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Friday, May 01, 2009

Is The Mourning Call Planning More Layoffs?

A few months ago, when I reported that then Editor Ardith Hilliard was on her way out at The Mourning Call, somebody posted this comment anonymously. "Bernie, she is in her office right now, why don't you call her instead of putting rumors out there?" I called. No answer. I wrote to Vicki Mayk, the newspaper's mouthpiece, for the party line. No answer.

A few weeks later, Hilliard was history.

About a week ago, a reporter at another paper told me more layoffs are imminent at The Mourning Call. I did nothing. Wednesday night, I learned the paper is about to launch another new, i.e. leaner, format. I did nothing. Now, someone has anonymously posted what purports to be a David Erdman memo to Mourning Call staffers. Erdman is the Editor, or Captain Queeg, of the sinking ship known as The Mourning Call.

Because the memo is posted anonymously, I'm unable to vouch for it. But because it is obviously written by a prick, I suspect it's authentic. Here goes.

Memo to Morning Call staff from editor David Erdman

I'd like to share more details of an upcoming newsroom reorganization and redesign.

RESTRUCTURING

As you know and we have discussed before, we are facing business conditions and industry changes that are causing us to restructure, become a smaller and more streamlined operation, not only in the newsroom but across the whole company. As part of the May 5 format change, there will be corresponding page reductions. In this punishing economy, unfortunately this will mean additional expense reductions, including job changes for some and job eliminations.

This restructuring will better position us to endure economic conditions and continue to serve the Lehigh Valley with the best journalism from the top news organization in the region. As we implement this change, we will remain true to that mission, focusing on journalism and information on which our readers and the community rely on us most.


We already have begun talking to some individuals about new roles they will assume as part of this restructuring. We will be talking to more next week.

We will be notifying those who will face job elimination early next month.


That nine per cent drop in daily circulation should tell Erdman and all the other Zellions that people are simply unwilling to pay for an inferior product.
Update: The Erdman memo excerpted here is authentic. It is posted in full by Jim Romenesko at Poynter. I actually would prefer to be publishing a mea culpa.
Update #2: You will note that some of the comments have been deleted by a "blog administrator." A glitch at Blogger.com made it possible for anyone to delete anonymous comments on any blog. Somebody was unable to resist. That problem seems to be resolved.

Friday Evening Update: Morning Call Eliminating Another Seventy Positions

Details are in an afternoon update at The Morning Call. Publisher Tim Kennedy circulated a memo to staffers earlier today. Below is a verbatim copy.

Dear Colleagues,

I want to update you about changes we plan to make to the newspaper starting next week and actions we are pursuing to reduce costs further. As we have discussed repeatedly over the past few years, the traditional newspaper business model is broken and we fight hard every day to build the foundation for a new one. It is painfully ironic that our audience reach has grown and has never been stronger while our financial results continue to worsen. As you know from our company communications, our advertising revenues decreased 27% and operating profit decreased substantially for the first quarter of this year. We must take action and reduce costs now in order to maintain other investments that position us for future growth. Here are the details as they stand today.

Newspaper Format and Design

As with all of our content changes, the readers’ needs remain our true north. As we reduce overall resources and shift ever more focus to our digital platform, we must find new ways to highlight our differentiated local content and create efficiencies throughout the process. On Tuesday May 5th, we will debut a new format that is easier to read and improves reader navigation. Prototypes will be available and posted around the building over the weekend. To be clear, while the need to reduce labor and newsprint was the motivation behind this effort, the newsroom leadership has responded with a streamlined, visually appealing and comprehensive new format. Importantly, we launch new content with these changes including new interactive reader features, one being kicked off by “Marley and Me” author and Coopersburg resident John Grogan.

For more details on the changes, including significant advances in our approach to build a Web-first newsroom, I invite you to visit Dave Erdman’s blog at http://opus/blog/.

With this new format, you will notice other changes. The first section will now include all news – local, state, national/world and business. We also introduce standard modular advertising units. This approach should allow us to more dynamically price (up and down) for ads which will yield more revenue. And we should see some efficiency gains in layout and design.

Costs Reductions

With the actions we are taking now, we plan to reduce our annual costs by $3-4 million. These reductions will come principally from compensation and newsprint. Over the next few days we will eliminate over 70 positions. While some of these positions are open, we are offering severance and saying goodbye to about 50 current friends and colleagues. This is painful. Our intent is to contact all affected employees by the end of the day on Saturday. We will try to treat everyone with dignity and respect. At my town hall meetings the issue of furloughs has come up repeatedly. At this time, we do not plan to institute any mandatory furloughs.

In addition to these workforce reductions, we are reducing discretionary spending across all departments.

In closing, it is fair to ask: Are we any closer to our vision? We entered this period of industry transformation and severe economic decline from a position of strength. Today our audience reach is unrivaled. Our newsgathering force is the largest in the Lehigh Valley. We are faster and innovate more today then yesterday. And you remain dedicated and do amazing work, every day. I remain confident in our One Team vision and your determination to build a thriving Morning Call. We will conduct town hall meetings next week to discuss our near term strategies moving forward.

As always, I thank you for your hard work and dedication.

