The subcription secret

I know that newspapers are having a hard time keeping subcribers ... but this tactic is just going too far....

Got me thinkin'

Doing all this research on state capitol reporting and the decline in recent years in coverage of the statehouse has really got me thinking. The relationship between reporters and politicians is a funny one --- symbiotic, actually. We need them to do our jobs and they need us to do theirs.

So what if reporters stopped covering the statehouse completely? What would really happen? Would state legislators simply cease to exist? Would they sit out on the Captiol steps, wailing about how they can ever be expected to do their work effectively without reporters conveying their wants and needs to the public, and having the public's wants and needs conveyed to them?

I doubt it. But that doesn't mean we should continue to pull manpower from the Capitol. The media has a very large influence on the issues that most Americans think about everyday. And without the media a lot less information about a lot more important issues would never be disseminated.

That's why the slim press corps at the statehouse now is a perfect remedy for politicians - they still get what they want out of reporters, but they know that watchdog element of journalism likely isn't there.

Sure, the daily grind of statehouse proceedings aren't always sexy or scandolous, but come on ... this is where the action happens, where taxes are raised, where laws are implemented, where aspects of our daily lives are dictated.

So we should pay a little more attention, that way we can do more than just report the obvious.

PBS doesn't like the smack talk

PBS is defending its decision to partner with Al Jazeera English to provide news coverage from around the world.

In this statement, Marc Rosenwasser, executive producer of PBS' Worldfocus, talks about the benefits of pairing with different global news outlets "to help provide American viewers with a unique perspective on international news."

Certainly no one can deny the inherent bias that all news organizations have - despite their efforts to shy away from such biases. It's human nature right? No matter how hard we try, we can never truly be impartial. 

That's why real news mongers who want the truth usually seek out multiple articles on the same subject to get a well-rounded view. 

So maybe the partnerships that the execs at Worldfocus are fostering are a sign of what's to come in the future of news. 

Facebook for Dummies?

I just ran across this crazy article about Facebook users having lower overall grades than non-Facebook users.

Of course, participants in the survey - which also found that Facebookers studied significantly less than non- Facebookers - defended their use of social networking sites. And researchers in the study were quick to say they weren't proposing a direct correlation.

But it's an interesting factoid, considering that 85 percent of undergrads use Facebook, compared to 52 percent of grad students. And let's not forget the massive push toward social networking sites by news organizations across the globe struggling to attract younger audience members. Maybe this is something they would want to tuck away in their little audience profile.....

But what does it really say? Well you can look at it in a few ways: 

1. Nerds aren't on social networking sites

2. It's too hard to keep your grades up when you're focusing on all those darn status updates

3. (And seriously speaking) Young people today are flooded with a number of distractions and social activities both in the real world and online  ****hint: In order to get their attention online, news sites have to be that much better

After seeing this, I knew print newspapers were still good for something......

Some of my favorites? Hardy-Harr and Wacker-Dailey

Good news is better?

Apparently, the man behind the Good News Network is claiming his Web site is prospering in light of all the bad news that is taking over newspapers pages, radio airwaves and television news screens these days.

I don't know about you, but I'd like to see some stats to back that up.....

Now you've gone and made 'em mad

Looks like this week's meeting of the Newspaper Association of America has brought out the fighting spirit in newspaper executives across the nation.

Their no. 1 beef: big business Web sites like Google that aggregate their works without actually paying for it. 

How nice of them to bring up ----- now what?

It seems a bit late for newspaper moguls who've been dealing with this issue for years to want to take action now. Not to mention that to be fair, sites like Google aren't the only ones "stealing" content, if you will. If organizations like the NYT and AP start charging highly trafficked Web sites to use their content, are they going to do the same for the small-time bloggers that sometimes cut and past chunks of news articles that clearly aren't theirs?

It's easy to say there's no reason to scold the little guy --- they're not making any money, right? But there's still that issue of copyright - if that really is the issue, of course. 

Another day, another lost benefit

What's next?

First it was 401K benefits, then furloughs, now vacation benefits. It seems MediaNews Group just can't get its debt under control, so its having its employees do it for them.

The latest blow to our paychecks: between now and the end of July, we will not be accruing vacation time. I think it comes out to like 2, 4 or 5 days depending on how much vacation accrual the employee gets --- but still, that's just one less incentive to come to work everyday.

I know I know, we should be pulling for a company. Not that I'm rooting for any other team -- but the more they take away, the more of our spirits they take away.

My classmate is faaaaaamous!

