Topic: More from Lean Dean

[Simon_Cowbell]

Six weeks MAX in the buyout....?

Holy shit, what a bunch of cheap motherfuckers.

Honestly, I'm glad I don't work for Singleton.

I wouldn't be seen in public... ever ... if I were that guy.

He is relishing in this LEAN Dean horseshit aura of his way too much.... taking advantage of the situation, destroying families while knowing no one is asking questions right now.

Suck it THE FUCK up, you asshole.

There is only one way to wipe the smug grin off the mug of such a prick.

Only one.

[Tom Petty]

Six weeks MAX in the buyout....?

Holy shit, what a bunch of cheap motherfuckers.

Honestly, I'm glad I don't work for Singleton.

I wouldn't be seen in public... ever ... if I were that guy.

He is relishing in this LEAN Dean horseshit aura of his.

There is only one way to wipe the smug grin off the mug of such a prick.

Only one.

paging unibomber.

[Mateo]

Honestly, I'm glad I don't work for Singleton...

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! If you say his name three times, he'll come and buy YOUR PAPER! Like in Hary Potter, using He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's name will help him identify those who oppose and resist him. Never underestimate the power of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's spending power with other's money.

[wickedwritah]

The sad thing is he became somewhat of a distinguised member of our community when he became AP chairman. People now, gasp, respect him.

[ServeItUp]

Biggie Smalls, Biggie Smalls, Biggie Smalls...

Maybe that's how you stop Singleton. Or perhaps Marcellus Wallace and his hard-core pipe-hittin' MFs could handle it...

[dragonfly]

You'll have to read through a bit ...

http://thenutgraph.blogspot.com/

[buckweaver]

Outstanding story about one of the more talented LADN casualties:

Billy Witz - sports reporter, started Aug. 1994 -

"My favorite Billy story: My first year I had to work the Sunday night shift in the office, answering calls, taking scores, typing up roundups. One time, Billy called in needing to dictate a story. He was at LAX, trying to track down Mike Riley, who was taking a flight into town in order to interview for the UCLA football coaching job. No one had been able to get this guy, or any information on the top candidates for the job. So Billy went to LAX, bought a ticket at the counter on his credit card to get through security and tracked Riley down, as he was coming off the plane. He called me in the office, dictated a perfect story off the top of his head, then tried to get the ticket refunded. That's dedication!"

[dragonfly]

gotcha...

[GBNF]

That's a pretty lengthy roster. Some good people on that list, and three who surprise the shit out of me... 

[WriteThinking]

As an alum of a competing paper, I can tell you -- as I was once told by an editor:  "Everyone in here knows who Billy Witz is."

The editor meant that in a good way, in an admiring nod to Billy's work at the time as the Daily News' UCLA beat writer.

Taking note, I began watching for and reading Billy's stuff more closely, and, sure enough, I quickly became a fan of his work.

Then, once, when I was covering the L.A. Marathon -- no, I am not out there today -- I finally met Billy for the first (and only) time, and was pleased when he took note of me.

I had asked several persistent but legitimate questions of a race official regarding a possible news story involving the event.

After we were done with the post-race press conference, and the official had walked away, a bit harried, somewhat hurriedly, and clearly happy to get away, Billy turned to me, smiled, and said, "Great job. Way to not back down."

It was just a little act of acknowledgment, and, I thought, a not-so-random act of kindness that, really, he didn't have to impart. Many competing writers wouldn't have.

And, as I recalled again my editor's long-ago recognition of Billy, I was honored.

If you're on here, Billy, consider this my way of returning that small but meaningful compliment.

[SoCalDude]

   Billy Witz is a true professional. Matt McHale is one of the finest sports writers and human beings I've ever known.
   It kills me that management is so unconcerned with quality now. Dollars and deadlines are the only things that matter.

[Your Huckleberry]

  Dollars and deadlines are the only things that matter.

You didn't honestly think anything else did matter, did you?

Welcome to the real world friend.

[Piotr Rasputin]

   Billy Witz is a true professional. Matt McHale is one of the finest sports writers and human beings I've ever known.
   It kills me that management is so unconcerned with quality now. Dollars and deadlines are the only things that matter.

Billy lost a lot of his mojo when he became NFL beat guy, which is a pretty useless gig to have in a town without a team, and working for a newspaper group that is looking to cut budget.

On UCLA (and preps before that), Mr. Witz was excellent.

[Prep_desk_junkie]

Billy Witz is the type of professional that I am striving to be. Good guy, all around.

[SoCalDude]

  Dollars and deadlines are the only things that matter.

You didn't honestly think anything else did matter, did you?

Welcome to the real world friend.

   There's no reason for snide comments here, Huck. Believe me, I know the real world. I don't know you, but I bet anything you've done in this biz I've done 10 times over.
   Until a few months ago, my paper WAS concerned about quality. They bought one of those computer systems from Denmark in which the SLOT process was renamed QUALITY CHECKER. Me and my guys are determined to maintain quality, but we're swimming upstream.

[Birdscribe]

Worked alongside both McHale and Witz in my past life and you're talking about two of the most consummate professionals in this business. Period.

I'm shocked and appalled about McHale, since I viewed him as perhaps the most indispensable person in that department for the reasons that blog pointed out.

Hard to add anything original to the sentiments already posted here about Singleton, but karma's a bitch.

[Screwball]

Billy Witz is one of the best reporters in LA and an even better person.

[Anglokick]

More details http://www.insidesocal.com/soccer/2008/03/not_quite_100_percent.html

And LA has two pro teams, is home to the sport's biggest star, has an ever-growing Latino population, is the U.S. national teams' training HQ, has top-ranked college programs, is the home of AYSO and so on.

