'Black Wednesday' in Tampa

[playthrough]

I'm sure when St. Pete axed golf, the clock started ticking on the beat at the Trib. Unfreakingreal.

[Andy _ Kent]

jdasilva: somber atmosphere in the newsroom today. who will the 10 be? 09:35 AM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: the newsroom is empty. people are out on depressing layoff lunches. i wanted to go, but i have too much work to do. 12:31 PM July 02, 2008    

jdasilva: gasp! is that me on paul conley's blog? YES! http://tinyurl.com/4byrh6 03:49 PM July 02, 2008
 
jdasilva: Janet Weaver is my hero. I'll explain later in a blog post. 05:48 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva:   Shit, I meant Janet Coats. My apologies, everyone. I should know that.   06:23 PM July 02, 2008 

I rest my case. These snippits say it all. "... people are out on depressing layoff lunches. I wanted to go ..." You have got to be kidding me. Why, to rubber-neck as if you were driving past a car wreck?!?

Yet people are still defending her. And I noticed on her blog that she has pretty much chosen only to respond to her supporters. She still has not answered Andy Staples' post or others like Ms. Place and myself who have offered up constructive criticism on her blog without any name-calling.

[Ira_Schoffel]

OK, I know her comments are repulsive. But not since Monica Lewinsky has a bimbo received this much attention for going down on someone in a position of power.

Please ... let's focus on the real villains in this story. The clowns who fired a good reporter because they wanted to close their Tallahassee bureau, and instead of having the decency to offer him the UF job, turned around and tried to move others into that spot.

[Andy _ Kent]

OK, I know her comments are repulsive. But not since Monica Lewinsky has a bimbo received this much attention for going down on someone in a position of power.

Please ... let's focus on the real villains in this story. The clowns who fired a good reporter because they wanted to close their Tallahassee bureau, and instead of having the decency to offer him the UF job, turned around and tried to move others into that spot.

Good call Ira. In fact, I believe one of her fellow UF students started another thread titled "Fixing this mess" where the running commentary on her blog comments and similar issues shoulde be directed.

I am still waiting to hear exactly what kind of bogus explanation Scott received when he was back at the Tampa offices. I continue to lose sleep over his dismissal.

[WriteThinking]

I was prepared to chalk up Miss Intern's post as a mistake of the young and oblivious. We have all been there. We have all made mistakes. But before the internet, if you were in New York and an intern fucked up in Florida, you never knew about it.

Then I read her twitter. And I went back a few pages. And I saw this stretch. There is no excuse for how this makes me feel:

jdasilva: Did I just work an 11-hour shift? Yes. Yes, I did. 08:02 PM July 01, 2008

jdasilva: somber atmosphere in the newsroom today. who will the 10 be? 09:35 AM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: the newsroom is empty. people are out on depressing layoff lunches. i wanted to go, but i have too much work to do. 12:31 PM July 02, 2008    

jdasilva: one story down, one to go. 01:24 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: gasp! is that me on paul conley's blog? YES! http://tinyurl.com/4byrh6 03:49 PM July 02, 2008
 
jdasilva: Janet Weaver is my hero. I'll explain later in a blog post. 05:48 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva:   Shit, I meant Janet Coats. My apologies, everyone. I should know that.   06:23 PM July 02, 2008 

A couple things, after I urge everyone here to actually click on that link to Paul Conley's blog, which says, in part:

"It's obviously too early to tell how this will work out. And although the details on the plan are few and far between, it is clear that some people will lose their jobs.

Given that, I would have anticipated the usual doom and gloom from the staff.

So it was with great pleasure that I read an optimistic piece from an intern at the Tampa paper. I don't want to paraphrase what Jessica DaSilva had to say.

Rather, I'd urge you to read her entire blog post. But suffice it to say that there are young people entering the workforce today who are every bit as excited about journalism and their careers as I was when I was in my early 20s. They can see past the problems of any single medium and imagine a time when the audience comes first.

And that thrills me."

Oh, god.

This is, in large part, exactly what we're all so upset about, when we look to the future and when we read stuff like DaSilva's, and now, Paul Conley's: People actually see no problem with any of this.

Cadet's point about the internet is a valid one, in that, just when there is more need for care, restraint and editing/management of what is written and put out for the world -- even more of it than ever -- to see, there is none.

That much is obvious, not only in what DaSilva wrote on her blog entry/article concerning the newsroom layoffs/changes but also in her Twitter diary (very apropos reference, IMO,  because she really does sound like a twit).