99 comments:

Anonymous said...

How will the mayor communicate all the good news about Allentown without the paper? At least there is still 69NEWS.

Allentown Democrat Voter

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Bernie, Yesterday you spoke of your class presentation to Journalism 101 @ NCC. You said there will still be need for good young journalists and then today you post this sad story and heartbreaking for reporters being let go. Where will they find work? Less reporting means a less informed public.

monkey momma said...

This is sad. And, probably true. If the Call is still in business by the end of this year, I will consider it a miracle.

Anonymous said...

If this is happening to the Call, what's the future of the Express?

Anonymous said...

bernie, take it from a trusted friend (you know who this is)...

the lay offs will be announced sunday by phone calls to reporters, just like last time. the reporters are on pins and needles as somewhere between 12-20 will likely be told by phone on sunday that they are no longer employed. the copy desk appears to be all but done for.

call me if you need verification.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

bernie, take it from a trusted friend (you know who this is)...

the lay offs will be announced sunday by phone calls to reporters, just like last time. the reporters are on pins and needles as somewhere between 12-20 will likely be told by phone on sunday that they are no longer employed. the copy desk appears to be all but done for.

call me if you need verification.

Anonymous said...

Bernie,
For at least three days a week ago the Call ran front page stories about the missing dog from Coca Cola Park. I love pets and am very glad this woman got her sweetheart back, but was the really front page news? The same story ran on the paper's Web site.
How can a paper expect to stay in business when its front page story is the same three days in a row. Now, this pattern seemed to start with with the breaking news fried pizza story...

Anonymous said...

Bernie, If the post regarding 12 to 20 reporters is true, there will be no one covering anything.
The paper's switchboard is now off at 5 p.m., so if a reader even had a breaking news tip, there is no way to reach anyone. Recording states to call back in the morning. Now, is that how to capture breaking news? I too predict the paper will close down by end of year. Another vacant building in center city.

Anonymous said...

It's disgusting how the Call informs its employees on Sunday nights.

Anonymous said...

Maybe someone will explain to us exactly what a "copy desk" does.

Anonymous said...

copy desk
n. The desk in a news office where copy is edited and prepared for typesetting or broadcasting.

Anonymous said...

copy desks assemble the articles, do layout, attribute captions to pictures and generally prepare the paper for final publication.

Well, that's what they used to do.

Anonymous said...

There's more here: http://poynter.org/forum/view_post.asp?id=13921

michael molovinsky said...

yesterday the morning call reported that the baltimore paper had another round of layoff's, also a tribune paper. i do not think the circulation decline is a reflection on the morning call per se, the same situation is affecting almost all papers across the country. unfortunately, any profitability the call has, must be used to help shore up the larger corporation. if the morning call should happen to close, we will all be much less informed, especially on local issues. i have been a subscriber for 40 years, and will continue to do so.

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Bernie,

Soon it's going to be up to you to keep us abreast of Champ the missing Coca Cola Park dog's whereabouts. Channel 69 can't handle such a weighty subject on their own. I hope you are up to the challenge.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"This is Bethlehem's biggest advantage over Atown or Easton, no local rag to dig up the town's dirty laundry everyday." -


Bethlehem has three papers watching what it does, two dailies and one weekly. So how long democracy lasts w/ no newspaper looking at that dirty laundry.

Bernie O'Hare said...

I don't know when that call came but it was way before working time.

Bryan said...

Reading something like this scares the hell out of me. I'm a 22 year old professional writing major. Seeing this happening all over the country is sad. As I walk into college I feel like one of the passengers boarding the titanic.

Anonymous said...

To: 9:23:
Thank you. So who will do this stuff now at the Call?

Anonymous said...

Bernie, If the post regarding 12 to 20 reporters is true, there will be no one covering anything.
The paper's switchboard is now off at 5 p.m., so if a reader even had a breaking news tip, there is no way to reach anyone. Recording states to call back in the morning. Now, is that how to capture breaking news? I too predict the paper will close down by end of year. Another vacant building in center city."

Every reporters phone number and e-mail arelisted at the bottom of each story. There is no need to call in through the switchboard as those phones ring directly on our desks.

Bernie O'Hare said...

That's true. I find the easiest way to contact a busy reporter is via email. Good luck to you.

Anonymous said...

Also, please, please get something straight. The layoffs affecting the Call and the rest of the print news industry are not a result of circulation drops. The newspaper gets a small amount of its overall revenue from subscriptions. The layoffs are a result of advertising losses. Advertisers have pulled out for several reasons including the economy, but also because of places like Craigslist, Cars.com and Monster.com.

We HAVE lost print circulation, though our overall readership is up (Small consolation given that we earn next to nothing from internet readers)

Anonymous said...

(cont'd from above)

But those losses in subscription are not the reason for our demise.

Anonymous said...

To 11:36
Thank you, but you are assuming all readers carry laptops or IPhones when they are traveling around town, and that's just not the case.

Anonymous said...

After Obama was drilled by a NYT reporter with, "What has enchanted you...," it's no surprise to see today's excuse for journalism falling rapidly out of favor.

