Next up, Kansas City...

Steve,

What KC still does, it does well. But that sports section is a complete shell of what it was just a few short years ago. I can't tell you how many times I've picked it up, turned a few pages and found myself smack-dab in the middle of the classifieds.

Five or six pages for a section that was always twice that? That is a drastic difference, especially when you know that at least two of those pages are going to be devoted to the Royals at this time of the year. That leaves a front, a Page 2, a Scoreboard, and what, one more page of content?

I love(d) the Star as much as anyone. But I can't say I would label it great anymore. Just my two cents.

 

I don't think there is a single great sports section left.

Maybe the Washington Post and yes, the KC Star is probably still in the top 5, but I think we're at the point where if your section isn't a complete embarrassment from what it was five years ago, you're probably among the best.

 

Actually, hasn't it only been a few weeks? His farewell was on July 24. (And I got the same impression as GQ - he didn't have anything lined up but was just tired of the daily stuff.) I feel bad for whoever gets that job because there's so much travel involved with just going to the home games, not to mention having to produce content for the two largest newspapers in Kansas.

Where did they get the hiring pool from? If they never posted a classified (which I never saw one on either site) then was it just word-of-mouth or did they seek people out to apply?

 

These types of jobs never get posted anymore.

Well, they "rarely" get posted.

 

I believe he gave plenty of notice before leaving. Perhaps that's way I'm surprised there has yet to be a new hire.

@Wenders: Guess it just seems like he's been gone longer than that.

 

Martin's departure kinda sucks. Star dumped Howard Richman, its former KState beat guy, who was aces. Wichita was to content share with Martin handling the job. A year later, he decides he doesn't want to be in the biz anymore.

 

I don't think you have all of your information correct. Who said he didn't want to be in the biz anymore? I think he just wanted to do something else, but that wasn't possible at the Eagle. So he left. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

Still great for what it does. What sports section is as good as it was five years ago?

 

About five years ago, when I was covering a big college at a small paper, doing a full-time beat as well as editing and designing whenever it could be shoe-horned into the schedule, I was always jealous that the major-metro competitor had the same beat as me and never had to do any editing/design on the side.

Will major metros get to the point where the offseason will be desk work for their writers? If they need to cut away the fat, I've got to think that's a possible solution. The small papers have been doing it forever.

 

Probably not, since copy editors will be extinct at most papers within the next year or two.

The running joke is that papers can save money by eliminating copy editors, but they'll be hiring a full-timer to be in charge of all the corrections.

 

From what I've heard, Jeffrey Martin is going to the Houston Chronicle to cover Rice.

There's also this from the "irrational fan base" files: http://www.bottomlinecom.com/kcnews/ksubeatcontroversy.html

 

It should be very interesting to see how The Star does HS football. They are down from six FT reporters from the beginning of last season (if you count Boyce who covered football games every Friday night), plus a HS editor to three FT reporters and one HS editor.