Daily newspaper coming to Detroit

[WolvEagle]

I didn't go to my usual gas station to buy my papers today because my kids have today off school. So, I stopped at a Kroger, a 7-Eleven and four gas stations in two cities, combined population about 95,000 - no luck. None of them sell the new paper.

If you're being skunked by that many places, that can't be a good sign. I asked the 7-Eleven clerk, and he gave me a blank look (real shocker there).

 

[murphyc]

I didn't go to my usual gas station to buy my papers today because my kids have today off school. So, I stopped at a Kroger, a 7-Eleven and four gas stations in two cities, combined population about 95,000 - no luck. None of them sell the new paper.

If you're being skunked by that many places, that can't be a good sign. I asked the 7-Eleven clerk, and he gave me a blank look (real shocker there).

It could be they haven't found the key person at those companies that gives approval to sell papers in the local stores. We finally got our paper in Fred Meyer (owned by Kroger) recently and a couple of other big grocery chains. You call one person and that starts the "Oh, you need to talk to THIS person" joyride. Months later you're still trying to find the right person in corporate. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case with this Detroit paper, because trying to track down the right person for approval can be time consuming, to say the least.

 

[Peg McNichol]

I've been getting mine at the nearest CVS.

 

[WolvEagle]

I've been getting mine at the nearest CVS.

Peg - I'll try that. One hitch is that normally I'm on my way to work at 7 a.m. and CVS isn't open. I'll look, though.

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

It could be they haven't found the key person at those companies that gives approval to sell papers in the local stores. We finally got our paper in Fred Meyer (owned by Kroger) recently and a couple of other big grocery chains. You call one person and that starts the "Oh, you need to talk to THIS person" joyride. Months later you're still trying to find the right person in corporate. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case with this Detroit paper, because trying to track down the right person for approval can be time consuming, to say the least.

The problem here is that people have said they found the paper in their local CVS or Walgreens, but then other people go to their local CVS and Walgreens and those stores don't have them.

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

A Crain's Detroit writer blogs on the first edition of the DDP.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/section/c?template=profile&uid=140106&plckPersonaPage=BlogViewPost&plckUserId=140106&plckPostId=Blog%3a140106Post%3af2e25fc2-6d10-43f8-a33f-2f7dacfcb6a2&plckController=PersonaBlog&plckScript=personaScript&plckElementId=personaDest



And an E & P article on some of the startup problems, which include barcode scanning issues at CVS.
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1004047873

 

[Peg McNichol]

My local Speedway had Thanksgiving Day papers -- and no problem scanning the barcode.

 

[TwoGloves]

Crain's says the sports columnist will be Rob Parker.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20091113/FREE/911139984#

Well that's a heaping helping of fail right there.

The model could work. He has credible, if not controversial, journalists in the fold. The problem is that Detroit, and Michigan for that matter, is hurting so badly financially. The timing may be a little premature.

Rob Parker is not a credible journalist. He's got a trail of fabrication/plagiarism in his checkered history, to say nothing of sub-replacement-level competence and major ethical breaches (borrowing large sums of money from sources).

Many know that I'm a Rob friend and I'm not going to defend his past, however, you can't take away that people will read what he has written, good or bad. Not many scribes on these threads can say the same thing.

Yup. The rest of us are just a bunch of no-talent hacks who wish we had Rob's resume.

Perhaps if you had half of Rob's resume, you wouldn't consider yourself as a no talent hack. Enough with the hatred.

I don't hate Rob at all. What I do hate is you acting like the rest of the people on this board are a bunch of boobs compared to your hero.

 

[Drip]

Crain's says the sports columnist will be Rob Parker.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20091113/FREE/911139984#

Well that's a heaping helping of fail right there.

The model could work. He has credible, if not controversial, journalists in the fold. The problem is that Detroit, and Michigan for that matter, is hurting so badly financially. The timing may be a little premature.

Rob Parker is not a credible journalist. He's got a trail of fabrication/plagiarism in his checkered history, to say nothing of sub-replacement-level competence and major ethical breaches (borrowing large sums of money from sources).

Many know that I'm a Rob friend and I'm not going to defend his past, however, you can't take away that people will read what he has written, good or bad. Not many scribes on these threads can say the same thing.

Yup. The rest of us are just a bunch of no-talent hacks who wish we had Rob's resume.

Perhaps if you had half of Rob's resume, you wouldn't consider yourself as a no talent hack. Enough with the hatred.

I don't hate Rob at all. What I do hate is you acting like the rest of the people on this board are a bunch of boobs compared to your hero.