Newspapers are slow and untrustworthy. Journalism, in general, needs a bath. Many of us learned to live without the MC long ago.

Best to all those losing jobs for whatever reason. Having been there, I have empathy and sympathy.

Anonymous said...

Can see how Craig's List and the others can destroy print advertising.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Anon 11:43-44,

Frankly, when a newspaper misleads readers, as The Morning Call did last week with a headline that falsely touted an increased readership, you dig your own grave. I understand that advertising is the chief concern, but you lose readers when you mislead them, whether here or in print media. The article itself was factually accurate, but the headline was a distortion. Do advertisers pay based on these projections or the hard subscriptions?

Despite the fact that people may be reading about fried pizza online, you have a responsibility to tell them what is going on locally. You can't do that by focusing on fluff. I'm no journalist but even I know that is insulting. In the long run, people want to know about those meetings in Emmaus or Upper Milford or Bath. They want to know about the local baseball and basketball teams.

With some very notable exceptions, you've lost sight of your mission.

Anonymous said...

That NYT's reporter's 4-part question was unbelievable. Enchanted in the WH. It took so much valuable time too.

Anonymous said...

It would be interesting to have a municipal poll as to how many govt. meetings MC reporters are even showing up at. Heard from a number of small govts. that no one reports any longer.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely correct. I missed the readership story online, but in some ways I think its partly a defense against all of the hectoring we take about how nobody reads a paper anymore. The indisputable fact is, there are more eyes on the product than before. As I said earlier that's little or no consolation, at least until someone figures out how to make money from the internet, but it's a fact.

Believe me when i tell you, Fried Pizza Dough guy was despised by most of us in the newsroom as well. Keep this in mind though. There is no other place where you will get in depth coverage of things like the Specter defection. That's what we do better than anyone and that's what those of us here comitted to news WANT to do.

Anonymous said...

Also Bernie, you tout the number of hits on your website as a calculus of your success. Why shouldn't the Call? Granted, the aren't making money from those hits, but they are a sign that the product is being seen.

Why is it you are so vehement that it is misleading. If you tell your readers you had 700 hits last week, why is that different than the Call making the same claim?

Anonymous said...

Perhaps the Call will cover the upcoming Primary Election. That would be a great public service. Many do not know that there is a May 19 election, or who is running in any event.

Bryan said...

I feel as though papers like the MC are falling into a terrible cycle. They see the rise of internet blogs, like this one, and fear the independent journalist stealing their valued readers.

This causes the paper to scramble and start publishing what they believe are new and innovative ways to convey information.

Unfortunately, many of these news outlets start trying to report what they think people want to read instead of publishing what a paper should be writing. The fried pizza and Ironpigs dog is a fine example. If I want that sort of info, I'll read a blog. If I want to know what happened at a city council meeting, I'll open up the paper.

I think the Morning Call needs to reexamine its motivations and take into account the idea that they are a newspaper and not a fluff rag.

On top of this, the other outlet papers often jump on is the continued publication of shocking and horrific stories. Some mornings I'll open the Call and it will be filled with stories of rape, murder, and death. Papers think this is what people want to be seeing. Of course, this info should be available but not in a sensational fashion.

I believe the paper needs to reconcile and cut their losses. Sure, I don't have a problem seeing the occasional fluff story in the middle of the local section. However, I do have a problem wading through five or six pages of cotton candy just to find one article that feels important. Let the internet take of the fluff, let the Morning Call keep us up to date on what is going on in our community and how it is going to impact our lives.

Anonymous said...

AMEN BRYAN...Your lips to Sam Zell's ears.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Anon 12:14,

First of all, I don't tout my own readership. I rarely mention it. From time to time, I'll refute someone who claims the same half dozen people read this blog.

Second, it is misleading to claim increased readership when your print circulation has dropped 9%. For the first time in 38 years, the MC is below 100,000. Amazing, especially since there has been a dramatic increase in population over that time. Yet your headline screams about an increase. That's insulting.

Third, I am uncertain whether rates charged to advertisers is based on the combined print-online readership or is restricted to pront readership.

Fourth, if I had a printed copy, and I lost 9% of my readers, I would not be honest if I told my readers everything was great, no matter what my online circulation might be. The headline was very misleading. I know I would not get away with that. My readers would not let me get away with that.

Bryan, no newspaper has need to fear me and I don't think they do fear us. That has not been my experience. I believe newspapers are, with all their flaws, the best source of information. There is no way a single blogger can even attempt to come close to what they do. We basically complement the MSM. We might add a focus that does not appear there or concentrate on other issues, but we canot replace the newspaper.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Bryan, Ideally, we drive interest in newspapers and they drive interest in us.

Anonymous said...

My point was not that you tout your readership my point was that you judge your success based on the number of hits you get. Why is that different than the Call? Bloggers are so desperate to be relevant that they want to continually report the death of newspapers. Whether we make money off those hits is an issue, whether they happen is not. We lost 9 percent print, but we gained overall, so how is it misleading to say there are more people reading us?

As I've said before, I'm not saying things are peachy here or at any newspaper, but if the fact is more people are reading the stories I write, A. why is that not newsworthy and B. Why are you insulted by that?

