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Saturday, October 27, 2012
68 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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My small USCP rag is on course to be down 1M pageviews this month, compared to last October.
ReplyDeleteSince it was behind a paywall then, I'll chalk that double-digit drop up to growing irrelevance.
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ReplyDelete6:29 - funny. The announcement that they were going to begin deploying paywalls was made in February, 2012. Your "USCP rag" either jumped the gun or you're full of it.
ReplyDeleteThere was a test group of USCPs long before the Feb 2012 announcement.
DeleteI bet all you Gannett workers are happy.
ReplyDeleteAnother week,another paycheck.
Another another week without being layed off.
Another week of wondering when the next round of layoffs will be.
Another week of coming to work and dreading it more and more.
another week-end of being miserable because you know Monday will come too soon.
Another week of your life wasted and given to Gannett.
Get the hell away!
The geniuses who gave us newsgate and presto have done it again.
ReplyDeleteWord is there will be an announcement soon about Sandy leaving Pointroll.
ReplyDelete8:51, I believe there were a few papers that had paywalls for awhile before the others did so.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that a blog like this probably would have never survived if not for all the layoffs and fear of layoffs. In one way or another, much of the content (and anger and anxiety) here is related to job losses.
ReplyDeleteNot saying that Gannett was a perfect company before the massacres began in 2008, but in hindsight, I wonder if any of the higher-ups regret having laid off far more people than necessary and the way the layoffs went down. Seems like those two years did more internal and external damage to Gannett and USA Today than all the missteps and mistreatment of employees over the previous two decades. Just the bad PR and loss of talented people who jumped ship has to have a monetary cost. The fear anyone should rightfully have before coming to this company now probably is probably also causing some recruiting issues, which translates into being less competitive in the future.
Wonder if Gannett leaders ever think about these things? Or do they just manage in the moment. Knee -jerk and often ruthless act after act. All for the sake of making a buck today. There is a real lack of vision, not to mention compassion, in this company. And it's gotten far worse since 2008, with no real hope of it turning around anytime soon. All we herar are more sugar-coated lies. There is no trust anymore. Just fear, fake smiles and trying to stay off the radar screen. Boy, that's a recipe for disaster.
Hello 9:05 a.m. What new ground are you -- and others of your ilk -- tilling with stale and tired putdowns of people still working at Gannett? We get it about working here: the negatives and positives. We have chosen to stay. You are gone. We are still here. You are now outsiders looking in. Maybe the mean-spirited carping and snide remarks help you therapeutically. In which case, please continue. I hope that you feel better.
ReplyDelete10:23 is correct. Gannett's first paywalls were launched in July 2010 at papers in Tallahassee, Fla.; Greenville, S.C., and St. George, Utah.
ReplyDeleteI have been to several events in Shreveport where the paper was always represented in the past, and is nowhere to be seen now. The fact that we got rid of our knowledgeable marketing person and we have no ad director and the publisher is MIA around the community makes The Times a forgotten business in Shreveport. What a difference a year makes.
ReplyDeleteThere are not enough people left to cover what needs to be covered. Those who are left are being sent to Latism conferences and investigative journalism workshops all while we have a mayor who bullies and disregards the will of the people. Or a story is done for the umpteenth time on a pastor of color whose church celebrates another anniversary - city does have many churches and clergy deserving of a story but acting features editor - the other was laid off - has never had a story idea of her own during her tenure there so stories are done as ideas are given to her. So it is feast or famine - events totally ignored or same story done yet again. But truthfully, the paper is becoming forgotten by more and more Shreveporters and advertisers as the joke is no longer funny.
DeleteBoilerplate letter is signed "Respectively, Margaret Buchanan."
ReplyDeleteNot "Respectfully," but "Respectively."
Showing Cincinnati customers that their local Gannett publisher can't even manage her office correspondence in a professional way.
Having Buchanan in charge just keeps on telling readers how much R-E-S-P-E-C-T Gannett has for them.
If only they had access to people who were skilled in reviewing and touching up written documents.
