Sports editor, Martinsville (Va.) Bulletin.

Believe it or not, I think MG would provide an improvement over what they've got now. I know one paper that flipped to MG from a family-owned deal, and salaries/bennies went up across the board.

If I were an MG muckity muck, I'd buy Martinsville, combine it with Danville, Eden and Reidsville and turn it into a 45-50,000 circulation paper with three zoned editions (Danville, Martinsville, North Carolina). But that doesn't seem likely.

 

Ouch. Just how bad is this Ginny person? Be gentle, I'm a newb and just want to know about what I once avoided...

 

i did but i heard nothing back.

 

She's not a bad person, but she is a bad editor. She micro manages like no one I've ever seen, and she is not receptive to anything that deviates from the status quo. If you like constantly being told what to do, getting all the blame and receiving no credit, then this is the job for you.
As for MG, I believe it will happen, but not until the current owner dies. I know that's a bleak thought, but it's the truth.

 

And call it the Sandy Level Crack Rock-Times ...

I love the idea of MG moving in on Martinsville. MG has a bad rep (what chain doesn't?) but on the outside looking in, it beats the heck out of some other chains. Not sure how much competition the M'ville zone faces from G'boro or Roanoke -- both are readily available around there, sort of leaving the Bulletin the middle ground. Sort of like the N&R is France and the Times is Germany -- and Martinsville is the 100 yard patch of scorched earth between the trenches.

But I'm all for combining the whole lot, putting Drew in charge and paying him about triple what he's getting now.

 

Yeah, I meant as an editor. Was this paper any good before she arrived? I've been here for a short while and all I've heard is that this person has ruined the paper.

 

nuthin', damn. set one on a T and nobody balls up.

 

Most of my Bulletin-reading experiences took place on race weekends there, but from the looks of it, Roanoke is more of a player. They have a bureau or at least a reporter down there, whereas Greensboro doesn't encroach into Virginia's Southside communities. If you live in Rockingham County, you'd could wind up with one of four papers (Greensboro, Martinsville, Eden, Reidsville) depending on where you were.

Adding Martinsville would give MG a straight shot along the Va.-N.C. border from Danville to Bristol.

 

It seems to me that Ginny ought to get the message after all this time that her style of micromanaging doesn't work. Think about all the turnover. Maybe she just doesn't care. SEs come and SEs go. Just plug someone in there. I was so unimpressed when I interviewed there three years ago. It's too bad because Martinsville could be a good gig if the right leadership was in place. But there's no possibility of that happening until she retires. And she is definitely a lifer.

 

I'd say it's more the GM and the owner than her, but her lack of a spine definitely doesn't help.

 

I've heard that too. My opinion is based on my less than enjoyable experience of meeting her. I spent four years working for a publisher who worked banker's hours and second-guessed everything. It's something I won't repeat.

 

I can't believe you have a moogle as your avatar.

I can't believe how much of a nerd I am for knowing that is a moogle.

*sigh*