There is a transition from printo to internet. If our internet readership is up. again, why does that insult you?

Anonymous said...

Bernie-

ive had these arguments with you and your faithful before and I know better than to think I can convince you and your angry crew that your comments are misguided or plain wrong. Nobody inside or outside the newsroom will claim that newspapers are in good shape. What we will claim, and what we can substantiate with data, is that its not as bad as you would have people believe.

If I get laid off today, so be it, but if not, I'd put the work I do up against any local blog any day of the week.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Anon 12:34,

Woah, it does not insult me that your internet readership is up. That's great. In fact, that helps the blogs, too.

What insults me is this, "Morning Call readership rises by 9.2 percent.", followed by this, "The paper's daily print circulation, a measure of people paying for the newspaper, dropped 8.9 percent to 99,111 compared with a year ago."

For the first time in 38 years, the paper's print circulation drops below 100,000. Now that's a story.

But the headline misleads the reader. Sure, the online increase is a good thing, but you need to announce both. Frankly, the drop in print is more newsworthy than the increase online. And that's the way it played everywhere else.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"I'd put the work I do up against any local blog any day of the week." -

Is that necessary? I am at best an amateur, flailing around, and have often said the pros are better at this than me. I've also said I don't consider what I do as more than a complement to what you do. So why do you feel a need to claim you're better? It is beginning to appear to me that you do view a blog as some kind of competition. That is a mistake on your part.

"I know better than to think I can convince you and your angry crew that your comments are misguided or plain wrong."

This is also necessary. Now you attempt to marginalize me and my readers. You think you know better. This has been another one of your mistakes. You don't know better. It's basically why blogs are popular. They provide a perspective you ignore.

This is about the third or fourth round of layoffs at the MC in just one year. It's insulting to claim things aren't so bad.

Anonymous said...

(hope this isn't a double post, but there was a problem in sending)

Retired ASD teacher here.

The recent headline about growth in readership was a big mistake. It demonstrated the Morning Call depends on "spin." There was no obligation for the Call to print a story that addressed its readership numbers, but there it was. To a skeptic like me, that obvious spin indicates a distrust in other articles found in the Call.

While Allentown has grown in population, the demographic of the new residents is less likely to be newspaper readers so, in effect, the city the Morning Call serves is actually smaller.

Hits to a website is a VERY misleading statistic. One, single individual could actually be responsible for 50 or more hits. Often, the Call's Forum includes outrageous, racist, negative statements. That kind of poster returns MANY times for any reaction.

It's curious to me, the Wall Street Journal is going gangbusters in growth, both circulation and advertising revenue. I became a subscriber about 4 months ago and am very pleased with the quality of its content. By the way, my subscription is via mail, but each day's edition comes on the SAME day. Pretty cool!

Anonymous said...

"But the headline misleads the reader. Sure, the online increase is a good thing, but you need to announce both. Frankly, the drop in print is more newsworthy than the increase online. And that's the way it played everywhere else."

From the excerpt you just printed, it looks like we did announce both.

I only marginalize the angry and misguided. It was you who lumped your readers in those categories. What I marginalize is nonsense. I marginalize people who obviously don't read the paper who want to comment intelligently on its operations.

I marginalize the readers who say the Call is dead because they can't get through on a switchboard after 5. Does that make Air Products dead? Try calling their front desk after 5.

I've seen you try to educate people and I have tried as well, but some of them just want to spew stupidity because they can. Again, subscriber numbers are NOT the reason we are in trouble. It doesn't help, but it's not the reason. I marginalize the people who despite rationale attempts to set them striahgt, don't learn.

The fact is from a business standpoint, you aren't competition. You know that. You aren't raking in advertising dollars.
But from a journalistic stanpoint, you are. I'd like to think it's friendsly competition, but competition nontheless.

Again, you misread my point. Not sure where your defensiveness comes from. I said I would put the things I and my colleagues do against ANY local blogger. The point being, as much as your readers would like to believe you will be a worthy substitute if we do go under. Right now, it's just not the case.

Every time we have one of these debates, I get a bunch of angry nonsense from you and your readers, all of whom claim they no better.

Anonymous said...

To the MC reporter I suspect is here. Yes, readers who work from desktops and laptops can easily email because they can go online and get your direct addresses, but you need to consider the motorist or homemaker who comes
upon a breaking news event and wants to reach the paper via cell. With MC new system, it is impossible. For years after 5 calls got routed to city desk or photo dept. No longer.

Anonymous said...

It's not impossible. That's my point. There are 100 numbers that come stright through to the newsroom. If you live in A-Town, get Jarrett Renshaw's number and all him directly. If you are somewhere else in the county, put Isherwood's or Kraus's or Assad's number in your phone and call them. (provided all of those fine gentlmen are still there on Monday) Any reporter in the newsroom will take a tip and pass it on. Simple.

http://www.mcall.com/services/newspaper/all-custservstaff,0,3538313.htmlstory

Anonymous said...