Delete6:29 AM here.
ReplyDelete10:23AM and Jim are both correct.
8:51AM?
Probably a G A N N E T T editor!
Meanwhile, GCI is down over 16% from it's unwarranted mid-September spike to $19.99.
ReplyDeleteLiving Social drags down Amazon results http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-25/amazon-posts-loss-as-livingsocial-stake-loses-value.html
ReplyDeleteGroupon "celebrates" one year since its disaster IPO http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20121026/ISSUE10/121029854/what-weve-learned-a-year-after-groupons-ipo
Not looking good for the daily deals biz
USATODAY: Whoever is covering the Manhattan murder of two children, suspected to be at the hands of their nanny, please print the correct facts. Lots of discrepancies in the story.
ReplyDeleteMaybe an update is needed by now. The age of children and other details are incorrect.
Gannett made to many cuts at GPS they lost alot of talented people and that is going to come back to bite them next year.
ReplyDeleteHow so, 2:38?
ReplyDeleteWhen they stop printing on dead trees they won't need GPS at all.
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ReplyDeleteWhy did Mike Coleman leave azcentral.com?
ReplyDeleteI heard he got a killer offer...
DeleteGood for him. He is the smartest digital guy in gannett.
DeleteWhat is the status of the Des Moines design studio taking over design of Louisiana papers? Just wondering how much longer those relocating have to keep their lives on hold for G A N N E T T. Apparently successful design studios are not within reach.
ReplyDeleteDon't you current Gannett employees wish you had left and gotten on with your lives like so many others that post here? Yes,so many of us left of our own accord,on our own terms,took a risk and are now loving life again.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about the other former employees who read and post here,but I can now come here without the terrible stress that I had when I was still with Gannett.
Gannett dominated my life for a long time,so yes I am still interested in the terrible happenings.But now it is like watching news that doesn't effect me.
This could be you,take a risk ,get a life!
Who is the moron who got rid of our access to the AP wire?
ReplyDeleteThe departure of Mike Coleman would be a tremendous loss for azcentral and for Gannett.
ReplyDeleteI second the comment above: Mike is, or was, the smartest guy in digital at Gannett.
He'll be a star somewhere else.
Des Moines has taken over some of the design for the La. papers (at least A section) using the existing front-end system the papers use. No word on move to Newsgate. The look of the papers is somewhat different from when design was handled by the statewide desk in Monroe. In some cases better, in some cases, so-so.
ReplyDeleteAfter suffering through poorly designed papers for the past three years, so much hope was placed on the talent in Des Moines to give readers pages that were creative, engaging and actually designed, not just laid out. Expecting more than a "somewhat different" look. I guess anything is better though than what came out of the consolidated desk.
DeleteJust got a glimpse of Sunday draws for Florida Today. Guess USA/Orlando isn't doing any better than Tenessee did. Looks like most S/C carriers are getting 100 or so added to their draws. Fine and good but most are already coming in with 300-400 returns each. Just think of what all that waste could buy!
ReplyDeleteThe management at The Republic laid off or forced out one by one their most experienced and knowledgeable people at azcentral, thinking that it was a just button-pushing assignment, a no-brainer and that anybody could do it. Their replacements -- what a mess. It's no surprise that so many smart people left.
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ReplyDeletePeople relying on page design to save these newspapers need to adjust their hopes. Prepare for failure.
ReplyDeleteI am weary from years with no raises and fighting to get basic supplies at my site and months of witnessing the GannettLocal crew being showered with gift packs, parties, snacks and other perks. If Gannett isn't going to treat all its employees the same, then it should at least house them in separate environs. Having to see this day after day is so demoralizing.
ReplyDelete2:24 - It's amazing what a juvenile environment Gannett has created at all its sites. This company is unrecognizable now.
ReplyDelete2:24 you are not a slace. Why is a talented person like you still here. Please tell us specifically why you are here
ReplyDeleteIn so tired of the bitching. I love my job. I really like working here. Why are people that haven't had a raise or hate the company still here. And don't tell me you live journalism. You can do that anywhere. Why are the whinners still here?
