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Flooded town's paper behind paywall

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by copperpot, Sep 15, 2011.

  1. LongTimeListener

    LongTimeListener Well-Known Member

    I admire your passion. You might want to check this thought with your parents, because you're going to be living in their house until you're 30.
     
  2. flexmaster33

    flexmaster33 Well-Known Member

    @ AdamLawson...you couldn't be more off-base, but you'll get a pass on this one because you're young.

    First of, it's your job to keep a record of your clips, it's not your work place's responsibility. If you have a story you want to add to your files, save a pdf version of it and keep it, so you can send it off with your resumes.
    No, we are not trolling around college newspaper sites looking for the next great writer. If there is a job opening, you apply to us. We aren't going to come knocking on your door because you're such a superb writer.

    Second, no one is in this business for the money. We all barely get paid enough to keep groceries on the table, add in furlough days and such and the belt gets uncomfortably tight. It is incredibly frustrating to work hard on something then hand it over for free, especially in an industry that seems hell bent on sinking itself. It seems some newspapers are finally waking up to this fact. We are not a public service, we are a for-profit industry. Information has a value and people shouldn't expect to get it for free.
     
  3. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    Google is a wonderful tool.
     
  4. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    It became about the money (what little there is to be had) when making an OK living at a mid-sized paper without fearing layoffs stopped.
     
  5. beanpole

    beanpole Member

    Sorry, Adam. Newspapers exist to sell the news product that reporters created. They're not there to make sure you can find another job.

    If papers (or any newsgathering organization) can't make enough money to pay the bills, then they're not going to stay in business for long. You can't give away the product for free and expect people to buy it anyway.
     
  6. beanpole

    beanpole Member

    Here you go. http://lmgtfy.com/?q=How+to+make+a+PDF
     
  7. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    No way should this be free.

    If this happened in 1978, people would not expect free papers at the market, right?

    If one of the rubes had half a brain, they would buy one and email it out to 200 people.
     
  8. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    That's job creation. Buy a paper copy and sell a PDF of the paper for 10-15 cents each.
     
  9. wicked

    wicked Well-Known Member

    Great, a kid who has grown up suckling off the teat of the free media for 20-something years doesn't want to pay. What else is new?

    We have a great future to which we can look forward.
     
  10. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    This and the entry-level job in Arkansas should be merged into I'm a senior who wants to cover sports for a living, but doesn't know the technology or much about journalism. If one's main objection to paywalls is how will hiring managers find my stuff needs to do some research on the industry.

    An editor who brings in a recent grad who doesn't know how to make a PDF, use social media, paginate, shoot video and audio, and write, is working for a paper that really won't help your career.
     
  11. Point of Order

    Point of Order Active Member

    I didn't get into writing for the money. I got into it for the glamour.
     
  12. Stitch

    Stitch Active Member

    What about the chicks? It's all about the chicks. Even better with two chicks at the same time.
     
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