A column to make you cringe

Lee,
I'm neither 24 or shackled to a desk. The times have changed.

WE CAN'T DO THIS SHIT ANYMORE!!!

We, as an industry, have credibility issues with the public and should not do anything that would further compromise our credibility.
Accepting tickets. Wear that [SPONSOR HERE] sweatshirt. Wear that [SPONSOR HERE] hat.
It's not worth it, anymore. We're shooting ourselves in the foot.
John Carroll, a lecturer at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government and former LA Times editor, has a fascinating lecture on this very subject. I can't post it, because it's not my property, but if you request it through Harvard, the lecture is: "Return to Sender."

Just saying.

 

Probably not a good thing to have situations like futuristic columns running as-is in almost every paper in a chain, either.

But there's not much hand-wringing about that.

 

For once, I'm with you.
I just cringe every time I see his name or hear his work mentioned.
We're not alone. He got crushed at a couple APSE meetings last year.
He's taken a hit, too. He's no longer untouchable.

 

fishwrapper, the column is intolerable. Not much debatable about that. But journalism is hardly the only profession with credibility issues. A country lawyer from the sticks isn't flayed alive in front of his peers for pulling the same crap that goes on all the way to the top of the ladder.

This guy's not the first to do it and he won't be the last. The behavior has been introduced and learned at some level.

Nobody wants to hear this, but it's time to at least start thinking about a certifying license to practice journalism. All other disciplines that wish to be taken seriously do so.

 

You're com

You are comparing apples and bullshit.
Attorneys don't sell credibility or truth. They sell effectiveness.
Your analogous conclusion is a false one.

 

Wasn't that column in the SI Swimsuit Issue that year? So, wasn't he really taking an all-expense paid trip FROM HIS EMPLOYER to ogle swimsuit models? What the hell else kind of a column is he going to write for that issue?

Who are you going to rip next? All the guys who take a free trip to the Super Bowl on the company dime to file stories?

 

For all those who speculated this writer was a newbie who didn't know the ropes, I submit to you a clip from an obituary on said writer's mentor, Gatecliff (thanks to Google):

..."You knew if Jack asked you to cover something and you couldn't, he'd go out and do it himself," said Bill Potrecz, a 15-year veteran of the Standard's sports department. "His dedication was legendary."

That was in Sept. 2000, kids. So over 20 years in the business. Groan.

 

Canada feels the same way about you, Dye.

Oh, and the paper I mentioned and you deleted? The Simcoe Reformer. I don't work there and I don't personally know anyone who does. Since it's a newspaper where actual journalism is done, you obviously don't work there either.

 

If he's never been taught the difference, how in the FUCK does he have that job? Even if it is in Podunk, Canada, or wherever else.

Inexcusable and embarrassing, to say the least.

 

I agree with Tom on this one.

What may have been a better way to discuss this is to copy and paste the "column" in the original post with no mention of paper or writer. Then we could thrash away without personal pot shots, and stick to ethics, writing style and grammar.

 

Actually, I'm aware of how Canada feels. I only wish I had saved the unprofessional little booklets I found at a Thomson paper.

I was actually agreeing with your point and didn't feel I needed to keep your fellatio to one specific paper. We have henri for that.

 

I'm actually lucky in that I never worked for a Thomson paper. Believe me, though, I've heard enough horror stories from people who did.