ReplyDeleteI used to love my job with Gannett, too. I worked endlessly and loyally. Was given great perks and was recognized many times for outstanding work. Then I was laid off. If it happened to me and thousands of others, it can happen to you. If you don't like bitching then quit coming to this blog -- current and ex employees have a right to air their grievances.
Delete5:19 You realize the irony of your comment, don't you?
ReplyDeleteJim
ReplyDeleteI get the irony. But your comment, and many others, reveals where you're coming from . I work for the company, and you're rooting for it to fail, transparently. That's rendered your blog irrelevant when it once had an impact. Nobody sees you as a voice of anybody but malcontents, nobody takes you seriously, and it wasn't always that way. You took it there, and I don't get why.
Jim you're so smug. Why on earth would a person disparage their employer and NOT find another job. They aren't slaves. Bitch, bitch, bitch. People are leaving all the time. If you haven't had a raise in three years WHY are you still here?
ReplyDeleteWhy am I still at Gannett if I hate it so much? In case you haven't heard, there's been a recession and the newspaper industry has laid off thousands of workers. That means that many of the folks laid off by Gannett have been looking for the same positions in the same industries where I'm applying. Competition is tight, though it is easing up. And I'm not willing to take any crap job just to get out. Let's just say I'm being selective and looking for a job that's an ideal fit. I'm working my network and slowly executing my plan in hopes that something will pan out soon. In the meantime, that's no excuse for the incongruent way that Gannett treats its employees.
ReplyDeleteTo the person who said they love their job: I once loved my job at Gannett, too. And I waltzed along while the company dangled the proverbial carrot of prosperity and career advancement, only to one day find myself being shat on and deemed practically obsolete — with no offer of any retraining or opportunity to transition to a more viable position.
As soon as the new breed prove incapable of meeting Gannett's lofty expectations, they, too, will be thrown under the bus. Gannett doesn't care about people; Gannett only cares about what people can do for them. Gannett doesn't care about its readers, advertisers or clients; it only cares about taking their money. The total absence of ethos is becoming the company's downfall.
Thank you 12:15 for your reply. So basically even though you like to crow that you are smarter than everyone you work for no other company sees what you see in the mirror and you haven't received any job offers. So instead you chose to disparage the folks that run the company that does pay you. Now that is a brilliant plan.
DeleteIf people didn't take this blog seriously, they wouldn't care what it says. Look at all the people at corporate who can't keep their eyes off of it.
ReplyDelete12:15 AM - "Let's just say I'm being selective and looking for a job that's an ideal fit."
ReplyDeleteFine. Then you've made your decision. If you continue to kvetch and caterwaul about the unfairness of life, you're just a big crybaby.
"...with no offer of any retraining or opportunity to transition..."
Nobody owes you a damn thing. The sooner you grow up the happier you'll be.
"...it only cares about taking their money."
D'oh. It's a business. That's how come it can pay you for your services. That's how come it managed to continue operations despite losing half its income over the last decade. GROW UP!!!
7:43 -- You are wrong about people not taking this blog seriously. As for finding another job or even career, it is easier said than done. I've been looking for another job for seven months. I got job offers, but I would have to take a substantial pay cut. I'm paying off an auto loan before I take a salary cut of tens of thousands of dollars.
ReplyDelete8:33 but make sure you disparage the company you work for while you pay off that loan because that's what smart people do.
DeleteSo if you work for a crappy company that treats their employees like poop you shouldn't complain until you leave?
DeleteI'm agreeing more and more with commenters like 7:43 p.m. This used to be a go-to place for useful information about the internal goings-on at Gannett and USAT. Increasingly, it's become a haven for whiners and agitated people who seem to take delight in disparaging and belittling others (which says more about them than it does about their targets of derision). Jim, it's your blog to do with as you wish. But reading the same, unoriginal rants, day-after-day, is tough going. It's also depressing. If the bitter people focused less on posting mean words and more on their own happiness, it might make their now-sad lives better.