Dude get a life, please. You are taking Rob Parker WAY too personal. That is boobism.
Rob is a friend. Not a hero. A hero is a sandwich.

 

[WolvEagle]

Guys - I know y'all are going to turn on me for this, but if you keep arguing like this, this thread will be locked. For those of us who live and work in metro Detroit, this is a good thread. I don't want to see it locked because of a flame war. Some of you like Rob Parker. Some of you don't. That's all that needs to be said.

 

[Drip]

Guys - I know y'all are going to turn on me for this, but if you keep arguing like this, this thread will be locked. For those of us who live and work in metro Detroit, this is a good thread. I don't want to see it locked because of a flame war. Some of you like Rob Parker. Some of you don't. That's all that needs to be said.

AMEN!!!!!!

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

There's a new thread on this topic, but posting the news here too, in case people miss the new thread..

From the DDP's Facebook page:
Due to circimstances beyond our control, lack of advertising, lateness of our press runs and lack of distribution and sales, we find it necessary to temporarily suspend publication of the Detroit Daily Press until after the 1st of the year. Once we can fix these things, we plan to be back stronger and more organized wh...en we return. This is just a bump in the road and not the end of the Detroit Daily Press.

 

[Drip]

There's a new thread on this topic, but posting the news here too, in case people miss the new thread..

From the DDP's Facebook page:
Due to circimstances beyond our control, lack of advertising, lateness of our press runs and lack of distribution and sales, we find it necessary to temporarily suspend publication of the Detroit Daily Press until after the 1st of the year. Once we can fix these things, we plan to be back stronger and more organized wh...en we return. This is just a bump in the road and not the end of the Detroit Daily Press.

wow

 

[txsportsscribe]

There's a new thread on this topic, but posting the news here too, in case people miss the new thread..

From the DDP's Facebook page:
Due to circimstances beyond our control, lack of advertising, lateness of our press runs and lack of distribution and sales, we find it necessary to temporarily suspend publication of the Detroit Daily Press until after the 1st of the year. Once we can fix these things, we plan to be back stronger and more organized wh...en we return. This is just a bump in the road and not the end of the Detroit Daily Press.

like already said: not enough money, not enough lead time and apparently not enough good planning.

 

[Mystery Meat II]

There's a new thread on this topic, but posting the news here too, in case people miss the new thread..

From the DDP's Facebook page:
Due to circimstances beyond our control, lack of advertising, lateness of our press runs and lack of distribution and sales, we find it necessary to temporarily suspend publication of the Detroit Daily Press until after the 1st of the year. Once we can fix these things, we plan to be back stronger and more organized wh...en we return. This is just a bump in the road and not the end of the Detroit Daily Press.

like already said: not enough money, not enough lead time and apparently not enough good planning.

DDP publisher: Wait, Thursday's a day too? Dammit! We're out of money.

 

[Peg McNichol]

Money is not the issue, folks. I have my first paycheck and am told to expect a second one on Friday. The issue -- besides ad sales -- involved getting papers from the print plant to the stands.

 

[Drip]

Money is not the issue, folks. I have my first paycheck and am told to expect a second one on Friday. The issue -- besides ad sales -- involved getting papers from the print plant to the stands.

Sounds like a workable solution to me.

 

[Clerk Typist]

It's inconceivable to me that the owners weren't working on the logistics of delivering the paper before that announced the paper's forthcoming presence in June. Then comes July, August, September, October and November. The end of November. Five months, and they can't rent a delivery service - or create one of their own, if need be - to get the papers from the printing plant to the outlets and eventually to home deliverers?
That's even worse than the ad ratio being 20-80 on Thanksgiving week. And if you're on hiatus during the holidays, when some companies still want to advertise in newspapers, what ad buyer with a brain will want to take a chance when you come back, after the holidays (and I'll presume it will take that long).
This paper is done. Too bad. I remember Keith Gave from his days on the Red Wings beat.

 

[Peg McNichol]

Clerk Typist, In a textbook sense you might be correct. In real life, you are wrong. Some of what happened included vendors changing or reneging on their agreements. I suspect some advertisers used the new paper's presence to leverage better deals with exisiting outlets. Were I an advertiser facing an uncertain 4Q after three relatively lame quarters, I would have done the same. The Sterns plan to be back in 2010.

 

[txsportsscribe]

Money is not the issue, folks. I have my first paycheck and am told to expect a second one on Friday. The issue -- besides ad sales -- involved getting papers from the print plant to the stands.

um, that's a pretty big issue.