Cincinnati Reds are tied for the best record in MLB and what does the Enquirer lead with today on their website? Not coverage of the game last night which they won to stay in the chase, but a gallery of their favorite Pete Rose photos.

    They want people to pay for that???

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  4. Seriously, 8:44, any English teacher would shudder at this so-called sentence:
    " The new USA TODAY offering leverages comScore's validated Campaign Essentials (vCE) and Digital Analytix Monetization tools to optimize inventory and validate that digital ad impressions have been seen by a desired target audience, a clear requirement for delivering superior advertising performance and the accountability the industry has long needed. "

    *chokes*

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  5. A supposed communication company should strive to communicate as clearly and effectively with the widest possible audience.

    We are trying to attract audience, right? Or did that come off the purpose wall?

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  6. Please pass on to USAT. They missed a site during the updates.

    http://optimus.usatoday.com/

    (side note ... it only works well in Chrome and Safari)

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  8. When Cincinnati.com puts inane photo galleries all over its front page, it's a sure sign that traffic is tanking. I know ... I used to work there ...

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  13. I've been around newspaper companies, including Gannett, for 35 years. While this blog certainly leans negative, particularly the comments, nothing here surprises me.

    Gannett has been bashed by journalists and savvy readers since the beginning of time. Charges of age discrimination, even at the flagship USA TODAY, have been around forever. The smaller papers have always been sweat shops. Gannett/USA TODAY never sought "superstars." Pay, at best, was middle of the road, even at the larger metros.

    If you were willing to sort of hold your nose and look the other way, you could get a foot in the door at Gannett. You could even stick around awhile if you were one of the few favored sons or daughters in the newsroom. If all went really well, you could work your way up to USAT as a loaner-to-perm employee.

    Nowadays, Gannett still treats most of its journalism like garbage. The USAT loaner program has been gone for years. Layoffs are still targeted at mid and late-career professionals. Hiring of older workers, unless executive types, is almost non existent. Leaders capable of motivating the troops through methods that don't include fear or coddling are rare.

    Look, there might have been one or two worse chains than Gannett over the years. Thompson Newspapers comes to mind from back in the day. But Gannett is still standing, still putting the product a distant second to profits. Still using tactics against the competition that are less than honorable.

    Integrity is non-existent at the top. Has the recession and transition to digital made things worse? Yes, very much so. But the core of the company has been rotting for years. The dishonesty, the lack of loyalty, the selfishness -- heck, this is the stuff that Gannett is built upon. Working your way "up" to USAT isn't an escape. Getting onboard with the online platforms won't save your job if your over a certain age. No, the only way to deal with Gannett is the proven method of holding your nose and looking the other way. Keep on smiling and relish being in denial about how horrible a company Gannett is. That's the way you outlast others who tried to make the place better.

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  15. Is David L Hunke still around or did we miss his "retirement" party?

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  16. Worked for Thompson. Worked for Gannett. Greatly prefer the former over the latter.

    Thompson wise enough to get out of the newspaper industry before it ended up where it is now.

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  17. Hey USAT folks, someone please fix the audio at 00:10. http://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/nation/2012/10/03/1610925/

    How annoying.
    Please proof your stuff. It's getting embarrassing.

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  18. At least Thomson wants to give me my pension. $38/month for the rest of my life.

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  19. T H O M S O N

    D U H

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  20. The David L. Hunke special commemorative pullout section will appear in copies of USA TODAY on Fri Oct. 12.

    It will be packed with all of Dave's biggest accomplishments while at The Nation's Newspaper, including s special Verticals status report and a transcript of his now famous "I'm the best salesperson sitting at this table" speech.

    Readers will also get a sneak peek at Dave's retirement plans (hint: he will live in the DC area and work with local charities. In Dave's words, "we have to make a difference in this world).

    Look for it on newsstands.

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  21. TODAY

    When Big Al and McCork bought our papers, it was possible for print newspapers to make good profits. And, believe it or not, Wal-Marts were closed on Sundays.

    Well, the world changed. And stupid, small and common won at GCI -- take a look at Cinci, a hick town's hick town. USAT could not be launched with today's Gannettoids -- their blue b*lls are too sm*ll.

    Get the best clips you can. Do the job. Try not to laugh too much at the Gannettoids -- it is not nice to make fun of the handicapped.

    LOOK/TRAIN for other options. Watch out for the "shiv in the back." Don't look back -- look forward. Send Jim some money.

    Good luck.

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  22. 4:25, please provide specifics to back up your constant "hick town" put down when you talk about Cincinnati. You are obviously an expert on the city - educate us.

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  23. 4:59, please don't feed the troll. He's getting really fat lately and some of us are pretty bored with his antics.

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  24. I worked for both and Thomson grew its business by adding people and products. It wasn't the best chain, but they treated us fairly, didn't cut staff, didn't discriminate and invested in infrastructure. They never did invest a lot in investigative and other cost-consuming journalism, but I went to more out-of-state training sessions with Thomson than any of our newsroom went to in 10 years with Gannett.
    Thomson also wasn't top heavy, either at the corporate or local levels.
    And Thomson was smart enough to get out of the newspaper biz at the right time.
    I smile every month my Thomson pension comes - I had actually no pride in working for Gannett, and it gets worse every month.

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  25. HICK TOWN

    Anonymous said...
    4:25, please provide specifics to back up your constant "hick town" put down when you talk about Cincinnati. You are obviously an expert on the city - educate us.

    10/03/2012 4:59 PM

    1. Banana-gate -- only Gannettoids in a Hick Town could ignore the obvious --

    http://bit.ly/SX3tZ3

    2. School marms in positions of power -- res ipsa

    3. Whining at world-class levels appears epidemic.

    4. Publisher with no executive standing

    ---

    Anonymous said...
    4:59, please don't feed the troll. He's getting really fat lately and some of us are pretty bored with his antics.

    10/03/2012 5:04 PM

    >> Thank you for elevating vacuous and stupidity in one fell-swoop. You bring retromitigency to new heights.

    >> How long does it take you to get your 'stupid' on, every day? Not long, it would appear clearly to anyone with an IQ over 85.

    Please keep up the Hick Town health care union dumbness. And put some money in the e-mail to Jim, even though you probably don't know how to use a calculator accurately. Just make it out to $250,000.00. Thanks, and keep not working very hard.

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  26. "The new USA TODAY offering leverages comScore’s validated Campaign Essentials (vCE) and Digital Analytix Monetization tools to optimize inventory and validate that digital ad impressions have been seen by a desired target audience, a clear requirement for delivering superior advertising performance and the accountability the industry has long needed. The implementation of validated impression measurement is part of USA TODAY’s overall strategy of creating a premium advertising environment through guaranteed viewability and large-canvas advertising integrated into the user experience."

    scat singing in print?

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  27. 5:29 as I suspected. You don't know jack-shit about Cincinnati.

    Thanks for clarifying.

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  28. Right now, among the three national dailies, I'm getting the best live feed on the Obama-Romney debate tonight from the WSJ's site. That's compared to the NYT and USAT.

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  29. What criteria are you using to say that the WSJ video feed of the debate is better? Its a pooled feed.

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  30. The WSJ's transmission was better -- less of the stuttering, for example, that I saw on the NYT's site.

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  35. LOL

    "You don't know jack-shit about Cincinnati."

    You need to find meaningful work. Good luck.

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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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