Monday, December 16, 2013

Dec. 16-22 | Your News & Comments: Part 1

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31 comments:

  1. Heard some talk at a Christmas party last night that a Florida Regional News Group is in the works. The HQ for the region, according to the scuttlebutt, would be at Fort Myers. One edition to span Gannett's dailies in Tallahassee, Pensacola, Melbourne and Fort Myers.

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    1. Pensacola's closer to Nashville, Greenville and Shreveport than it is to Ft. Myers. Hard to believe that even the most hardnosed beancounter would think that lumping North and South Florida together would be a good for business.

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    2. If it means saving $1 Gannett will figure it out - :)

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    3. Proximity to other cities means nothing. Pensacola is actually closest to Montgomery, but so what? The Florida cities share the same state government, plus tourism, college athletics, development, environmental concerns, agri business, crime/legal issues and such. The markets may have different demos but they are more alike than different. No different than Greenville and Asheville.

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    4. Proximity means nothing for a local newspaper? That's a weird thought, and at odds with a "local" strategy..Proximity certainly means a lot to readers. And it means a lot logistically — there's a reason the News-Journal's printed in Mobile and not Tallahassee.

      You've got it backwards. Pensacola has more in common with Montgomery and Mobile than with Ft. Myers (including college football). Tourism and agribusiness are very different industries in the Panhandle than in SW Fla. And no, nobody in Pensacola would give two thoughts to the crime rate in Ft. Myers — they're far more likely to be impacted by crime in Mobile, Gulfport, New Orleans or Houston.

      Greenville and Asheville at least do have proximity going for them (about the same distance as between Pensacola and Mobile). It's hard to see what economy of scale derives from lumping together markets hundreds of miles apart that have so little in common. And anything remotely resembling a combined statewide edition — for anything other than capital coverage — will land with a very painful thud, at least in Pensacola.

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    5. Only in the self-congratulatory bubble that is the C-suites of the Crystal Palace could "proximity mean nothing" in local newspapers. That is laughable, though the result will not be.

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    6. 7:00 pm is so uninformed it is laughable. Asheville, NC and Greenville, SC ARE the same market.

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    7. 12:18 you are obviously not very bright yourself. Asheville and Greenville are very different markets.
      Different states, different economic engines, different segments of people, far more blue collar in Greenville. Yes, they are close, but there is miles and miles of mountains in-between.
      Gannet has been trying to shove them together for years. I know, I live there.

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    8. Readers in Brevard don't care about Ft. Myers, Pensacola, etc. What the heck is Gannet doing? Don't we have ANY newspaper people left running the show?
      This kind of talk makes me want to puke.

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  2. I saw in a couple of threads back that Shreveport's controller was laid off. This is not surprising. Take it from a Ft."Colliner". I survived by staying out the lights. Queen Judi runs Louisiana like she ran Ft. Collins and will destroy anything that does not resemble "her" physical needs. I bet anyone that the controller was just the opposite of Judi (physically). What about your past editor. Is the new editor a "but kisser"? We have several players leaving Ft. Collins joining Judi at the "White House" in Lafayette. The only prerequisite is "but kissing". Shreveport get this skill under your belt and you are sure to move to Lafayette's "White House". IT WILL NOT LAST LONG - EVERYTHING THAT SHINE AIN'T GOLD and the "but kissing" skill will be a thing of the past!

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    1. Nobody in Shreveport is buying what the editor and publisher are selling. The advertisers who posted on the blog a few weeks back summed up the attitude in town about The Times. Look at the most popular photo galleries and very few if any ads are sold. Shreveport used to love its paper but not anymore.

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    2. "Ft. Colliner?" Nice try faker.

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    3. I thought so too. And why bring up anyone's physical appearance - kind of rude. :( I think It's all about the money and consolidation.

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    4. 9:00 & 10:27 you are right on the money
      11:11 & 1:07 good luck

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    5. 9 am is probably right. Sad that someone is laid off due to their physical appearance -- maybe it was just the almighty dollar. But you need to learn it is BUTT kisser and not but kisser! LOL

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  3. "What do you mean?" "Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?"

    "The Hobbit"
    J.R.R. Tolkien

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  4. Whoa. Not that long ago several posters were complaining that the controller had too much power calling her "a co-publisher" They said she was lazy and needed to be dealt with. Which is it?

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  5. Nice to see some humor! Thank you, 10:02 AM.

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  6. Whoa: Christmas Party, WTF is that. Must be nice, enjoy while you can

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  7. There's one or two malcontents in Shreveport who keep posting, trying to make everybody think they're a crowd.

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    1. Watch out -- Jim gets his panties in a bunch when you accuse the small flock of trying to seem big.

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    3. As much as one might dislike Gannett and/or its leaders, posting home addresses is just wrong. You put innocent people in possible danger, not to mention somebody trying to act upon such juvenile encouragement. When the haters pile on, such as this poster, Gannett security sends armed guards to the residence. They don't mess around. Be warned.

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    4. "There's one or two malcontents in Shreveport who keep posting, trying to make everybody think they're a crowd."

      Sums up the whole strategy here. That's why there are so many quiet spots. Plenty of views, just a few posters.

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    5. Since there's only one or two people left employed in Shreveport, I guess that makes it unanimous.

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  8. Ha - I was thinking the same thing???? Who has time to post on here they are all working 4 jobs ~

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  9. I'm curious as to whether Gannett has considered the effect the decision to use Facebook for commenting on people who would make well thought out critical comments on questionable police activity. In the past I have contributed a number of critical comments regarding questionable police shooting. With anonymity no longer an option, I no longer contribute. Has anyone at Gannett read officer comments on websites such as Policeone? Law enforcement officers don't like criticism. Some have even discussed remembering the name of someone who has offended their community in order to extract retribution in the form of harassment. Judging from comments I've read, in the eyes of most law enforcement officers civilians have no right to question their use of force. On articles concerning police shootings of unarmed civilians commenting using your real name may be hazardous. Is Gannett trying to stifle public debate on questionable law enforcement shootings and other questionable law enforcement activity?

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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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