The Call will lose young readers because they are stuck in the past. They keep stories too mundane and non-controversial. I never went to the offices but I picture a lot of men smoking at their desks will press hats on, sleeves rolled up, and clacking on typewriters. Bill White writes about the "Shad Tournament a perfect place to play hooky" and Champ the lost Coca Cola Park Ironpig dog seen on 7th St. eating fried pizza is breaking news while the younger readership is off to the Internet to get more critical national or local commentary and news.

Anonymous said...

That's a good point ASD and probably why advertisers won't pay as much for online advertising. No telling what those numbers mean at this point and whether it will one day help us. We'll be herein a year. But two, three, four? Tough to say. What those numbers do show though is there is some hunger for news, from a "professional" source.

I'm heading out, but Bernie, check the Poynter site and ours. There is some news on your initial post coming soon.

John L. Micek said...

Everyone is slamming the NYT's Jeff Zeleny for his "enchanting" question, but no one is talking about the answer it engendered: a very moving, and revealing, tribute to American soldiers serving overseas.

I happen to know Jeff, and know that he's an amazingly capable reporter.

What he did was actually quite clever: He sandwiched four questions into a single query knowing that Obama would be congenitally incapable of not answering each of them in essay-form.

It's not surprising to ask an interview subject what he/she has found surprising, disappointing or humbling about their new job.

That's particularly true if that person is leader of the free world and facing problems of staggering importance.

To me, it pulled back some layers on how Obama regards his position and how he has grown from candidate to executive.

When you get only one question, it's important to formulate one that will be the most illuminating. You can quibble with Zeleny's choice of the word "enchanting," but I'd urge everyone to go back and read the president's answer.

Hard news is always paramount. But there has to be an understanding of the person *behind* the news as well.

John L. Micek said...

As to the "news v. fluff" debate that's going on here, I'd also submit that that is a false choice.

Over 17 years in the news business I have learned that readers scream loudest not when we fail to cover the Lower Podunk Zoning Board (which is admittedly important), but when we change the format of the TV guide or decide to cancel "Nancy & Sluggo" on the comics pages.

Newspapers are, by their very definition, general interest publications. We also reflect our communities as a whole. And that means there should be equal room for the city council meeting and the deep-fried pizza guy.

Do I sometimes shake my head in wonder on what makes it onto the front-page of a great metropolitan newspaper (and not just my own), of course.

On the other hand, I also try to bear in mind that that story is probably massively important to SOMEONE, somewhere. And that's what balances it out for me.

If you want nothing but political news, go read the New Republic or National Review. If you want nothing but "fluff" go read People or Us.

But if you want a broadly reflective reading experience, I'd argue that newspapers are still the best deal.

And I, for one, would miss the fluff if we didn't have it. It leavens out all the insanity and carnage that my fellow homo sapiens inflict on each other on a daily basis.

It doesn't have to be an either/or proposition, people.

Anonymous said...

That's just great, John. I'm glad the NYT is providing opportunities for Obama to insert "moving" campaign messages. In lieu of asking real news-related questions, I'll sip Koolaid with you and the rest of the enchanted. Your defense is embarrassing as your Obama worship. You would have ripped any sophomoric excuse for a reporter who lobbed the same ridiculousness at Bush. You know you would've. Journalism really has died. Good grief.

John L. Micek said...

>You would have ripped any >sophomoric excuse for a reporter >who lobbed the same >ridiculousness at Bush. You know >you would've.

I'm not quite sure how you have such insights into my approach to my job, but my argument stands.

It is equally important to know the news and the person behind the news. And I'd wager that that was precisely the intent behind the question.

Anonymous said...

Retired ASD teacher here.

John Micek,

THANKS for participating in this discussion. It speaks well of you.

As much fault as I find with the Morning Call and its, now, out of town owners who have little interest in serving my home community above that sterile bottom line, I realize my local newspaper employees are just following marching orders and, understandably, hoping to preserve their jobs.

Even though I believe a successful Morning Call will be a paper that downplays state, national, and world news (because those topics are done better elsewhere) I sincerely hope someone with your courage still has a place in whatever local publication that follows.

Thank you, John.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"But from a journalistic stanpoint, you are. I'd like to think it's friendsly competition, but competition nontheless."I'm sorry, but I don't accept even that assessment. i will maintain what I've always maintained - we complement the MSM and other blogs. That's the way t works on the 'net. it's why links matter.

If it were otherwise, I seriously doubt the MC or ET would be linking to this blog, or that I would be linking to both of you. We make each other better, true. I think many blogs often have better analysis than MSM, but when it comes to hard news, it is no contest.

Bryan said...

As I mentioned above, I'm a professional writing major. I'd love to work at an operation like the Call just to see how it works. I can see that a certain demographic of people love stories about dogs eating pizza. I also know that a large demographic is interested in zoning meetings. The job of the paper is to provide both of those stories in their correct and proper spots. I would argue that the fluff should be posted randomly throughout the paper or given its own section. I would also argue that the city council and zoning meetings should be given front page status. I'd be interested to see how reader response plays into the positioning of articles in the paper. I hear people complain about Bill White. I wonder if the Morning Call requires that he write a certain amount of posts on a variety of subjects or if he has free reign to write about whatever he pleases.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"Every time we have one of these debates, I get a bunch of angry nonsense from you and your readers, all of whom claim they no better."This is what's wrong. Many of my readers, who are tasting the cooking, are blaming the cooks. You try to blame everything else. Some of it is the cooking.

