Belo's 500 "RIF"

I read "wireless" as meaning cell phone/Blackberry reimbursement, not your aircard or whatever. But I certainly could be wrong. And as far as parking goes, that's life in the big city...

 

Z:

Maybe in downtown areas of more "urban" cities (NY, Philly, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland) I can see having to pay for parking. This is just lil ol' Big D double A double L A S. And the DMN does have its own parking lot (shared with the TV station it used to own). So it's basically just gouging its employees for the use of the real estate; it's not like its paying for parking in some public garage.

And comparing the parking situation to your relatives has logic holes. Sure, folks who work 9-5 in downtown metro areas can and should take public transit. Ask them if they'd like to take the train or the bus home at 1 a.m. on a Friday or a Saturday? Also, some journos need their car for mobility to do their job.

 

Not dealing with parking and traffic are why I live in a small town.

 

But that is the catch -- the desk guys at my shop don't pay for parking because it is free at meters after five -- so they all drive in anyway and don't have to take trains or buses at 1 a.m.

And are you saying that Dallas is not a major city with many of the same issues as the other major cities you mentioned?

I can understand when something was free and is no longer, but $35 a month for parking is not excessive, particularly considering what a monthly lease at most public lots are likley to cost.

And for the reporters who don't have to park in the lot -- like I said, in most cities you can park on the streets for free after a certain point -- do you still have to pay the fee?

 

Maybe you can do a Google maps search of downtown Dallas. It is neither a street-parking or a walking-friendly city. Parking on the street is limited.

 

On a related note, the Guild at the Providence Journal is calling on Belo CEO Robert Decherd to give back his 140 percent raise in light of the impending layoffs. (Scroll down to the fifth item.)

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/

 

Yeah, that's gonna happen

 

The D.C. metro shuts down at midnight Sunday-Thursday and 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday. I leave work at 2 a.m. or later three to four nights a week. Even in big cities, public transport doesn't always run after midnight, and night shift folks have to have a car or other private transportation.

If our public transport ran when I got off work here, I'd take it home. I freaking hate driving.

 

Didn't realize it was festival parking in downtown Dallas, one of the 10 largest cities in the country. They just have a guy waving them through the gates and onto the pasture land there?

 

Pay (at a reduced rate) for parking here. Also can take public transportation, and the company rebates some of the cost of that. We also rent our parking garage to non-scribes as well. But this seems silly in a suburban place like Riverside, which has a big parking lot around its big (and new) building.

 

The lineup of songs and sketches for the Guild Follies Feb. 27 is still fluid. You know this is going to find its way into the show somehow.

 

Belo is a joke, but so is pretty much any company involved in modern journalism. Who ever heard of charging one's employees for showing up to work at all hours of the day? Oh wait, everyone.