[Piotr Rasputin]

From 2005-07, 10 different people either covered Chivas USA or the Galaxy, or wrote soccer columns, and/or dabbled in covering the national teams for the Singleton group in LA. All have an affection for the sport, and four remain with the newspaper group.

They'll find someone to do the sport locally. And that person will likely have to squeeze it in between desk/prep shifts, a sign of the times for newspaper journalism.

[MMatt60]

Witz is known as a good guy. I know that top newsroom management was frustrated that he didn't do much --- or wasn't able to do much --- on the "national" NFL beat. At least, management didn't think so. So his exit might have been in the works for a long time.

[Screwball]

He was put on the NFL beat, first and foremost, to chronicle the NFL's return to LA. It appeared at that time the NFL might actually be serious.

The NFL wasn't serious about anything, except watching in case the Coliseum folks and the Anaheim folks somehow came up with public money. Billy had some excellent stories during that time.

Ultimately, the NFL did nothing, and there was no story.

[Your Huckleberry]

  Dollars and deadlines are the only things that matter.

You didn't honestly think anything else did matter, did you?

Welcome to the real world friend.

   There's no reason for snide comments here, Huck. Believe me, I know the real world. I don't know you, but I bet anything you've done in this biz I've done 10 times over.
   Until a few months ago, my paper WAS concerned about quality. They bought one of those computer systems from Denmark in which the SLOT process was renamed QUALITY CHECKER. Me and my guys are determined to maintain quality, but we're swimming upstream.

Dude, relax man. I'm not trying to pick a fight with you. I don't know who you are either but I'm sure you've done good things in this business as probably most of us on here have. I've done plenty myself that I'm proud of but that's hardly my point here. So you are great and better than me .. fine, so be it.

I know this, I've been in this business 20 years now, and one thing I learned real quick was that the only thing that does matter with 99 percent of the publishers out there is dollars and deadlines. Call my remark snide, sarcastic, whatever you want, but it's still the truth.

The bottom line is our idealistic way of thinking doesn't matter in the business world. The truth doesn't matter. Objectivity doesn't matter. The First Amendment doesn't matter. Money is what matters.

I don't like it, never have, but I learned that pretty quick. Bang your head against the system as hard as you want, in the end, what we do from our heart and as our passion is merely a way for the higher-ups to profit. Clearly, they aren't profiting from us like they were so we're the ones being sent packing.

That's the reality of it all --- snide or not. I've fought many a battle, won some, lost some. Swimming uphill gets old after a while. My advice to you or anyone is to do the best you can, but don't drive yourself insane over what you cannot control. Life's too short.

[SoCalDude]

    

  Dollars and deadlines are the only things that matter.

You didn't honestly think anything else did matter, did you?

Welcome to the real world friend.

   There's no reason for snide comments here, Huck. Believe me, I know the real world. I don't know you, but I bet anything you've done in this biz I've done 10 times over.
   Until a few months ago, my paper WAS concerned about quality. They bought one of those computer systems from Denmark in which the SLOT process was renamed QUALITY CHECKER. Me and my guys are determined to maintain quality, but we're swimming upstream.

Dude, relax man. I'm not trying to pick a fight with you. I don't know who you are either but I'm sure you've done good things in this business as probably most of us on here have. I've done plenty myself that I'm proud of but that's hardly my point here. So you are great and better than me .. fine, so be it.

I know this, I've been in this business 20 years now, and one thing I learned real quick was that the only thing that does matter with 99 percent of the publishers out there is dollars and deadlines. Call my remark snide, sarcastic, whatever you want, but it's still the truth.

The bottom line is our idealistic way of thinking doesn't matter in the business world. The truth doesn't matter. Objectivity doesn't matter. The First Amendment doesn't matter. Money is what matters.

I don't like it, never have, but I learned that pretty quick. Bang your head against the system as hard as you want, in the end, what we do from our heart and as our passion is merely a way for the higher-ups to profit. Clearly, they aren't profiting from us like they were so we're the ones being sent packing.

That's the reality of it all --- snide or not. I've fought many a battle, won some, lost some. Swimming uphill gets old after a while. My advice to you or anyone is to do the best you can, but don't drive yourself insane over what you cannot control. Life's too short.

   Sorry to snap. Everything you wrote is right on.
   I never said I was better than you, I just said that I have done virtually everything in this biz. You hit a nerve about "welcome to the real world" like I was some wide-eyed, naive newbie who just fell off a turnip truck.
   And I'm not giving up trying make the paper the best it can be regardless of whether management cares.

[Birdscribe]

Heard through the Birdscribe Pipeline (a Class A Lancaster JetHawks version of the vaunted Boston Red Sox Moddy Pipeline) that the Long Beach Press-Telegram is whacking eight people from its sports department.

That would be eight people out of a staff of 20. For those of you mathematically inclined, that's 40% of an already short-staffed department disappearing.

Hard to fit that into my mental Samsonite. Then again, we know about Singleton's reverse Midas touch.

[SoCalDude]

Heard through the Birdscribe Pipeline (a Class A Lancaster JetHawks version of the vaunted Boston Red Sox Moddy Pipeline) that the Long Beach Press-Telegram is whacking eight people from its sports department.

That would be eight people out of a staff of 20. For those of you mathematically inclined, that's 40% of an already short-staffed department disappearing.

Hard to fit that into my mental Samsonite. Then again, we know about Singleton's reverse Midas touch.

 
   I heard 21 people from the PT will be interviewing for 12 spots at the Breeze. That's pretty close to what you wrote.