I'd guess that if any copy editor had looked at her entries, at all, they would not have gotten put up with the managing editor of the paper's name not just spelled wrong, but just, plain wrong.

In addition, no copy desk of any repute would have allowed a blog on the paper's site that read, "Shit, I meant..." to be posted, especially if it was a quote from the writer, and not part of a source's quote.

(And even then, it probably would not have been allowed, if any standards for blogging were in place).

The worst part of this, again, is that a lot of people have no problem with any of this.

I haven't looked again -- I refuse to add to her clicks -- but when I see the link to Conley's blog, I have to wonder, has this thread been linked to there, too?

I wonder what her response would be to all this. Would she be going, "Gasp!...is that me on SJ.com? YES!"?

I'm almost afraid of the answer.

[SportsDude]

I was prepared to chalk up Miss Intern's post as a mistake of the young and oblivious. We have all been there. We have all made mistakes. But before the internet, if you were in New York and an intern fucked up in Florida, you never knew about it.

Then I read her twitter. And I went back a few pages. And I saw this stretch. There is no excuse for how this makes me feel:

jdasilva: Did I just work an 11-hour shift? Yes. Yes, I did. 08:02 PM July 01, 2008

jdasilva: somber atmosphere in the newsroom today. who will the 10 be? 09:35 AM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: the newsroom is empty. people are out on depressing layoff lunches. i wanted to go, but i have too much work to do. 12:31 PM July 02, 2008    

jdasilva: one story down, one to go. 01:24 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: gasp! is that me on paul conley's blog? YES! http://tinyurl.com/4byrh6 03:49 PM July 02, 2008
 
jdasilva: Janet Weaver is my hero. I'll explain later in a blog post. 05:48 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva:   Shit, I meant Janet Coats. My apologies, everyone. I should know that.   06:23 PM July 02, 2008 

Whatever you were feeling, I don't think you were the only one feeling it after reading that. Wow.

[Frank_Ridgeway]

Well, the editor's name was Weaver. Then she became Janet Coats. So it's a screwup but somewhat understandable.

http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/politicalwhore/2007/04/17/janet-weaver-is-no-longer-editor-of-the-trib/

[Johnny Dangerously]

Shit. I should have known that.

[SportsDude]

The worst part of this, again, is that a lot of people have no problem with any of this.

I haven't looked again -- I refuse to add to her clicks -- but when I see the link to Conley's blog, I have to wonder, has this thread been linked to there, too?

I wonder what her response would be to all this. Would she be going, "Gasp!...is that me on SJ.com? YES!"?

I'm almost afraid of the answer.

You know what the answer is.

The sad part is this will probably end up helping her career.

[Frank_Ridgeway]

Of course the intern should know that ol' Janet might not have her back when it's inconvenient to do so:

http://www.ajr.org/Article.asp?id=2599

[clever_username]

OK, I know her comments are repulsive. But not since Monica Lewinsky has a bimbo received this much attention for going down on someone in a position of power.

Please ... let's focus on the real villains in this story. The clowns who fired a good reporter because they wanted to close their Tallahassee bureau, and instead of having the decency to offer him the UF job, turned around and tried to move others into that spot.

Good call Ira. In fact, I believe one of her fellow UF students started another thread titled "Fixing this mess" where the running commentary on her blog comments and similar issues shoulde be directed.

Oh, Dear God...Miss Blonde Intern went to Florida?

I feel so not proud of my school at this moment. Ew.

[chilidog75]

The worst part of this, again, is that a lot of people have no problem with any of this.

I haven't looked again -- I refuse to add to her clicks -- but when I see the link to Conley's blog, I have to wonder, has this thread been linked to there, too?

I wonder what her response would be to all this. Would she be going, "Gasp!...is that me on SJ.com? YES!"?

I'm almost afraid of the answer.

You know what the answer is.

The sad part is this will probably end up helping her career.

I've got to echo Ira's sentiments here.

Scott Carter was asked to move from Tampa to Tallahassee. He didn't want to, but did so to help out his newspaper. Then a year later, he's "layed" off, not even given a chance to come back to the home base because apparently they didn't want to pay for his moving expenses.

Yet, a 21-year-old intern has somehow turned into the villian of this story?

[Matt1735]

I, too, don't feel so proud of the "journalist" that my alma mater has produced. She needs a harsh reality check in life. And it will happen. I don't wish it on her, but somewhere, sometime, karma will get her.

[Cadet]

Absolutely not, and I don't think that's how anyone is playing this. We're discussing the latest development in the events coming out of Tampa, a development that has become industry news in and of itself. This in no way diminishes what we've discussed about those let go or those who made those decisions. It's just another facet of the story.

