Star-Telegram update

Shit, I know a couple of people there and I bet they don't make it.

 

Ten people? Obviously that will completely finish off a once proud sports section. Keep giving it away online for free. That works.

 

I know a few people there, including a married couple. Yes, the husband and wife both work there. They are in my thoughts this morning.

 

Oh crap. I better check on my longtime, fellow journalism grad who is on the FWST sports staff.
damn. he's afraid he'll be one of the next and he's been in this business a long, long time.

 

Is this more than a third of the entire staff?

 

Talked to a friend there this morning. They're expecting it to be whatever's worse than bad. Bloody, bloody Thursday was the way it was put to me.

 

My thoughts with all of you.

 

Hopefully at least one of them is retained. You hope it's not random in this case.

BTW, are we at the point yet where we can take a survey and see which papers' sports departments have been the LEAST hit by layoffs & buyouts? One near me has lost, I think, about three out of maybe 26-28 people over a two-year period, which doesn't seem all that bad anymore. But maybe other joints have been bulletproof.

 

10 seems to be about 20 percent of the staff, close as I can figure. And, yes, another great section is reduced to a shell of itself.

The idea of someone walking around the newsroom and picking them out is offensive. No phones in Fort Worth? At least have the decency to call people ahead of time and give them a head's up. Oh wait, let's make a bad situation absolutely inhumane while we're at it. Best thing to hope is that someone comes up to the HR woman and taps her on the shoulder to give her the news.

 

The people who know how to fire people have job security.

 

For now.

Eventually, I think, it will be like the goons working for The Joker in "The Dark Knight." Once your dirty work is done, off you go.

 

They should video it and put it on the web for everyone who got the axe previously to watch.