ReplyDeletePlease find Susie Ellwood some actual work to do.
ReplyDelete1:02 she is the GM of USAT. She runs sales. No that's Maryam. She runs the newsroom. No that's Callaway. She runs Sports. No that's Beusse. She runs marketing. No that's Micek. Ok I'm confused.
ReplyDeleteAnyone notice how Jim doesn't ask for money anymore? Advertising must be good. How much you take in last quarter Jim? Or is that now a secret? No fibbing
ReplyDelete5:49 -- You are imagining things or falsely attributing comments to a poster. There was not a single disparaging word in my remarks -- at all.
ReplyDelete6:02 me thinks you protest too much.
ReplyDelete1. Jim's advertising. For those with a brain, that info is posted in the top right corner, for all to see. DUH.
ReplyDelete2. Excessively negative? When you have a CEO with no front-line experience, a CFO who is moon-lighting, when you have fools who want to re-live Banana-Gate -- WTF is there to be positive about?
And BTW: what about those who criticize Jim's stock price stories as "too positive?"
This isn't perfect. So go try and start something better. No one is stopping you - what are you waiting for?
IMHO, one of the most-weird thing about the current president is what he says about newspapers presenting different opinions in news stories. In other words, "I am the truth, get it from me, and me only." You don't like a thread -- turn off the PC. No one is forcing you to read.
6:32 the advertising section does NOT appear on the mobile site. That being said until last quarter he used to beg for money. He doesn't anymore and he knows why.
ReplyDelete2. The CEO knows more about the business of business than you and your hater pals will ever know. While you and your pals were holding court and pontificating what readers wanted they left you behind and we t elsewhere. The definition of arrogance is anchored in the newsroom. The emperor finally knows he isn't wearing clothes and you can't stand it. Go citizen journalists!!
The CFO is on a few boards. Who cares. A CFO isn't a controller. She has forgotten more then you learned in your high school accounting class. Well, I feel better!
Yes, Gracia has no operating experience, thanks for agreeing with me. You're welcome.
ReplyDeleteAs for the CFO - great catch by Jim. How many boards is the NYT CFO on?
7:14, you do Gannettoid so well. Too bad that isn't worth shit.
ReplyDeleteEven Big Al has hooted on today's GCI.
Being an ex-Gannetteer is kind of like Gregg Allman talking about his feud with Dicky Betts -- after all the hooting, just don't care any more.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you think something goes wrong -- do like Big Al and point it out. Not personal. Just experienced commentary by professionals who actually know how a newsroom can operate. It is clear that Ms. Gracia is watching this blog.
Uh-huh!
If Martore had actually media experience, i.e., a background in newsrooms, she would understand how poorly Usa Today and some other Gannett properties are run.
ReplyDeleteSee 1:41 that's why people hate journalists. You actually believe only you can donor understand the job. Hello? Oh sorry 1976 just called you. What's next ROSEBUD?
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ReplyDeleteActually, ROSEBUD was a decent writer - he did go to six versions of Choate.
ReplyDeleteYeah, yeah, facts. They're biased and KKK. Got it.
It's not just Digital Media, and News at Gannett that is failing. It's the whole concept. I was with them from the time they bought out the AZCentral, worked in IT for many years, only to one day, find myself out on the street, with many others. I agree, Gannett does not care about people. Not those who work for them, not those who purchase the product, or those who pay to advertise. These guys have enough money, they don't worry about being broke. Ever. They bought out a very good local paper, and website, and stripped it of all the local appeal. They destroyed a close family of workers. They sold out. Now, you see them. The sadness. The dispair. Not knowing if they will even have a job tomorrow. All for the all mighty dollar. I know several folks who are struggling. No raise in 5 years. Looking to get out. Just waiting until something happens, and they will walk out. No warning, no goodbye. Sad state of how to run a company if you ask me. I make the same ammount I did back then. But I get raises. I get bonuses for perfomance. I get told "good job" I work for growing company. Not a failing bunch of rich people trying to live off failure.
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