[WriteThinking]

She has not become a villain in this because she was to blame for any of the company's bad moves, tough decisions or unjust layoffs.

She has become a target -- after we had already spent, oh, 11 or 12 pages of this thread on discussing Carter and those other aspects of the situation -- because we are afraid that this is, seemingly, the future of journalism.

That's scary, is it not?

This is not a misdirected tangent. She has become a face on a bad situation, and, as such, we're objecting to her, and it.

Anybody on here should realize and understand that.

[chilidog75]

Absolutely not, and I don't think that's how anyone is playing this. We're discussing the latest development in the events coming out of Tampa, a development that has become industry news in tand of itself. This in no way diminishes what we've discussed about those let go or those who made those decisions. It's just another facet of the story.

Fair enough, Cadet.
Just felt like the anger on this thread had been redirected to a 21-year-old's inane ramblings, instead of where it really belonged. Of course, there were already seven or eight pages directed to the Tampa execs, so maybe the thread had to go in another direction.

[Ira_Schoffel]

I think she's an idiot. (at least at this stage of her life)

I'm slightly embarrassed that she went to my school ... though I'm sure others are embarrassed that I went there.

But I don't think she represents the future any more than the promising two or three kids that I know breaking into the biz right now.

The only difference between her and the young and dumb kids we all went to school with is she has a platform ... they all do now.

Not saying you can't rip her ... have at it. I just think we're inflating her importance by devoting so much time to her. But whatever.  Not a big deal to me either way.

[chilidog75]

She has not become a villain in this because she was to blame for any of the company's bad moves, tough decisions or unjust layoffs.

She has become a target -- after we had already spent, oh, 11 or 12 pages of this thread on discussing Carter and those other aspects of the situation -- because we are afraid that this is, seemingly, the future of journalism.

That's scary, is it not?

This is not a misdirected tangent. She has become a face on a bad situation, and, as such, we're objecting to her, and it.

Anybody on here should realize and understand that.

Again, fair enough.
Object away.
I just choose to take her for what she is --- a young, naive intern who knows not of what she writes.

[buckweaver]

because we are afraid that this is, seemingly, the future of journalism.

Point being, I don't think this particular intern can (or should be) held up as the object of those fears.

She fucked up, yes. She's not the end of the world as we know it.

[GBNF]

because we are afraid that this is, seemingly, the future of journalism.

Point being, I don't think this particular intern can (or should be) held up as the object of those fears.

She fucked up, yes. She's not the end of the world as we know it.

WFW...

[clever_username]

Fair enough, Cadet.
Just felt like the anger on this thread had been redirected to a 21-year-old's inane ramblings, instead of where it really belonged.

I think we all have enough anger in us (spend enough time gathering and presenting the news of the day and it happens) to spare. She's just collateral damage.

I don't think we've lost the plot. These reorganizations suck. Real people are getting really hurt.

Meanwhile, little blonde chippies who think the world is their oyster just go to the pool and have another beer or seven because the reality of life is nowhere near her yet.

God, if only it was nowhere near us yet.

[WriteThinking]

because we are afraid that this is, seemingly, the future of journalism.

Point being, I don't think this particular intern can (or should be) held up as the object of those fears.

She fucked up, yes. She's not the end of the world as we know it.

WFW...

It's not her, per se. It's what she represents, at least in light of these entries, and the changes that have been going on in the business, particularly in the past few years.

You don't think there is more and more of this type of stuff going on now? With no editing, no rules, no restraint, no respect, or empathy for the situation in which you find yourself, whether as a bystander or as a reporter?

You aren't afraid there's going to be a prevalence of this kind of thing, given that this type of interactive, very public airings of thoughts, voices and messages is almost all that the next generation has grown up with?...And given that all of us --- everybody, and not just Jessica DaSilva -- is being encouraged to blog, react, interact and do more and more other immediate, live, and, therefore, spontaneous and not-well-thought-out things all the time?

Was there any chance whatsoever that this type of thing, coming from a supposedly credible newspaper-affiliated source (whether it be the reporter, or the platform/outlet) ever would have seen the light of day, even on a small scale, as little as, say, four years ago?

I doubt it.

[WriteThinking]

OK, I guess maybe it's for another thread. But that's what I, at least, was getting/taking from that aspect of the discussion.

If I went on too much, my apologies to all.

I think I'm done now. 

