This blog is mainly about the spectacular train wreck at The Sacramento Bee and its parent company, the McClatchy Company. But I also post about current events, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, politics, anything else that grabs my attention. Take a look around this blog, hope you enjoy it.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Sunday Feb. 1 -- Got news or a question?
If you have news or a question, leave it in comments. . .
22 comments:
Anonymous
said...
Here is a happy future to think about. Sending e-mails of every little thing you accomplished that day, “to at least five editors.” ----------- Memo sent to South Bend (Indiana) Tribune staff
From:[Assistant managing editor/news] Virginia Black Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2009 11:19 AM To: Newsroom Staff
This is targeted foremost to all reporters, who would send a daily e-mail the last thing before they leave for the day (or at the latest, the very first thing - 8 a.m. - the next day).
These e-mails would go not only to your most immediate editor but to at [least five editors,] including me. This daily e-mail would lay out specifically what you accomplished that day, what you need to finish or follow up on the next day, and what you plan to do that next day.
I think most journos realize that the new scaled down staffs will be doing multiple chores. The job will be stressful, but without the reward of a job well done. There will be a never ending stream of mistakes due to overworked employees. Worse yet, if you f**k up, there are thousands of journos ready to take your place. Not a pretty picture, but another door opens, right?
It would be insulting to expect a professional journalist to write down every little detail of their day. All that is missing is the school bell, [Ring] time to be in your seat, [Ring] time to go home.
A bell wouldn’t always be a bad thing, an employee takes a twenty minute bathroom break ten times a day, and then complains how rushed and overworked they are. Dark facts, but true.
If you have 15 reporters spending most of the day on the phone to the DNC or reading Daily KOS you could reduce costs by just having one or two gather the talking points and sharing them with the rest.
If you are not going to report the news, you should look for the most cost effective ways to not report the news.
It's not a bell, it's called Kronos...you enter your employee number, scan your finger or thumb on a little screen, and Big Brother tells you if you have been accepted that day. If it won't accept you, then you have to talk to "little brother" to see if you still have a job. Some departments...Maintenance for example...have to also use this system to tell Big Bro. what they are working on, when they started, when they finished, when they take a break, when they wipe; uh, the grease off their hands...well you get the big (little) picture. Wouldn't want some lackey wasting a few precious seconds before the USS McClatchy meets Davey Jones!
I, for one, look forward to the day when all of the fast food restaurants have menus without spelling, grammar or punctuation errors. Silver lining time.
I have a journo friend that makes a decent salary putting together glossy ad folders for a business. I used to put him down (only in thought) for giving up on the grandiose life I was leading. Informing the masses, being the government watchdog, and all that malarkey. The other day he offered me a place to stay until I get on my feet.
We had a comment once that said some newspapers have all their employees sign on and off through their online web page, making hundreds of extra hits they counted as customer traffic. Anyone know about that?
I put together a daily log for Jason Bigbutt at the KC Scar.
8:00-9:00 BM 9:00-10:00 Doughnut run 10:00-11:00 Break 11:00-12:00 First lunch 12:00-1:00 Chat with Rhonda 1:00-2:00 Rhonda detox 2:00-3:00 Second lunch 3:00-4:00- Prepare to go Home
Anonymous 3:15 PM, Absolutely the truth. It has been a requirement at our newspaper for about 9 months now. Not only was everyone in the building (not just the newsroom) required to create a login account, but we are required to set all of our browser start pages to our newspaper's web site.
Hundreds of computers multiplied by 5 times a week hitting that start page at the very least one time (more likely 5-10 times a day) of course this is going to give fraudulant traffic numbers, if even only a little bit, but it's very fitting, considering the company is a fraud and I'm predicting bankruptcy within this calendar year.
22 comments:
Here is a happy future to think about. Sending e-mails of every little thing you accomplished that day, “to at least five editors.”
-----------
Memo sent to South Bend (Indiana) Tribune staff
From:[Assistant managing editor/news] Virginia Black
Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2009 11:19 AM
To: Newsroom Staff
This is targeted foremost to all reporters, who would send a daily e-mail the last thing before they leave for the day (or at the latest, the very first thing - 8 a.m. - the next day).