Well, kind of. Tim Lynch got a shout out on LA Observed after news came out that he would be leaving the L.A. Times after almost two decades at the newspaper giant.

I've talked to several people who described Lynch as much more than just a "senior copy chief." They've likened him to the man behind the music --- basically the A1 guru. They also seemed saddened by the idea of a longtime cheerleader for journalism leaving the business.

A sign of the times, (and the Times) I guess.

The brave little paper that could

Execs at the Christian Science Monitor are heading in a direction that so many other newspapers just can't seem to comprehend yet.

Starting Saturday, this 100-year-old publication will be online only ---- with the exception of a printed "weekly edition for subscribers and a printable three-page daily news digest by e-mail."

The CSM is hoping to eventually drive all of its readership to CSMonitor.com, the publication's Web site.

A lot of news outlets have been dabbling with the idea of online only products, with some newspapers cutting down their publications to several days a week. It seems, however, that most newspapers just can't make that leap. 

I know the argument: "The Web is making any money." Hey, the CSM seems to admit that times are going to be rough at first, but at least they're taking the leap.

If more newspapers - or news outlets in general - followed suit, major advertisers may not have a choice but to pay for ads online. That may, in turn, make web advertising costs more competitive. But we won't know unless we try.

Hence, the CSM gets my brave Little Engine award of the week. 

If plants could Tweet

My last post was depressing. 

This one is just plain disturbing. 

I mean really, using Twitter to tell when to nourish your plants? I mean, isn't a little H20 twice a day and some plant food good enough?

2008-09 Newspaper Homicide Report

Wow, now this is depressing....

Tales from a furloughed reporter

I got this classic tale of a day in the life of furloughed journalists from Kirstin.

Perfect timing considering I also just ended a 5-day furlough that did wonders for my mental sanity, but will ultimately make me crazy all over again once I get my next paycheck. 

Funny thing is, if Dean Singleton and his corporate cronies were hoping that in addition to decreased expenses, these forced furloughs would also provide some much-needed inspiration in their workforce, they may have been on the right track. Going back to work this week, I felt fresh and motivated - which essentially means ready to work 12-hour shifts again without paid overtime. 

And there is talk that these first-quarter furloughs could return in the next three quarters of the fiscal year. I mean that seems to be the trend at Gannett. We employees at Media News stand to lose 8 percent of our salaries if we were furloughed five days each quarter - that's a big chunk, especially if you're a hot shot manager making upwards of $100,000 a year. 

I guess the joke's on us.

And by the way, that bit about the furlough beard ---- one of my editors sorely beaten by the fact that he's pretty much been at half staff for the last month and a half is threatening to bring back a morale booster that tried earlier this year: The Moralestache. Yup, a morale mustache. 

I-News

I love how there are new, innovative strategies being implemented by my own corporate company in my own newspaper division, in the area I work in, and I don't even know about them!

Talk about corporate communication.

Anyway, Reporter G reports that Dean Singleton is rolling out a pilot program at the Los Angeles Daily News that will allow subscribers to pick what stories they want to read "via a stand-alone printer hooked to a phone line or through a web-enabled device." The service is called I-News and is supposed to unfold this summer.

My first beef: As referenced above, is that fact that we employees in Media News Group haven't even heard about this. What, no input? Especially since - if all goes well - this may or may not be implemented at some point in other papers.

My second beef: Great idea --- maybe if it were 20 years ago. I thought the whole idea of coming up with innovative plans to save the newspaper industry dealt with less printing and more targeted, or online endeavors? I mean, if it were me, and I'm already tired of getting a print newspaper everyday, why would I just then print it from home? Would I have to re-stock my own paper? Re-stock my own ink? Pay for those supplies? Might as well find articles I like online, and if I chose to, just print them from my home computer. No need for a little device I likely have to pay for to print a nice, newspaper-ie version. Or give me a Kindle-like device where I can see some sort of digital, PDF version of the newspaper, and just reload the daily paper each day.

My third beef: Reporter G goes on to highlight Media News Group's idea to possibly cut the number of daily editions to three if the LADN I-News service is success. Would have been nice to hear this straight from the horse's mouth.

A fond farewel

No, I'm not saying goodbye to newspapers ... not yet at least. 

I finally got a chance to read the LA Times'  obit on legendary editor Jim Bellows today. It was refreshing and moving to ingest the piece, which recalled fond memories of Bellows' dedication to journalism - like when the KKK, in response to a story he was working on, poured so much liquor down his throat he passed out. 