[Peytons place]

I think the hostility we feel toward some higher-ups who let go of good, talented people is obvious. The vitriol directed at Jessica comes from reading her own words and her lack of knowledge whatsoever involving the newspaper biz. I suppose the thing that grates on my nerves is that anyone in this business for longer than a few weeks (which was the amount of time she apparently had been at the Trib before this meeting) have heard all this before. This whole "we have to keep up with the new age and the Internet, and engage young readers, and bridges are burning" crap has been going on for years. And with all that, all the layoffs and letting go of good talent in favor of young (cheap) faces, we still keep going backwards, economically and intellectually. I get angry when I read her blog, because I expect this kind of corporate speak from the Janets of the world, I just get frustrated to see some naive future journalist fall for it, and worse yet, fawn over it. I'd rather the higher-ups treated people like Scott, and those who have been doing this for awhile, not like new interns, but like real hard-working people, and say we aren't making enough money for the company so we're letting people go. I could at least respect your honesty. No one likes to be treated like some gullible idiot (except apparently 21-year-old intersn who are at their first gig).

[agateguy]

I was prepared to chalk up Miss Intern's post as a mistake of the young and oblivious. We have all been there. We have all made mistakes. But before the internet, if you were in New York and an intern fucked up in Florida, you never knew about it.

Then I read her twitter. And I went back a few pages. And I saw this stretch. There is no excuse for how this makes me feel:

jdasilva: Did I just work an 11-hour shift? Yes. Yes, I did. 08:02 PM July 01, 2008

jdasilva: somber atmosphere in the newsroom today. who will the 10 be? 09:35 AM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: the newsroom is empty. people are out on depressing layoff lunches. i wanted to go, but i have too much work to do. 12:31 PM July 02, 2008    

jdasilva: one story down, one to go. 01:24 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva: gasp! is that me on paul conley's blog? YES! http://tinyurl.com/4byrh6 03:49 PM July 02, 2008
 
jdasilva: Janet Weaver is my hero. I'll explain later in a blog post. 05:48 PM July 02, 2008

jdasilva:   Shit, I meant Janet Coats. My apologies, everyone. I should know that.   06:23 PM July 02, 2008 

A couple things, after I urge everyone here to actually click on that link to Paul Conley's blog, which says, in part:

"It's obviously too early to tell how this will work out. And although the details on the plan are few and far between, it is clear that some people will lose their jobs.

Given that, I would have anticipated the usual doom and gloom from the staff.

So it was with great pleasure that I read an optimistic piece from an intern at the Tampa paper. I don't want to paraphrase what Jessica DaSilva had to say.

Rather, I'd urge you to read her entire blog post. But suffice it to say that there are young people entering the workforce today who are every bit as excited about journalism and their careers as I was when I was in my early 20s. They can see past the problems of any single medium and imagine a time when the audience comes first.

And that thrills me."

Oh, god.

This is, in large part, exactly what we're all so upset about, when we look to the future and when we read stuff like DaSilva's, and now, Paul Conley's: People actually see no problem with any of this.

Cadet's point about the internet is a valid one, in that, just when there is more need for care, restraint and editing/management of what is written and put out for the world -- even more of it than ever -- to see, there is none.

That much is obvious, not only in what DaSilva wrote on her blog entry/article concerning the newsroom layoffs/changes but also in her Twitter diary (very apropos reference, IMO,  because she really does sound like a twit).

I'd guess that if any copy editor had looked at her entries, at all, they would not have gotten put up with the managing editor of the paper's name not just spelled wrong, but just, plain wrong.

In addition, no copy desk of any repute would have allowed a blog on the paper's site that read, "Shit, I meant..." to be posted, especially if it was a quote from the writer, and not part of a source's quote.

(And even then, it probably would not have been allowed, if any standards for blogging were in place).

The worst part of this, again, is that a lot of people have no problem with any of this.

I haven't looked again -- I refuse to add to her clicks -- but when I see the link to Conley's blog, I have to wonder, has this thread been linked to there, too?

I wonder what her response would be to all this. Would she be going, "Gasp!...is that me on SJ.com? YES!"?

I'm almost afraid of the answer.

This thread is not linked to on DaSilva's blog.

In my own small corner of the industry, in dealing with PTers who are DaSilva's age, I've seen a similar lack of concern, even a carelessness, in regards to details and making sure you get everything right. The response more often than not, when I talk to them about it, is "no big deal."

It is a big deal. Now sometimes even the best of us slip up. But if we don't treat our ethical and journalistic standards seriously and with the utmost respect, and strive to live up to them each time, we have nothing.