New development in Allentown

For those who might be interested, the decision has been reached to eliminate the sports editor's position at The Morning Call, meaning Bill Kline is out of a job. ASE Ernie Long is now in charge.

 

Wait .. so they ELIMINATED the SE post but are keeping the ASE?
Or did they fire the SE and promote the ASE?

 

That's so shitty I can't even bring myself to do a Billy Joel pull.

 

As I understand it, they just eliminated the SE position.

 

No knowledge of Allentown, but I have heard of other, small- to mid-size papers doing the same. Cut the SE and split the work between an ASE, a news editor and a senior sports staffer.

Obviously it doesn't help the final product, but it allows for cutting a FTE at the management level while splitting the work up between several people and not giving them any more $$$$$ for that extra work.

 

that's what led to me getting the axe a few months back. They cut the SE (me) and split it between the part-time ASE and the city hall reporter

 

So it's basically a salary dump?

SOMEONE is still going to have to do the work, regardless of what their title/salary is.

 

Yes, just a salary dump. It's just like 99 percent of the other layoffs. Same amount of work, split between fewer people. And if the product suffers so the bottom line looks better ... oh well.

 

In that case, I'm surprised it doesn't happen more often.

 

Well we are living here in Allentown
And they took the sports editor down
On the agate desk they're killing time
Clearing their desks, left in a bind
Well we covered all the Second World War
Spent our comp time on the Jersey Shore
Scooped those mothers at RKO
Then the Net came, killed us real slow
And we're living here in Allentown

But the circulation's going down
And it's getting very hard to stay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay.
Ayyyyyyyy-ayyyyy-ay
Oh-oh-oh

And we're waiting here in Allentown
For the backup plan we never found
For the promises our bosses gave
If we worked hard, if we behaved
So the APSEs hang on the wall
But they never really helped us at all
No they never taught us what was real
Profits and links, mergers and deals
And we're waiting here in Allentown

But they've ran the paper into the ground
And the reeeaders crawled away-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay
Ayyyyyyyyy-ayyyyyy-ay

Every newshound had a pretty good shot
To get at least as far as deputy slot
Something happened on the way to that place
They threw an SEO tag in our face
Ayyyyyyyyyy-ayyyyyyyyyy-ace
Oh-oh-oh

Well, I'm living here in Allentown
And it's hard to keep a good man down
But I won't be filing slugs today-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay
Ayyyyyyyyy-ayyyyyyy-ay


And it's getting very hard to stay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay
And we're living here in Allentown

 

not funny, not clever, not appropriate

 

Yup. I'm guessing there is a minimum salary for the SE position, so they just eliminate it and dump the work in the ASE, just ignoring the lack of logic behind having an assistant to a job that no longer exists. Fraud.