Anonymous said...

."This is what's wrong. Many of my readers, who are tasting the cooking, are blaming the cooks. You try to blame everything else. Some of it is the cooking.

You're right Bernie- You know better. It is the bias and the dog stories and the pizza guy that are causing layoffs and there IS no way to get a hold of a reporter after 5 and there IS a bias and editors killing stories as your readers like to postulate. Ed Pawlowski comes in twice a week to direct coverage.

You know better than I do.

Anonymous said...

The problem is, you want to play reporter but then you become a shill for Don and John. THATS the real reason you don't want to be called competition. If you were that would make youre shameless promotion of those two unethical. If you stick to this line that you augment us, you can cross back and forth over the line at will.

John L. Micek said...

"Even though I believe a successful Morning Call will be a paper that downplays state, national, and world news (because those topics are done better elsewhere) I sincerely hope someone with your courage still has a place in whatever local publication that follows."

Downplay state news? Boy, I sure hope not.

Who else is going to cover it if not in-state reporters? I'd put our state coverage against any newspaper in Pennsylvania.

True, there's some self-interest here. But it seems to me that part of the mission of a great Pennsylvania newspaper is to cover Pennsylvania.

This is particularly true of a state government that has its hooks into every part of local life.

When the Lower Podunk school board complains about unfunded mandates, for instance, guess who put 'em there? The state government.

For 10 years now, I've been trying to give Pennsylvanians some idea of what their state government does. Hopefully, I've been successful.

Anonymous said...

John should know from his experience with politics that when you are explaining, you are losing. John has done a lot of explaining here. I admire his defense of a friend, though, and the also that of the collapsing Pravda on the Hudson.

John L. Micek said...

"John should know from his experience with politics that when you are explaining, you are losing. John has done a lot of explaining here. I admire his defense of a friend, though, and the also that of the collapsing Pravda on the Hudson."

Actually, I was just sort of hoping for a dialogue with readers.

The biggest knock on my business is that we're not willing to engage with our readers and hold ourselves apart and unaccountable.

So I'm engaging. And, apparently, I'm losing. But if the alternative is silence, I'll gladly go down with the ship.

Anonymous said...

Maybe it's no one's fault.
Indulge me a minute for this story: I once worked for a small town newspaper. The year I worked there it won First Place in general excellence in the annual Newspaper Publishers' contest, in which newspapers compete in circulation-sized categories. At the time, there were about 1,200 similar sized newspapers. Yet, if you talked to many of the town's residents, the newspaper was a fishwrapper. I think of that every time I hear the moans about bias & arrogance.
Forty years ago, society looked to newspapers. And maybe Walter Conkrite. Sixty years ago, it was radio. Today it's a new media.
That's all it is, in my humble opinion.

Knitted_in_the_Womb said...

Interesting that some reporter is apparently not brave enough to make his real identity known?

Regarding the switchboard situation...how many reports is a person supposed to try calling to find the majic one who happens to be at their desk after 5 pm? Seems like it should be a simple task to have the switchboard phone simply forwarded to someone's phone who is at work after 5 pm...perhaps have a rotation of who is "on call."

It is really pathetic to say that lost revenues have nothing to do with dropping circulation revenue, but rather dropping advertising revenue. It is true that circulation revenue is always minimal. BUT...advertisers pay based on how many paying subscribers there are to a paper! Not people getting the paper for 50% off, or people picking it up at WaWa, but people who pay to subscribe.

When I was still there, it seemed like people were talking more and more about capitalizing on web traffic...the desire is to sell advertising there. Who knows if they will be successful at it? For the sake of all the fine people I know there, I hope they are.

Monkey Momma said...

I agree w/ Bernie that the Call and blogs complement each other. Some stories I only hear about via blogs, and other stories could not ever be done by anyone but full time professional news writers.

The art of reading and writing is changing dramatically, and it's up to our nation's embattled newspapers to figure out how to make a buck at telling the news via print. I myself have changed my morning habits to include a cup of coffee and my laptop instead of coffee and a paper. It doesn't bother me that the medium has changed, but the change in the actual content is alarming.

Layoffs in the newsroom, however, do not portend good news for improved content at the Call. By getting rid of the very thing that makes a paper valuable, the Call may just be sounding its death knell.

Monkey Mom said...

Bernie, I'm sure you're aware that a certain blog is crediting YOU with the deletion of many of their own anonymous posts. (They, too, are on the Blogger network.) At least, I think it's you that they're implying "hacked" into their blog. Interestingly, though, not one person has chimed into the comments section of this blog. It appears the two blog creators are either not talking to each other today, or they have finally figured out how to have a conversation without their blog as an intermediary. Either way, I'd love to know how many other blogs had a similar problem.

Bernie O'Hare said...

It was a widespread problem, but I think it's fixed now.

Anonymous said...

So knitted... You use a pseudonym and criticize someone for being anon? That's great

Anonymous said...

