Argument at work today

Ad rep complains to editor about some business not getting coverage. Said business was just mentioned in an article. I guess the owners thought they deserved coverage for advertising in the paper.

Ad rep continues on and says asks how do you think the newspaper exists?

Anyone here tell off ad reps at your respective paper or just blow them off. I have to write business profiles as part of my news gig and I get e-mail from ad reps about new businesses. They always say that so-and-so also advertises.

I personally don't care if business advertises or not. In fact, I want to tell the ad reps that if I wanted to hear their advice, well I wouldn't want your advice, so shut the hell up.

But I feel as like it's a better career move by not yelling at the top of my lungs in a small newsroom.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

I agree with the last thing you said.
Also, the ad rep has a point, especially in this day and age.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

I'm of the opinion that newspapers have whored themselves here and there through the years. The big problem is that they haven't charged higher prices.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

I'd blame the editor rather than the ad rep. It's the editor's job to shield you from this kind of thing. Reporters should not be having professional contact with the advertising department. And an advertising salesperson should not be talking to the editor, either. The salesman's boss, the advertising manager, should take his problem to the publisher. The publisher then decides if he wants to discuss it with the editor.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

Wow, Frank.

Did you fire up the flux capacitor and travel back in time for that post?

That ship sailed long, long ago.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

The editor should have told the ad rep to fuck off.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

And followed that by looking for a teaching job to replace the one he just lost.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

But at least he'd go out in style.

 

Re: Arguement at work today

Did the ad rep ask why you can't spell?

 

Re: Arguement at work today

Dear ad rep,
We'll do a story on Kroger/Food World/Albertsons/Cub every week because they spend more money than your advertiser does.
And when football tab season rolls around, expect me to knock on your door and yell in front of your staff -- "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN"T SELL THE TAB?! TELL THOSE LAZY FUCKS TO KNOCK ON SOME DOORS FOR A CHANGE!"

 

Re: Arguement at work today

I've been at my current stop for five years. It just so happens that our editor-in-chief started at the paper the day before I did.

About a month into our respective tenures, we were getting ready to start the editorial meeting when the sports editor comes in and says our veteran ad rep (who was actually a pretty good guy and, unfortunately, has since passed on) needed to talk to us about something.

Seems the local JC softball team had won a couple of games in a season-opening tournament, but through a beaureaucratic snafu, one of their players turned out to be ineligible. No chicanery, just a mistake. Our sports section was getting ready to run the story, identifying the ineligible player.

Ah, but as the ad rep went on to explain to the people getting ready to start the meeting, the ineligible player was a relative of a local figure who owned a few restaurants in town and did a lot of advertising. Our ad rep asked if we could leave the player's name out of the story, because the advertiser would appreciate that.

Our editor politely but firmly told him there was no way we were going to do that; that if we changed our story to please an advertiser, the credibility with our readers would go out the window. Seeing his request would be refused, the rep rather gruffly told us that no purpose would be served in identifying the player, but our editor said he understood his position, but we would never consider something like that.

It was then that I knew I would more than satisfied working for this editor, and after five years my opinion hasn't changed.