Ann Arbor

So today I walked past a garbage can someone had out for pick-up that was strictly a recycling bin for newspapers, distributed by the city.

Oh, the irony.

 

So much for change. All four managers hired so far are Ann Arbor News workers and the publisher is the new CEO.

Jim, do they have new media skills, or is it more of the same in cluelessness?

 

Questions ... give me a day or two to answer that. I'm going to blog in it.

In a related matter, Michigan football beat writer John Heuser exits the building tomorrow via buyout.

Best journalist I've ever worked with, bar none. Six straight years of APSE Top 10s in one form or another. The most popular and hardest-working man in the newsroom, a consumate professional, and with all that, a better person than journalist:

http://papertigernomore.blogspot.com/2009/06/heart-and-soul-of-a2-news-sports.html

 

An excellent tribute to someone who is well-deserving of it.

 

So why didn't they hire him to take the UM beat.

 

If you mean AnnArbor.com, it's because he didn't apply. He's going to school.

 

Probably a better decision. I still can't get over the acorn.

 

It's certainly not the ability to do these new things, it's the willingness to try something unproven (yes, all these new media ideas are still very much unproven when it comes to their economic sustainability) vs. things that the writers know they still have a market for, though the consumer of said product is probably older than he/she used to be.

It isn't about ability to learn -- blogging is no complicating process, neither is pointing a crappy camera for a podcast -- it's about a willingness. And it's amazing how many veterans are unwilling. You'd almost think they have a point about all this...

 

I would disagree that veterans are unwilling. Most of them are very willing but the people at the newspapers are unwilling to give them training or even the time to learn the new stuff. Because they need them to keep putting in their hours day after day putting out the old product. You know, the old product, the newspaper, the one that is paying all the bills for the "new" product? That one.

 

read this on freefromeditors.blogspot.com

Nice to see the name will change, but the arrogance will stay...

This one is going to leave a mark
Someone named William Fagan is not happy that his company was evicted from their downtown office space by AnnArbor.com. Here is the comment he left on the following AnnArbor.com post.

William Fagan in June 4, 2009 8:17 PM
Hi Stephanie,
I have 7 "local professionals" who would be interested in being on the advisory panel that you mentioned. All seven are staff members of my company- Fuji Arts. We're being displaced by AnnArbor.com's take over of our downtown office. We were told that AA.com refused to share the floor and made an "all or nothing deal" that forced us out. So, my first bit of advice would be- if you want to be a part of the "community" don't start by forcing successful companies out of their spaces.
William Fagan
Fuji Arts Inc.

 

At this stage of the game, if you aren't willing, you might as well kiss your job goodbye.

Again, it's easier to train journalists to the web, than train IT guy's to write clean copy quickly.

If my company would pony up to send me to some damn classes, I'd be able to code pages, do java and actually make cool stuff in photoshop in about three months. And I know there are many others in my editorial department who would do this too.

 

Amen.
Some of the veterans may be unwilling to do some of the things you criticize me for doing ... working too much. Maybe they are fucking taking a stand at having to do 10 times the work for frozen pay or less pay. Why do some of you turn on these people? They are ultimately going to get replaced anyway for minimum wage buttkissers. I give them credit for taking a stand. They'll be fired or have their pay frozen no matter what they do. If they don't want to point a lens for a web item that will generate no clicks, more power to them.