These e-mails would go not only to your most immediate editor but to at [least five editors,] including me. This daily e-mail would lay out specifically what you accomplished that day, what you need to finish or follow up on the next day, and what you plan to do that next day.
http://poynter.org/forum/view_post.asp?id=13790
I think most journos realize that the new scaled down staffs will be doing multiple chores. The job will be stressful, but without the reward of a job well done. There will be a never ending stream of mistakes due to overworked employees. Worse yet, if you f**k up, there are thousands of journos ready to take your place. Not a pretty picture, but another door opens, right?
8:00 am: Helped rearrange Titanic deck chairs
8:45 am: Joined Titanic deck chair band.
4:45 pm: Telegraphed ashore bought 100,000 McClatchy shares at .50 cents
4:48 pm: Submit plan to repeat today’s tasks until rescue
4:49 am: Practice perky upbeat smile for tomorrow
It would be insulting to expect a professional journalist to write down every little detail of their day. All that is missing is the school bell, [Ring] time to be in your seat, [Ring] time to go home.
A bell wouldn’t always be a bad thing, an employee takes a twenty minute bathroom break ten times a day, and then complains how rushed and overworked they are. Dark facts, but true.
Anon. 7:53,
Good one! There is some excellent humor on this blog.
Thanks Archer05, Your Blog brings out the best and the worst in me.
More proof that you journos can't come up with an original idea- 2-1 7:53 stole my joke from 1-30 5:38.
If you have 15 reporters spending most of the day on the phone to the DNC or reading Daily KOS you could reduce costs by just having one or two gather the talking points and sharing them with the rest.
If you are not going to report the news, you should look for the most cost effective ways to not report the news.
“If you are not going to report the news, you should look for the most cost effective ways to not report the news.”
Howard Weaver just said you are a f**king genius for putting into words what he should have known for over thirty wasted years.
Tsk, tsk, tsk, you said a name we don’t want to hear.
Let’s talk about Barry Soetoro instead.
It's not a bell, it's called Kronos...you enter your employee number, scan your finger or thumb on a little screen, and Big Brother tells you if you have been accepted that day. If it won't accept you, then you have to talk to "little brother" to see if you still have a job. Some departments...Maintenance for example...have to also use this system to tell Big Bro. what they are working on, when they started, when they finished, when they take a break, when they wipe; uh, the grease off their hands...well you get the big (little) picture. Wouldn't want some lackey wasting a few precious seconds before the USS McClatchy meets Davey Jones!
Journos will become the fast food workers of the new media age.
Lots of workers, hopping around from one low paying gig to the next. Forever clinging to their Woodward-Bernstein fantasies.
I, for one, look forward to the day when all of the fast food restaurants have menus without spelling, grammar or punctuation errors. Silver lining time.
I have a journo friend that makes a decent salary putting together glossy ad folders for a business. I used to put him down (only in thought) for giving up on the grandiose life I was leading. Informing the masses, being the government watchdog, and all that malarkey. The other day he offered me a place to stay until I get on my feet.
We had a comment once that said some newspapers have all their employees sign on and off through their online web page, making hundreds of extra hits they counted as customer traffic. Anyone know about that?
I put together a daily log for Jason Bigbutt at the KC Scar.
8:00-9:00 BM
9:00-10:00 Doughnut run
10:00-11:00 Break
11:00-12:00 First lunch
12:00-1:00 Chat with Rhonda
1:00-2:00 Rhonda detox
2:00-3:00 Second lunch
3:00-4:00- Prepare to go Home
Anonymous 3:15 PM, Absolutely the truth. It has been a requirement at our newspaper for about 9 months now. Not only was everyone in the building (not just the newsroom) required to create a login account, but we are required to set all of our browser start pages to our newspaper's web site.
Hundreds of computers multiplied by 5 times a week hitting that start page at the very least one time (more likely 5-10 times a day) of course this is going to give fraudulant traffic numbers, if even only a little bit, but it's very fitting, considering the company is a fraud and I'm predicting bankruptcy within this calendar year.
Speaking of bankruptcy, how about setting up a poll or at least a post asking for readers' predictions on this question ...
Will MNI file for bankruptcy in calendar year 2009?
MNI is blowing in the wind.
I don't care how MNI is retooled. I will never use their web page. NEVER!
How do you know when a McClatchy employee is at your door? He/she is wearing a Domino's Pizza hat!
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