DFM bloodletting continues

Hey all the non newspaper people running news organizations decided preps are not worth covering. Don't get enough hits. This is despite the fact real newspaper people for years recognized the value of covering preps. Names will always make news and sell. But the non newspaper people decided their lazy lazy inefficient sales people can't sell preps and there will be declining prep coverage until there is none. Now there will have to be coverage of preps however when something happens at a game like somebody punching a referee or a parent running on the field attacking a ref or coach. Coverage of preps is over, folks. It was decided long ago the clicks aren't there. And with inefficient sales people, just forget about it.

 

How much differentiation is in the editorial content of each paper in SCNG. Are there enough staffers left to put out a stand alone product.

For example in Long Beach is there still a sports staff? What do they cover? The PAC 12 and pro teams must be shared beats with other SCNG papers.

 

When it comes to the large pro/college beats, none. It's all shared. USC, UCLA, Rams, Chargers, Lakers, Clippers, Dodgers, Angels, Kings, Ducks, MLS/Soccer all have their respective beat writers that share among the group. Long Beach's sports guys covered preps, JuCo and Long Beach State, but there's no sportswriters at the P-T anymore. Long Beach is now covered via reporters/freelancers stretching their area across county lines or further south.

Outside of the preps coverage, they basically are a stand alone product. Pick up any edition of any of these papers and flip to sports, and aside from the little things tailored to each (preps, or maybe Angels/Ducks on the OCR/RPE cover) it's the same product put out by each separate division. Editors span multiple papers or responsibilities.

 

Bob Keisser, former P-T columnist, was the stringer for #1 ranked Long Beach State volleyball gamer the other night.

 

Keisser was deleted a couple of layoffs ago. Tom Hoffarth, the media columnist who was the most high-profile deletion this time, did have a column over the weekend on ARod's venture into broadcasting. I haven't seen anything official, but it appears Hoffarth might continue to do the column as a freelancer.

 

In other DFM news I am visiting family iN Denver, I bought the Denver Post. Two sections and 24 (reduced size) pages. Why bother?

 

Thanks for reading.

 

Carl Steward retiring after 40something years with BANG, in one of the better farewell columns I've read recently:

A sportswriter reflects on four decades of fun. frivolity

 

That was very good. Thanks for sharing.

 

Excellent.
Too bad Versatile is not still around to post that is it too long and who gives a fuck.

 

Good stuff, thanks for sharing. I especially liked this comment: