APSE contest change

I didn't see this elsewhere.

From Mike Fannin's letter on the apse site (http://apse.dallasnews.com/2008/june2008/061908fannin.html) ...

"I've asked Garry D. Howard, incoming First Vice President, to add one more side item to his full plate as chair of the 2009 contest judging in Las Vegas. Next year, we will hand out top 10 section honors for papers 20,000-and-under. This can be achieved fairly easily as an adjunct to the 40,000-and-under judging. Under that scenario, we'd just be picking 10 additional papers from a pile that has already been closely scrutinized."

As someone at a paper under 20,000, I like this a lot. I think it's a good compromise after the idea of changing the category sizes was shot down.

 

At the rate papers are cutting, papers with circulation under 20,000 will be the norm.

 

The contest is the least of most of our worries.

 

How about if APSE uses a handicapping system like golf, in which a section can claim the number of layoffs from its staff during the calendar year. Points are awarded for the kinds of positions filled: columnists, beat writers, slot, rim, clerks. Then the section's overall contest point total is adjust based upon the perceived impact that the missing personnel could have reasonably accomplished.

 

BEAutiful

 

Let me see if I understand. So there is a 20K- to go with the 40K- contests.

So does that mean there is now a 20-40K division?

 

Obviously the bigger paper guys are feeling the criticism of their decision to crush the potential rules changes (and in doing so protect the largest circ category, in which very few papers compete).

This is a small tossed bone, nothing more. A sub-section of section awards, no writing awards. Better than nothing, but still weak.

And, yeah, hardly seems to matter given the state of things.

 

They'll give out 20 awards in the under-40 division.
They will then give out 10 awards in the under-20 division.

You can be in both.

 

I have an even better idea: Let's get rid of these bullshit awards contests completely!

 

No blue font needed, f_t.

I'm convinced that part of the pending demise of many newspapers has to do with SEs trying to impress APSE judges instead of being concerned with what's right for their readership.

 

Or even their staffs.