Lee joins the cutback club

I mean, for anyone in sports, I'd say if you're only even thinking about how you can help the news side now because of the coronavirus, then you haven't been doing your job all this time.

I've passed countless news tips to reporters, and they've passed sports tips to me if they get them. And I've written for the A section, and they've written for sports. The line of "well, they'll make too many mistakes in a sports story" is dumb. That's why someone in sports edits the story.

Bottom line, if I get paid the same no matter what, I don't care too much what I'm asked or supposed to do.

 

Admittedly, I know nothing about web analytics. We have a guy in our shop who handles all that.

But reading you guys' insight is helpful. I should probably make an effort to learn more.

 

Excellent post. Glad you didn't back down from that manager who clearly was trying to intimidate you, perhaps make sure you didn't think you were doing a better than average job for the next evaluation.

 

That's because you are a good, probably a great journalist. It's probably in your blood to do a good job no matter the circumstances. My beef is with managers who make decisions that don't even take into consideration the reporter.

 

Community service. Makes newspapers look like they care about the communities they cover, which at the ground level is true (not at the top obviously) The problem is nobody cares that the newspaper is doing the community a service. They should be charging, just as the grocery stores are not giving away the toilet paper and the hand sanitizer.

 

And that is reason No. 1000 Fredrick bashes management on this forum.

 

My last shop, we had a gas line crisis that basically meant people were without heat for a week to a month, in the New England winter. Initially, a bunch of the articles were behind a paywall, but that was lowered - The rationale being that this could be a legitimate life or death situation for some people, and you don't want to have like, a list of shelter locations behind the paywall. I think it's bad optics to be charging people right now, if you're a news site... but also, if you can't convert those people into paying subscribers with a gentle 'nudge,' it might suggest you have bigger issues. (Like, I've seen that 'please become a subscriber' thing on some Gatehouse sites, and its just drawn the ire of the existing readers. I think the hole might be too deep for that organization to ever regain reader trust.)

 

Good post. I disagree on the bad optics, though. Nobody is giving away toilet paper. Newspapers if they truly cared about not laying off their people could have used this important time to sell some subscriptions. If newspapers aren't even going to try, well there's no reason to feel sorry for us, just put us out of our misery.

 

Those $5 for 3 months subscriptions going to save the paper!!

 

I defy somebody to tell me why newspaper articles on the pandemic should be free when this business is laying off reporters in huge bunches. Makes no sense. Another example of this poorly run industry. I said it before: Think the toilet paper/hand sanitizer people are giving the public a break? Of course not. They are trying to sell so much it'll keep their own CEOs so happy. No organization is. Why should newspapers be different? You say "as a public service." Well the public isn't helping newspapers out any in normal times by refusing to read one/buy one. Of course they are not worth buying but that's a different topic for now. Newspapers get a period when stories matter to the public and they .... make them all free. Typically stupid decision.

 

We've been at Junck status for a long time and now investors are seeing the results of her handiwork. Proud, Mary?
Lee Enterprises Receives Notice From NYSE to Comply with Listing Standards – Editor & Publisher Magazine- Newspaper & News Publishing Industry News

 

Lee is the most profitable of the chains. The genius of American investing, Warren Buffet, has endorsed its management when he sold his chain to Lee and took on all the companies debt.

I say these things not to praise Lee management but to point out how completely screwed up the industry is.