Best/worst newspaper companies?

Yeah, I forgot about Wick, Paxton, Ogden and Forum Communications. Don't know too much about Wick or Forum, but Paxton definitely belongs near the bottom. I'd say the same for Ogden.

Anyway, maybe I should update the list based on what everyone's telling me. How's this?

The Fuck-My-Life-Tier

All of them

 

No Heartless Communications on the list either?

 

Added.

 

This was at a Heartland paper: My GM ruptured her Achilles and was going in for surgery at 12:30 pm at the hospital across town when the group publisher walks in her office 15 minutes before she left and told her that she was being demoted to ad rep, her pay was practically just commission and that if she didn't make her goal for the following month she would be fired. She couldn't say no because she had to have the surgery. HEARTLESS!

 

Should have said yes, had the company pay for the surgery, and take the month off on disability to send out resumes.

 

Surprised Lee Enterprises didn't get a spot SOMEWHERE. They have more than 50 dailies in the US. Having worked for them for two years, I would rate them middle-of-the-pack. I've certainly worked for worse.

PS: Is Ottaway Newspapers still in business?

 

There are the scumbag corporate chains ... and then there is Heartland Heartless. Already know two personal stories in which they've gone out of their way to be as inhumane as possible, then there's the above ...

 

I work at a Lee paper too, and I agree with your middle-of-the-pack assessment. In my case, I have pretty good in-office management; it's the corporate management (or as I like to call them "the bean counters in Iowa") I usually have problems with because of the staff cuts and the inability to upgrade any of our technology (our software versions are probably about five updates behind).

Of course, the paper was under Pulitzer control the first couple years I was there. They were great because at the time, we had a decent sized staff (although the pay was still an issue), and we were able to get yearly bonuses my first two years there. Then, Pulitzer sold out to Lee.

Looking back, I realize things would not have continued to be so good under Pulitzer had it stayed on. I believe the family members saw the writing on the wall, got out, and let the succeeding company do all the dirty work as far as budget cuts and stopping the bonuses and 401k matches.

 

That's the thing about Rivals. Success really is incumbent upon the publisher and his/her staff. Rivals/Yahoo assists and provides a ton of guidance, but it's still up to you. I think that's the one thing most people outside of Rivals don't understand, and in turn that leads to skepticism about its long term survival.

 

Because you are desperate.

 

Shouldn't Gannett have a special spot at the bottom because if its influence? It's like the Charlie Manson to the family in a way.

 

Exactly. I don't know this guy's situation, but in so many situations you go where the job is. I'm guessing he didn't want to go back to work for Gannett, but with a lot of chains, if you go back, they'll reinstate benefits immediately and stuff like that.

It's stories like that that make me grateful that moving around wasn't an option for me.

Just about wherever you go, you're just waiting for the next shoe to drop. The exceptions used to be the one percenters, the ones who were at a level higher than 99 percent of the rest of the people in the business because they were so good at their jobs. But with places like FanHouse closing, even the one percenters are looking for work.