Berkshire cuts?

Or with the rise of the internet, a lot of people realized that their local columnists didn't have a monopoly on insights into the local teams.

 

Perhaps, justglad. I don't know, though. How do we know they are not popular? We're trusting suits to make that decision? How the hell do they know this? Reader surveys? Cmon. I thought years ago the suits decided game stories must die (they are only kept because there's nothing to run in place of them because of early deadlines nowadays). Now the suits decide columnists are not important? Here's fredrick's perceptive take. Please read: I say the editors are getting worried that they are gonna get laid off next. Columnists make 'almost' as much money as the editor suits. So hmmm the suits decide, "Guess what? Columns are not important? People want the news and want it fast. Yes! That's the ticket. Get rid of the columnists one by one and that is significant dollars saved (and they won't come after me ... yet)." Guess what editors, once somebody starts firing one of you, everybody will be firing editors. Nobody needs an editor will be the mandate. Think of the $$ we'll save!! But for now, pity the columnists. They apparently are under siege of the suits.

 

Nice of you to pat yourself on the back for your "perceptive take."

This is perceptive ...

Seriously, man, you become more and more of a joke of a caricature with every rambling, ranting shit-stained diatribe.

 

Typically how many page views will a sports columnist get? It has always been my impression that a popular sports columnist would drive a lot of traffic. Based only on my observations of the most viewed items in newspaper websites the only sports pieces that would generate more views would be tied to the most popular team the paper covered.

 

It's been a few years, but I was once the web editor (suit?) in Charlottesville, so I saw the numbers and one I paid attention to was the way people entered the sites. A lot of readers must have had Jerry Ratcliffe's author page bookmarked, because as many people entered that way as the home page.

 

There were no layoffs, only voluntary buyouts, but "voluntary" is debatable if the new(ish) management is telling the senior sports columnist he's no longer writing columns. Idiotic move. Some Bills fans are celebrating -- he was "too negative," they say. Well, duh. When a team doesn't make the playoffs for SEVENTEEN FRIGGING YEARS IN A ROW, they still expected sunshine and rainbows?
The paper was diminished with the departures of first Margaret Sullivan and then Lisa Wilson. Waving goodbye to the columnists who were the face of the section, with BN-branded radio and television shows in addition to their writing, will only hasten the decline.

(I'm biased -- I count both Bucky and Jerry as friends -- so take that as you will.)

A note: They do still have Mike Harrington, who's currently in Vegas for the Stanley Cup Final, writing columns. With some senior editors also leaving the department, we'll see how everything else shakes out.

 

Bah ... just another dumbass in a suit.

 

An interesting summary here:

What's Happening with the Buffalo News?

 

The last part, discussing Sullivan and Gleason, is awesome.

 

Did anyone read the link in the story to the Buffalo News editor's email to the staff last month? Brutal.

 

Brutal, indeed. But not wrong.

 

Does anybody have a membership to ABC circulation numbers from auditbureau.com?

Please PM me, I'm curious about the numbers of a newspaper.

Thanks in advance.