Has anyone noticed that you cannot write comments on mcall.com about the its own story today? Censoring and manipulation right to the bitter end.

Monkey Mom said...

anon 7:46, yes I did notice that you can't comment on Topix about this subject. Don't they know it only fuels the conspiracy theories???

Dave said...

Let it die! Do we bail out the MC too? Get relevant or get lost! People have moved on to the internet news sources and until they can charge us for it's use..forget it! A historic endeavor but even the print media is subject to public disfavor. I still read books but a news paper is just black inked fingers anymore. Freedom of the press lives on!

Anonymous said...

What's happening with that Metromix weekly?

Knitted_in_the_Womb said...

To "Anonymous,"

Try clicking on my name. You'll find out very quickly that I'm far from hiding my identity.

Anonymous said...

The big plan is to regionalize.

The Valley must be broken really bad; so the people will except this plan.

http://www.sweetliberty.org/beware_metro.html

WARNING: Who ever Bernie supports; do the opposite!

S. Parnell Lewis' Ghost said...

Did The Express really gain five Sunday readers (or whatever the number was) as trumpeted by Marty Till in today's boffo full-page MC slam?

Is Marty playing with his numbers too?

If not, I think Trophies and Turkeys and the second grade style book are the keys to their success.

Also, without a robust MC presence in Easton, where will The Express get their leads on the local stories they'll break three days later?

Anonymous said...

You seem to be enjoying this. Do you get off watching my coworkers twist in the wind?
I think you do.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Parnell Lewis,

I saw nothing in the ET that slams the MC. I also doubt you are a reporter because they are more professional than your remarks indicate.

Incidentally, I happen to like that turkey and trophy feature, and so do most readers.

I've read nothing by anyone who expresses pleasure at the personal losses being suffered.

You are an impersonator.

Anonymous said...

S.Parnell Lewis was my uncle. He was Mr. Newspaper when papers were king and not all biased. Henry Schaadt

Sanctifying Grace said...

Henry,

Didn't Mr. Lewis write about sports, most especially football?

Peace, ~~Alex

Anonymous said...

He wrote a lot about sports and was very involved in everything else at the paper. He had a large sports items collection and a funny story, when my brother and I were up at his house as kids, we were in his den while all the grownups were in the kitchen gabing away. I took a baseball off his shelf.. it was full of signatures from some team in the 1930's, and my brother and I were throwing it back and forth and my dad can in the room and started yelling not to touch that stuff saying " you know what that thing is worth?" True story. Henry

Bernie O'Hare said...

Henry, Am I to understand that you've just impersonated your uncle? Did you post that comment?

Anonymous said...

yesterday was a sad day to know any of the people who work at the morning call. the ones who still have jobs are still stressed. the ones who lost their jobs are devestated.

I cried for a few of them. whether you like newspaper coverage, feel it complements blogs or don't like it, these are people. perhaps a prayer may appropriate...

Anonymous said...

Note the use of "ghost.". Nobody impersonated anybody. Please reread and try to keep up. My nom de blog is a tribute to a great man who worked for a once great paper. My question is a legitimate one re: circulation figures. Honest.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Anon 10:37, Agreed. It's a bad time for some very good people.

Anonymous said...

Hi Bernie, I did not post the Lewis Ghost story but when I saw his name I had to respond. I posted the two after it with my name on it. Thank you. Henry Schaadt

Anonymous said...

Regarding several of the many responses (good news out of bad, Bernie):

-Micek's arrogance, telling the reader what is important to know, is the prevailing attitude at the paper, and is as contributory to the print product's demise as are the internet, the economy and Sam Zell's debt-ridden buyout.

-All paid circulation counts to advertisers, whether it is a subscription or purchased at a store/machine/newsstand.

-Most, but not all, newspapers fudge their circulation in one fashion or another. The ones with the highest debt and least competency do it the most, because it is easier and less expensive to cheat than it is to produce and effectively promote a quality product.

-The Express-Times has its own problems, as many have pointed out here. But, their ownership is not at the mercy of a bankruptcy judge deciding how 12 billion in debt will be settled. And whether you love or hate their leader, he finds a way to win. So they will be OK.

-As much as 60% of TMC's content will be fed from a central location (Chicago). They are going modular, so what space is devoted to locally produced content is predetermined. They reporter will write to fit the hole provided. Fluff and fill when short, truncate and leave out potentially important info if too long.

-The elimination of copy desks throughout the chain has led to this direction from corporate (paraphrased): Be sure to check for accuracy in your submissions, because they may not get a second look (edited) before they hit the paper.

-TMC is now basically being run by The Baltimore Sun. They list a Sr. VP of Marketing on the masthead. She works and lives down there, and calls the shots up here. This is another mistake, as bad as moving the customer service jobs to the Phillipines.

-For a couple years now, TMC has been in reorganization and transformation mode. Lots of activity, meetings, proposals, redesigns, right-sizing, etc. All in a futile effort to improve margin and feed the debt monster at corporate. Now, most of the talented people are long gone, and the few that remain (along with many who have no clue but were kept on at the personal preference of the muckety-mucks) have little chance at survival. With the combination of insurmountable debt with horribly poor, and shortsighted, management at both the corporate and local level, their current state of affairs was inevitable.

