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Laid-off Gannett sports editor raps company in final column

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by gannettblog, Feb 4, 2011.

  1. TwoGloves

    TwoGloves Well-Known Member

    Me too. (But I got called back.)
     
  2. shockey

    shockey Active Member

    only time they work is when the author has been the section's voice for, like, forever, and he is retiring by choice and would like to thank the readers for the privilege of serving them.

    those kind of names connected to a paper deserve a chance to say 'goodbye' and 'thank you.' alas, there aren't many columnists still around who have earned that send-off....
     
  3. podunk press

    podunk press Active Member

    1. We give out too many awards in our industry. It makes a lot of journalists think they are better than they really are.
    2. You just don't do this in a tight labor market.
     
  4. Corky Ramirez up on 94th St.

    Corky Ramirez up on 94th St. Well-Known Member

    I could have ripped my paper and burned every bridge after being completely stressed out after 10 1/2 years (and a former Gannett paper to boot). But I kept my mouth shut and smiled through clenched teeth as I went to what I thought was my dream job.

    That job turned out to be even worse than newspapers (believe it). I left after only eight months.

    I then spent time substitute teaching, fell in love with it, and one month after it ended, my old boss at the paper called me out of the blue and offered me a full-time job on the spot. It's allowing me to get my teacher certification while I work full-time doing something I already know how to do.

    You may be stressed out at your job. But there's plenty worse. Plenty. I discovered that first-hand. And let me tell you, I appreciate having a steady paycheck and benefits WAY more than I ever have.

    If anyone ever tells me they want to go out in a blaze of glory ... I just say that company could come calling when you need it most.
     
  5. Bruhman

    Bruhman Active Member

    I disagree with those who say a farewell column is inappropriate unless you've been there forever.

    I wrote a column for nine-and-a-half years before taking a buyout and felt it would be wrong to leave without saying goodbye. I got a ton of feedback from a wide variety of folks. They touched me with their words and said I did likewise while I was there.

    Since columnists have more of a personal relationship with readers, I think disappearing from the paper without saying anything is kind of like not coming home one evening and never calling.
     
  6. Mark2010

    Mark2010 Active Member

    You know, I am honestly surprised that one of these unhappy laid-off people hasn't gone postal on his/her former bosses yet.
     
  7. J-School Blue

    J-School Blue Member

    I'm surprised it got into print, but good for him.

    Maybe he doesn't want to stay in the business after the last years at Gannett. Can't blame him. He got to go out with a 'fuck you' that didn't involve sliding down an airplane and violating federal regulations. As far as ways to take a moment of satisfaction (that is admittedly not smart, but feels good) for a laid-off employee, it's one of the less drastic ones.
     
  8. playthrough

    playthrough Moderator Staff Member

    He might be getting outta journalism, but who's to say someone in another field won't see this column and wonder if hiring this guy is a wise move. Too small of a world for these kind of columns, even if they make you feel really good for a day.
     
  9. MileHigh

    MileHigh Moderator Staff Member

    Pretty standard procedure. I had to sign off on the same thing to get a union-negotiated severance.
     
  10. MileHigh

    MileHigh Moderator Staff Member

    Who's to say Gannett gives a rip what he wrote? It's heard all the disparaging words over the years/decades about what a crap-ass company it is. Doesn't stop it from doing what it does.
     
  11. Fredrick

    Fredrick Well-Known Member

    Yes I agree.
    I don't know why anyone would hire somebody who has worked for the company on his deathbed oh, about five times.
    Some of you confuse me in your support of administration.
    This columnist is a damn hero. A hero.
    Who cares if he "ruined" his career. Who the fuck cares? This business is dead anyway. It is DEAD.
     
  12. You know, I'm not sure I'll go as far to call him a hero, but after looking at this column again more closely, I'd say it's a completely understandable piece. I'd also disagree with those who say it's poorly written and self-centered.

    What it is, is real. Unfiltered. A man who had given and given to his company and was let go -- twice. Not just the usual way we say we give. He literally put the place over his own serious health concerns. He deserves his anger here:



    Those of you who know me well know that I don't put much stock in emotion. But I can't help but to feel like a rube on the midway for thinking that someone as young, talented and loyal as I was would be able to stick with a company after proving time and time again that there was nothing I couldn't or wouldn't do for the good of the corporation.
    I've worked through pneumonia many times, bronchitis, pleurisy, broken ribs, migraines, a gallbladder that stopped functioning for six months and many other ailments that I ignored doctors orders to stay home. All for the good of the company. This is where it got me.
    But I am not alone in my bitterness.
    Many great people worked their last day at the Daily Record on Friday. Nearly half the staff has been let go from an already thin crew. Folks that have been for over 30 years had to reapply for their positions and drive to Neptune, some of us had to do it four times in a span of two weeks, to be asked the exact same questions as the previous trip.



    And he also does not use it just to focus on himself. Maybe in the heat of the moment and the spirit of letting it remain from his gut, he could have tweaked some wording, but screw it. He isn't just writing about himself. He's speaking of the lower quality product readers will get, by pointing out all the workers with integrity and strong work ethic who were let go -- not just him.

    He's railing against the corporate greed that he accurately describes as "treating customers like an annoyance and employees like dogs who should be happy with whatever scraps are leftover."
    He goes on to say it's not just his own paper or company that is a problem, but a climate of this in general.

    Again, I'm not sure I'll say he's a hero. Though his desire to speak brutally unfiltered will likely leave him sacrificing a shot to salvage a career in which he spent a portion of his 12 years ignoring his health concerns. So there could be some admiration for him taking a stand. Or, of course, some acknowledgement that it might not have been in his best interest to write this to anyone but himself.

    Either way, especially here, I'll agree with Fredrick by saying I think the piece deserves a lot more applause than scorn, even if it's not perfect.
     
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