You rarely see those kinds of characters in newsrooms today, mostly because staffs have shrunk, salaries have decreased and workloads have doubled. My own editor - who worked under Bellows for a while at the Herald Examiner - even admitted that the kind of journalism Bellows encouraged way back when just doesn't work today.

Why?  Long, literary journalism is just too long for today's readers, it doesn't include enough 'keywords' to make your articles more easily searched online and you can't take a week off anymore to work on one story. With about a quarter the number of reporters in the newsroom, we're making more with less. 

But does it really have to be this way? I have to say I was a little irritated when my editor made those comments, just because that's EXACTLY the mentality that has most of us reporters down in the dumps in the first place. There doesn't seem to be the same kind of passion, the same kind of drive and the same kind of push from hard-ass (pardon my French), but motivating editors who really mentor and lead in their newsrooms.

Who says that kind of storytelling can't work today? Maybe not in the print product - but nothing in the print product seems to be working, so why not take those longer pieces online? I've long suggested special projects on the internet that give readers what they want, and allow reporters to do the kind of good journalism we're taught to do. 

But I guess hit-based journalism has really taken over. Gosh, Bellows would be disapointed. 

Run!!!!!!!!

I had a very interesting conversation the other day with a longtime newspaper guru...

This person - who shall remain anonymous - was talking to me about an intern he was thinking of hiring. She was young, bright, in college and very ambitious - essentially, she had a rough, undeveloped but promising nose for news and a look in her eyes that showed she was fired up about civic journalism.

Now, under normal circumstances, this person I know would have hired her in a heartbeat, then brag to his mutual circle of professional friends about what a great intern he's got. 

But we in the newspaper industry - and the news business at that - are certainly not under any normal set of circumstances. Our business is changing, dying ... whatever you want to call it, and of all us in it are struggling to survive.

So what did this anonymous person I know do with this intern? He hesitated. He thought twice about hiring this free, willing- and ready-to-work pseudo-employee out of fear she would get sucked in to the cyclone that is the news business.

"I just wanted to tell her to turn around and run. Run!" he told me, in so many words. "I kept asking her why do you want to get into newspapers? Why?? Don't you know what's happening to us?"

It's a typical reaction among a lot of newspaper editors now. But It's just sad to think that the same people who spent years of their life devoted to journalism, would now be advising the future of the industry to "Run! Run and never look back!"

Bye, bye Rocky Mountain

It’s a sad day when a newspaper older than the incorporation of Colorado itself goes out of business.

The Rocky Mountain News, which published its first edition back in 1859, topped their last front page Friday with a letter to readers announcing they would be no more.

The newspaper covered Denver and Colorado.

Is this a sign of the end? Many of the television news stations seem to think so. I've already seen about handful of reports this morning about "The Day the Paper Died," "The End of Newspapers," "A Dying Industry."

It's amazing how television news will latch on to one topic and run with it. I doubt it's the end of news. Certainly, the fact that a publication as old as Rocky Mountain - which was less than two months away from turning 150 - has folded is depressing and ominous, it isn't a paralytic for the rest of the newspaper industry. Just a sign that newspapers, and journalism as a whole, need to work harder and faster at a cure to this disease called the Internet.

A sign of the Times

Patterico got a hold of a memo California Editor David Lauter sent out detailing the changes to the A section as the paper shuts down its California section.

Among the changes, fewer feature stories, shorter stories and less "zoned" Orange County coverage. Lauter comments the changes will not affect good journalism, and the paper continues to strive toward impactful content. But let’s face it, they’ve essentially decided to merge the content from one entire section into another.

Logistically, that is going to mean less stories, and likely less coverage of something — local, national or international news coverage.

Seeing as the L.A. Times is to many the premier paper for Southern California, I’m assuming this could mean less national and international coverage.But we’ll have to see how it all plays out.

Tough times at the San Francisco Chronicle

The Hearst Corp. announced yesterday it would be making “significant” cuts to its staff and/or possibly looking for a buyer for the beleaguered San Francisco Chronicle.

If all that fails, they’ve said they would consider closing the operation down completely.

The SF Chronicle is one of if not the largest publication in Northern California.As a Pulitzer-prize winning paper, seems a shame if it would completely shut down.But I guess that is the reality of the business today.

Cuts coming to the Daily News

The Los Angeles Newspaper Group, which includes the flagship paper LA Daily News, is talking more and more seriously about a universal copy desk stationed out of the San Gabriel Valley Tribune's West Covina office.

We're already a few weeks into a combined copy desk with some of our inland papers. 

Talks of this of universal desk has, of course, also brought talks of layoffs. And it looks like those rumors might be true...