-Finally, while it is true that all papers are dealing with unprecedented challenges, not all are in the doo-doo The Morning Call finds itself in. The difference is in the amount damage that is self-inflicted.

Anonymous said...

Retired ASD teacher here.

I appreciate Anonymous 12:19' comments. He/she is certainly a part of the newspaper scene. I am not, but DID work with the Morning Call over a period of several years as a publicist and advertising buyer.

I agree, much of the Call's current difficulties are self-inflicted. Still, I have great compassion for those who have been let go. I'm certain they didn't do the "self-inflicting."

When the Call was locally owned, things were very much different. Leadership served it's OWN community and understood what their neighbors wanted from their daily newspaper. What might work in Baltimore or Chicago does not always have value here.

I am anxious to see the paper's redesign, but if it provides me even less local knowledge, I'll be gone, as an almost 40 year subscriber.

Seems to me, this is an EXCELLENT opportunity for the Express-Times to grow by leaps and bounds. So much so, additional investment by the ET is justified.

Unless. . . .

The Express-Times misreads the tea leaves as the Call management has done.

Anonymous said...

O'Hare love ET tropies and turkys, until he gets a mean turkey. Then he will be screaming and yelling about how evil, P2P and corrupt they are. Hater.

Anonymous said...

The Morning Call has always been a rag. It's amazes me how many people
think it has honest community / political reporting. Like every newspaper it has had it's moments of news.

Anonymous said...

While many publications strive for Pulitzers and the like, The Express is certain to win a middle school participation ribbon for the sophomoric Trophies and Turkeys. I mourn the MC because we're left with the ridiculous Express. We'll never find out what's going on in Easton now.

Bernie O'Hare said...

I'll mourn for the MC, too, but don't care for the depiction of the ET you present. Sure, it's a smaller paper, but I like its coverage. As I've said before, I'd say the 2 papers are about 50-50 when it comes to breaking local stories in Northampton County. And unlike you, I like that turkey-trophy feature. I look forward to seeing that every Saturday and do not consider it sophmoric because of the impact it has on locally elected leaders. I've seen that first hand.

Anonymous said...

The "Mourning" Call list is starting to leak out ...

http://bettycauler.com/

Anonymous said...

The Easton Express is owned by Advance Publications, (Newhouse) who's most recent "success" was the decimating of the Star Ledger - it's flagship paper. The fact that they are not weighed down by "Sam Zell's folly" is almost irrelevant. The Star Ledger is the largest paper in NJ by far and could not survive under Advance's leadership. I don't know anything about the ET and its operations, but I know that Advance has gutted nearly all of its papers, so I do know they are no better off than Tribune financially.

Anonymous said...

O'Hate loves the ETR trophy and Turkey until he Angle and Stoffa, the three loons get a turkey.

J. SPIKE ROGAN said...

I wonder if the MCALL didn't have that pricey, sweet corporate box at Coca-Cola park, how much more CASH they would have for salaries.

Is a free ticket to every ball game, for a cheap ass editor worth it?

Anonymous said...

That suite costs them $40,000 a year, plus food expenses for each game.

Anonymous said...

10:08 -

The Newhouses are substantially better off than Tribune. Tribune is in bankruptcy, Advance is not, as the value of assets still greatly exceeds liabilities. Tribune is 12 BILLION in debt, Advance is virtually debt free.

Large Advance papers like the Star-Ledger had big layoffs in response to the industry and general economic downturns. And their sheer size, sprawling distribution, overemployment and extremely generous compensation and benefit packages (daycare benefits and lifetime job guarantees until they could not hold out any longer) left them prone to the tsunami. But they've made the adjustment and they have a much better chance at survival than TMC.

Here's the saddest part: TMC, even now, is still turning a decent, though dwindling, profit. And yet they still eat their own to a much greater degree than most other papers. Why, because of Zell's folly, as you put it.

As I said before, The Express-Times is not without its own problems(sorry, it hasn't been the Easton Express for many years). But, if the bet is the Express-Times or TMC under their current ownerships, the smart money is on the the paper that still has an office in Northampton County.

Anonymous said...

Have you seen the Star Ledger? How about the Trenton Paper? Basically you're comparing the titanic to the Edmund Fitzgerald.

The Star Ledger is the largest paper in the most densely populated state in the nation, one rife with corruption, scandal, half a dozen local sports teams etc. and they lost a fortune over the past several years.

All of those things you mentioned were put in p[lace by Advance (the lifetime job guarantee etc.) By what measure can you say the ET is in better shape? Your circulation is half TMC, your staff is less than that and your owner just destroyed its flagship paper.

Not saying tribune or TMC are in good shape, but arguing that the ET or Advance are btter off is nonsense. I gotta stop coming to this blog.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Then stop coming already. I'll tell you one thing. I sure as hell won't be writing any fried pizza stories out of a desparate desire tograb new readers.

And yeah, we can all agree the newspaper industry is in terrible shape. But the MC is much worse off than others for one very simple reason - it is saddled w/ $1.15 billion annual debt.