Manhattan, KS

Real estate has skyrocketed in the last two years in Manhattan. Apartment complexes seem to be going up all over the place, but rent is certainly not cheap, at least compared to the last three-five years.

 

Real estate has jumped because of the expansion of Fort Riley. More military families means the need for more places to live, which in turn leads to Economics 101 — supply and demand. Compared to the other Manhattan, yes, this one is cheap. But compared to many remote Midwestern outposts, not so much.

 

Folks:

Pardon me if I'm violating a code of ethics on this board, but I thought I might try to clarify some of the issues about our opening. My name is Ned Seaton, and I'm the general manager here at the Manhattan Mercury.

We're looking for a new sports editor.

That person will be in charge of the sports section, period. The person in that position will report only to our executive editor.

It is true that our previous sports editor is still working for us and will, for the foreseeable future, cover K-State sports. He is valuable in that position because of his experience and contacts on that beat. But I want to emphasize that he will report to the sports editor. The sports editor will manage the section and will make assignments. Furthermore, if the sports editor wants to spend time providing additional coverage of K-State events, that is certainly welcome.

In practical terms, we are going from a two-person staff to nearly a three-person staff. (The former sports editor is not considered a full-time employee.) We expect that our sports section will be better than ever, and we're looking for a person to lead it.

Hope that helps. Feel free to contact me for more information.

 

That's weird that being a beat reporter for a Big XII institution's athletic program isn't considered a full-time job.

Oh well, sounds like the new SE will have the freedom to take the football and men's basketball beat for himself and can stick the old SE with wrestling, golf, etc.

 

Thanks for setting things straight, Ned. I have a couple of questions ...

1) If the new SE decides that it would be better for the paper if Mark covers a prep game or other event while he/she covers a K-State game, would that be allowed? It sounds like Mark is (for lack of a better term) a sacred cow who will be wielding an awful lot of power for a part-time employee. Having the No. 1 beat manned by a part-timer who is basically untouchable and is the former SE is a rather uncomfortable situation for the new SE to step into, don't you think?

2) I've been around Big 12 country for a while now and have always been surprised that Mark has been allowed to be the SE there, and also been a writer/contributer/editor(?) at one of the K-State fan sites (the Scout site). I find that a phenomenal conflict of interest to allow your SE to wear both the hats of an unbiased journalist and an unabashed fanboy for such a Web site. It virtually guarantees that there will never be a negative word about Kansas State in your newspaper. And now, with Mark still on the beat (and presumably calling the shots, to some extent), that figures to continue. How do you reconcile this, and do you think this situation will make the SE opening an easier or tougher sell to the top candidates?

 

1. I suppose a new sports editor could feel threatened by Mark's presence as the K-State beat writer. I won't pretend that the potential conflicts don't exist. But I suspect there are a lot of editor jobs where there are already people manning certain beats with a good deal of experience; they're not the sort of people you're going to want to come in and fire or reassign immediately. (Does the sports editor at the Detroit Free Press have the ability to can Mitch Albom?)

I guess I don't find anything terribly unusual about this situation. The sports editor's judgment will be important and taken seriously by the executive editor, by me, and by the publisher.

2. The arrangement with the fan site you describe is not ideal; it came about as part of the beginnings of a relationship between us and that site that never really materialized. But that arrangement works like this: Mark can send feature stories to them after they're published here. That's basically it. The truth is that Mark has been an independent critic of the K-State athletic department for many years -- and in fact we have regularly published letters to the editor from fans complaining that we are far too critical. I think anybody paying attention will recognize that we call them like we see them. For anybody NOT paying attention -- well, I can't account for that.

Good questions.

 

Thanks for the frank response, Ned.

I just think in a sports department, there's got to be one person who has the final authority to make the call, and the situation you've described, at least when it comes to K-State, that line looks pretty blurry. Say the SE wants to take Mark off a K-State game for whatever reason and cover it himself, can he do that? Can Mark veto it? Would the SE have to go to the EE, you and/or the publisher to get it done? Those are questions good candidates are going to want addressed and spelled out beforehand.

The partnership angle helps the fan site deal make more sense; I'm just surprised it has been allowed to continue after the relationship didn't work out. That's just from a "perception is reality" standpoint.

Again, thanks for the feedback, and good luck in your search.

 

Any time a new SE comes into a situation like that, things will be shakey. It's like that with any new job regarding a shift in management.
The bottom line is, you either get on board with the new SE, or get out. I've done both in my career and don't regret a single decision.

 

This isn't unheard of. I believe over in Lawrence, the new SE still has the old semi-retired SE on his staff.

 

Shaggy is correct. However, to be fair, the semi-retired SE only covers preps and some of the minor KU sports. He is very rarely involved in KU football or basketball.

 

Props to the GM for engaging in the discussion. The fan connection is not ideal and the former SE lurking is odd, but there figures to be enough K-State news for two for the foreseeable future.

 

If I were hired as SE, I'd instruct Mark to end all relationships with the fanboy site, period. Immediately. No leeway here. If he objects, I'd diminish his responsibilities. If he causes problems, let's just say there'll be some newsroom issues and the upper management will have to make choices.

If they side with me, good. If they side with Mark, then it's a newsroom I want no part of anyway, and the interview/lodging/relocation costs is their loss, because they couldn't claim in court that I was let go because of incompetence on the job. Remember, the perception of potential conflict of interest is as damaging to one's reputation as actual conflict of interest.

If he has extra pull of the K-State beat, that sucks but I can cope. If he compromises journalistic integrity, I can't cope.