Speaking of state capitol reporting...

This week we're going to be discussing the changes in state capitol reporting among news agencies. Like many other quote "superfluous" bureaus, news outlets are cutting back on the number reporters stationed at locations like Washington or their respective state capitols.

In California, it's no different and I seemed to witness this firsthand this past weekend while dealing with state budget stories for the newspaper group I work for.

As the weekend editor, I often pull stories from the Associated Press to run in our papers, the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, the Pasadena Star-News and the Whittier Daily News. Over the weekend, we had budgeted to pull an AP story on the state budget, and just add quotes from our area politicians to localize the story. 

It was Saturday night, about one hour before our first deadline and the AP still hadn't moved a new story. Their latest version was from about four hours before, and didn't reflect the most up-to-date news. So getting a little antsy, I decided to call the local Los Angeles AP desk and ask them what was up with the story.

When the AP editor picked up, she gave a bit of insight that nearly threw me off my chair: "We've only got one reporter in Sacramento, so we're waiting....." One reporter? Really, ONE REPORTER??? One reporter covering the largest state deficit in California's history? One reporter covering the fate of a budget packet that could potentially raise taxes on gas and sales tax in the state? One reporter covering a record 30-hour legislative session that had lawmaker falling asleep in their chairs?

I mean, we're talking about the AP here, which has reporters stationed all around the world and provides content to hundreds and hundreds of news agencies. And yet, they could only spare one reporter to cover a possible resolution to California's $42 billion budget deficit.

Talk about a loss in state capitol reporting.... At least I got a story by my deadline.

Bonuses and layoffs were 'coincidental'

Talk about bad timing.

It appears the A.H. Belo Corporation — which owns The Dallas Morning News and The Providence Journal among other holdings — announced almost simultaneously that it would be laying of more 500 employees and giving out bonuses to managers who hit their financial marks.

There’s an explanation for the oxymoron, of course: the layoffs are needed as a cost-cutting effort and the bonuses were promised to these managers a year ago.

Still, doesn’t this kind of remind you of all those banking industry execs who were giving themselves bonuses and planning lavish corporate trips while at the same time receiving bailout money?

I’m just saying....

More changes in my newsroom

One of higher-level managers has "resigned," and his work is essentially being split between two other high-level managers.

Do I smell a forced retirement here?

Just one more way to consolidate positions and save a big chunk of money, I guess....

Times' cut to Cali section starts an uproar

It's been less than a week since the L.A. Times announced it would be cutting its California section, and folding local news into the A-section of the paper ---- and already, the move has sparked a bit of an uproar.

Aside from the fact that the move will eliminate dozens of jobs, a lot of people were close to the local section and don't want to see it disappear.

A Facebook group to save the section had 2,200 members Wednesday morning. It was started by Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti .

Why did I become a reporter again?

Oh right, to encourage the public's right to know, expose corrupt public officials and, essentially, save the world ---- or at least my local community.

But I gotta make a living too, right? Not gonna happen in the newspaper industry, it seems.

After an already difficult past few weeks for employees at MediaNews Group -- which included a freeze on our annual pay raises, lay offs and cuts to our 401K matching benefits --- us employees were dealt another blow today.

I was not so pleasantly surprised to receive a text message during my lunch break from one of my colleagues telling me to, "Check your e-mail ..... mandatory furloughs!!!!" It seems upper, upper management sent a memo to all employees during our lunch hour informing us that between Feb. 1 and March 31, we must take a mandatory one-week furlough to save the company money, and help prevent further layoffs.

First thought: "What the @%$^&!*?"
Second thought: "Nice of you to tell us AT lunch."
Third thought: "I don't feel so good..."
Fourth thought: "What, only three days notice?"

They say it's just another sign of the tough financial times. I mean, we're not the only ones, Gannett newspapers announced earlier this month they would be implementing the same measure for its employees, for the same reason.

Although, I have to say, sometimes I wonder if newspaper moguls are being opportunists at the same time? Taking advantage of cost-cutting efforts, and piggybacking on a faltering economy? Last time I checked with the Securities Exchange Commission, MNG's Dean Singleton was still raking in over a million bucks a year.

I'm not denying the rutt newspapers are in, but the question still lingers in my mind. Along with that other question about why I decided to slave away in an industry that forces me to take on a second job in order to may my bills.

Clearly, I'm no Mother Theresa.

Big changes at the newspaper I work for were in the works Monday. 

The copy desks for all of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group (which includes, among other papers, the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, the San Bernardino Sun and the Los Angeles Daily News) are merging and moving to the Tribune's West Covina office. 

Actually, they've already done it.

Bosses say the merge won't result in any layoffs, though to tell you the truth, no one seems to believe that line. 

Several of the copy editors I've talked to are just waiting for the guillotine to come down at some point. Their take: Once everyone gets comfortable in their positions, and the bosses figure out this universal copydesk can accomplish more with less, they'll take advantage of the situation. 

Typical industry speculation, and can you blame them?

Seriously though, despite what you believe, the merge WILL mean earlier deadlines for all of the LANG newsrooms to help ease the transition. It's interesting, because this notion of deadlines for the print product always brings a question to my mind: Why don't we ever focus on deadlines for our online edition? If we're moving in that direction, why don't we have an online organizational budget and then just worry about the print product after all is said and done? Do we really have to wait until all the stories are read and on the page to put their complete versions online?

Just one more frustration to add my to my list, titled: "Grievances from Employee #4323"

Coming home

Dean Singleton, CEO of Media News Group ---- the company I happen to work for ---- is in town today, though I doubt he'll pay a visit to some of his smaller publications.

We never know what visits from the head honcho will mean for our struggling company, which like so many other newspaper groups is laying off employees and cutting benefits to make ends meet.

Word is Singleton will be in Woodland Hills, at the office of the Los Angeles Daily News. Apparently, he pays L.A. a visit at least a few times a year, though I've never met him.

Since questions about impending employee layoffs are always answered by our more immediate bosses almost as politically as some of the state legislators I talk to everyday for stories, I wonder what Singleton would say if I asked him directly whether or not I should be worried about my job?

I should probably stop talking now.

Impending doom at LAT

Via L.A. Observed, (one of my personal favorites by the way) it looks like more cuts could be coming to the Los Angeles Times pressroom. 

Just another day in the newspaper business, I guess. 

Words to the wise

As news agencies - particularly newspapers - continue hacking away at their staff, reporters are increasingly turning to blogging to supplement their incomes, or at least feed their creative beasts. 

But blogging 'aint easy, and neither is gathering enough of a following to make a buck out of the hobby. 

So Scott Joseph, a restaurant critic who recently took a buyout from the Orlando Sentinel, offers some tips....

Tomorrow's news is old news

Its days like this that really make me stop and ponder the future of journalism as we know it. By noon today, if you hadn’t watched President Barack Obama’s inauguration live on television, you probably read about it on the Internet, saw photographs of the estimated 1.4 million people in the crowd via Yahoo! or watched Obama’s entire inaugural address on YouTube.

That’s the business of news today - today being a keyword here. The immediacy of the World Wide Web has and continues to change the way we get our news. It isn’t a day old anymore by the time we get the full story --- it’s up to date and late breaking.

Yet I guarantee come tomorrow, the majority of front page headlines will read something like this: “The dream realized,” or “Change has come” or something to that affect. The story will more than likely focus on the happenings of yesterday - the inauguration - instead of focusing on tomorrow - in-depth analysis of what lies ahead.

Now I’m not saying all news outlets are going to fall into this routine. But truth be told, some mediums just can’t let go of yesterday’s news and how we report it. Let’s face it, by the time we open up those newspapers tomorrow (if we even read the newspaper at all) it’ll be filled with the things we already know rather than the things we should be thinking about.

Let’s hope, for industry’s sake, that changes.

An NYT bailout?

Well, sort of.

Carlos Slim, the world's second richest man, is apparently mulling a $250 million investment in the New York Times Co.

Bloomberg reports the telemarketing billionaire from Mexico "may buy 10-year notes that are convertible into common stock and receive a special annual dividend as high as 10 percent on the investment."

Talk about a leap of faith. Slim already has holdings in the company, but if approved, this new deal would really bank on a turnaround in revenues at the company's flagship paper. Like so many of its counterparts, ad sales at the New York Times have been drying up despite the fact that the NYT is the nation's third-largest newspaper publisher and has one of the most trafficked news Web sites. 

An announcement on the deal is expected to be made today.

Welcome

Just a friendly hello from your blog host........

Welcome to The Pica Report, where hope and cynicism about the future of the news industry collide. 

I hope to feverishly keep this blog updated with the latest trends, announcements and forecasts in the media business. As an inside surveyor of the newspaper industry, a lot of my posts will likely focus on that side of the coin - but I'm not pigeon-holing myself just yet. 

The nature of news is changing, and I'm here to offer some insight - or at the very least, a few chuckles.