Lynn Hoppes: Keep your passion alive

And that's the problem, isn't it. The people who are in position to lead us out of this seem incapable, or unwilling, to do so.
Of course, maybe they're only in position in our eyes, as anyone in a newsroom is quite expendable to those who write the checks. And maybe that's really the problem. A Lynn Hoppes sticks his neck out and the head gets chopped off.

 

Standing idly by while that happens to others doesn't keep you at even, though. It earns your professional pride and your soul some major demerits. Let the Hessians drag one poor schmuck kicking and screaming out of the room, then pretend that those of you left behind haven't lost a little something.

Taking a stand by resigning is a nice step, so bravo to the John Carrolls, Dean Baquets and Anne Marie Lipinskis. But taking a stand by going back strong at those who write the checks, to the point where they "resign" you, might bring more of the madness into the light. (Even now, in many cases, they're just not making as much money as they're accustomed to making. The ones really in trouble are the ones who borrowed recklessly to buy these profit machines in the first place.)

Failing all of the above, well, try not to give empty atta-boy speeches to people who are already dead, bleeding or suffering shell shock.

 

you're not familiar with your office's number?

 

Exactly! Can't say it any better.

 

but, joe, how is he supposed to "lead us out of this"?

for many, "this" is dead ... or it soon will be.

jrc, gatehouse are on their way out. cnhi is next, singleton after that and then the bigger fish start falling. and nobody is buying. these cocksuckers saw an industry with a huge ROI, bought as much of it as they could on credit and then raped it without ever having the intention of paying off their debts before their corporations go BK.

i mean we possibly can extend "this" and get more on the way out the door, but the crystal ball isn't cloudy. we got fucked down the stretch run. we lose.

maybe i'm just a little bitter today, or maybe i'm just seeing things more clearly.

 

I wasn't expecting Lynn to pull a Dean Baquet and take on the owners. I wouldn't see much purpose in that. I'd just like to see APSE do something for the victims and not take the Mike Brown/FEMA approach when hundreds of people are suffering. That's all.

 

one thing this does is make me feel a little safer at my little hyper-local local .... who was it that said we're the cockroaches of the industry? I'm hoping they were right.

 

I don't see that as being wrong. You're providing the one thing that will arrive on the Internet last ... the hometown sports.

 

Look, if the level of frustration and bitterness over what is happening to the industry has reached a point where you can't have passion for your profession, maybe it's time to find a new profession. And I really don't want to sound flip or unsensitive to other's situations.

I understand what people who are critisizing Hoppes column are saying. And maybe as president of the APSE, maybe he could do some of the things others have suggested. Hoppes, however, still is right about keeping your passion alive.

And this isn't simply for journalists. I went into this as a career because I have a passion for journalism, but I would assume that others went into their professions because they have a passion for what they do. It's sad to think that you would go through life in a career that you have no passion for no matter how difficult the times.

I acknowlege that some day, I too might get swept up in what is happening to others in this industry, and it scares the shit out of me. In the meantime, however, I'm not going to wallow in bitterness and misery nor approach each day with a negative attitude. I can't control what might happen. All that I can control is how approach my job every day, so I'm going to continue to have the passion for this job and enjoy what I do for as long as I can.

I tend to be an optimist so hopefully we're at the bottom of what is happening and over the next few years things in the industry rebound -- maybe not newspapers by themselves but integrated but the marriage between the web and print. Maybe there is a business model that works and as the economy eventually heats up again, we'll find it.

 

Joe, I think we're on the same page here. It is absolutely the job of a top editor to fight for everything they can get for their newsroom in this environment. It should be part of the job description. And those who bend over without a fight to the beancounters? Well, they deserve what they'll get at the hour when our ship comes in, as Dylan put it.
That said, you can't force someone to pull a Dean Baquet when they're not ready to. And sometimes you are better off staying put and fighting that fight than quitting in protest, or "being resigned" and having corporate replace you with their pliable chosen one.
Still, I agree, there's no point in lame atta-boys for the laid-off. If that's the best you can do, don't write the thing.
In other words - and this is nothing personal about Lynn - I wouldn't expect much out of a Lynn Hoppes-letter-to-APSE in this situation.

 

Sam Craig has a pretty good point earlier about the loss of passion.

If you have lost it, whether it's because of what others have done or just because you don't have it anymore, looking at another profession might be the way to go. Chances are that's not going to get any better in your later years.

But, to echo another thread, it ain't exactly as if you're pipe-fitting 8 hours a day.

 

Because someone isn't pipe-fitting doesn't mean someone should feel good about the industry.

Next time you're really sick or in the hospital do you think, "Hey, this is great because someone is sicker than me?"

No.

Pipe-fitters also make a lot more money than many journalists.

I don't think it's OK that thousands are losing their jobs because guys like Singleton can't seem to make media work or want to line their pocketbooks.

It's like the gas industry. Everyone cries shortage while Exxon just reaped the largest one-quarter earnings in the history of American business. People get upset about a so-called shortage when Exxon and their ilk could've kept the price a dollar less per gallon and made "only" 30$ BILLION last quarter instead of $65 BILLION.

... I guess I'm not pipe-fitting so we should all feel great?

Not buying it.

* BTW, the cat icon has worn out its welcome.