And another one bites the dust ... oh, wait

Were they playing the "Make-You-So-Miserable-They-Hope-You-Quit" game with you leading up to this? Usually they compile a list of everything they know you hate doing and have to do those things in the hopes that you'll get the message and bolt on your own, saving the company cost of paying out unemployment on you.

 

Completely sucks...

The thing that is interesting about being fired in journalism is that it seems like it happens to more good people for really no good reason than most other professions.

 

Hang in there. My condolences.

 

What really makes it disgusting is that instead of considering your body of work, as mentioned in an earlier post, they try to make you feel like a failure on the way out the door.

It is their failure, though. A failure to be human. And a failure to appreciate that people such as Rhody are, as he indicated in no uncertain terms, busting ass to get everything done, and everything done right.

There are few things more fucked-up in newspapering than asshat mid-level managers.

 

They're quite proud of that very little they've accomplished.

 

If I remember correctly, this is the same outfit that canned another one of our SportsJournalists.comers.

Sorry to here this, Rhody ... file for the unemployment and hopefully you'll be back on your feet soon.

 

Sorry to hear about your misfortune Rhody. Good luck. I'm sure you will bounce back into something even better.

 

This sucks Rhody. I hope you land on your feet at a paper that will treat you right, assuming those even still exist today.

 

To answer some posts:
I'm not going to say I was the easiest person in the world to work with. If my bosses did something I thought was worse for me or my paper, I let them know about it. I didn't defy orders, but I wasn't going to sit there and nod and smile.
From when I started there to my firing date, the product improved tenfold. I introduced an All-Area section, which became popular in the area and we made some money off of. My wife and I bought a professional camera which I used for work despite not being compensated for it. I didn't miss a deadline. We found a way to balance coverage so everyone - from the top hoops teams to the middle-tier sports to the cheerleaders everyone hates writing about - got covered. Oh, and I won more awards in the last five years than anyone in the department had ever won previously.
I was popular in the community, had developed relationships with coaches, administrators and the kids.
My bosses couldn't have made me quit. Unlike Schieza, who was an editor and then got demoted, there was nowhere to demote me. The Sports Editor quit in 2007. I was never promoted or had my title changed. I got a couple raises here and there, but my pay for the last 18 months or so was $12.50 an hour. I was the highest-paid non-editor at the paper and if it wasn't for my wife, I would have had to live at home with my parents because you can't live on your own with an annual income like that and with the hours sports requires, a second job is impossible.
I had a good run. In a couple weeks, I'll be stringing the girls state championship swim meet for the competition.
My bosses won't know the difference. But the readers will. And hopefully they'll let them know.

 

Rhody,

I don't know you at all, but I've always enjoyed your posts here. Best of luck and keep us posted.

 

that. exactly.

if you're not wanted somewhere and they get rid of you, take it as a blessing.

 

Better times, Rhody.