Unbelievable stuff in Ridder from St. Paul to Minneapolis

There's goes your shot at Publisher.

 

It's just disgusting how sleazy the execs are these days. I suppose there are plenty of good ones, trying to work hard and earn the trusts of stockholders and employees alike, but I haven't seen one near me for a long while.

I'd love to hear the conversations they have behind closed doors, fleecing the staff while making sure their bonuses and perks are intact.

Newspaper execs have forgotten that their most valuable resource is their employees. As transparent as they are in thinking of us as mere cattle, it's no wonder that newsrooms don't burst with energy and drive anymore. What I see is a lot of people watching the clock and just doing enough to get the paper out.

I always thought this was a calling, a mission to always push for integrity and excellence.

Still some folks that believe in that, but to many more it's just a job, and that ain't good.

I blame the execs. You're only as good as your leadership, and it's not right when you're not allowed to win anymore. It's like being the Detroit Lions or something.

Yeah, you field a team, and the coach and the players are trying to win, but what the hell's going on up there in the luxury boxes? Seems like they're having a party regardless, and we can't even score anymore.

That's my take. Discuss...............

 

I've been working on newspapers since I was 16. And 31 years ago, most journalists generally thought we were being porked by cheap shitheads, too. I think the energy and drive waned not because of money but because a lot of newsrooms are run by people who have no real zeal for news, because we've gotten away from breaking news and no longer have a sense of urgency, because a lot of newsroom leaders are slick/polished instead of crusty, profane, straight-talking people who crave that adrenaline rush that only happens when you've got an important story to publish and a deadline bearing down on you. Some places still have it, money problems or not. And some places are like a generic office where the only time a pulse quickens is in silent anger.

 

Exactly, Frank. Unfortunately, I'm still one of those crusty straight-talkers, but I might as well be working in a bank these days.

And we're not being porked by cheap shitheads anymore.

These days, we're being porked by Professional Shitheads.

Anyone who wants to hear a good take, go to YouTube, search for George Carlin and "Owners of This Country." After the first two minutes or so, the stuff on education, he gets down to the hard stuff, and it's real. These bastards who call themselves your boss just want you to be willfully ignorant, obedient workers, numb to the machine, just pushing the buttons to process the beef on the assembly line.

That's not what journalism, or newspapers, should be about.

Anyway, don't take it from me. Take it from George Carlin.

And thank god for George Carlin. He'll make you laugh, but he'll make you think also.

Discuss..................