Sports writer, Dodge City, KS

[boots]

The Dodge City Daily Globe has an opening for a full-time sports reporter. The Daily Globe is a 7,000 morning circulation newspaper located in southwest Kansas.
The sports staff consists of one full-time reporter and one part-time reporter. The Globe covers high school, junior college, semi-pro basketball as well as other non-traditional types of sports. The sports reporter is also resposible for the sports page design. A college degree in journalism and experience with QuarkXpress is preferred. This is a good place to gain experience and build a clip file.

Send resume and clips to managing editor Rick Druse in care of the Dodge City Daily Globe, 705 Second Ave., Dodge City, KS 67801.

 

[Chi City 81]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

Former home of Wyatt Earp. That's all I got.

 

[Songbird]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

Spent 5 days in Dodge City (couldn't get the **** out) when the car broke down. Interesting piece of Americana. Definite Kansas State country. On Day 3 there I stumbled across the paper and applied and got the tour and all that jazz. Some of the streets are cobbled. Mom's and Pop's pool hall is a hoot 'n' holler if ever there was one, especially when you suck down Bud's with the locals at 10:30 a.m.; I wish I had the cassettes of the convos I taped there. The Ford dealership sucks. Took 'em 5 days to fix the problem, and they never fixed it, so I broke down in Fort Dodge on the eastern border, spent another 2 days in the state. But boy, howdy! Nothin' like the Bourbon County Fair.

 

[chazp]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

Former home of Wyatt Earp. That's all I got.

and Marshall Dillon.

 

[boots]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

Former home of Wyatt Earp. That's all I got.

and Marshall Dillon.

I don't know Marshall Dillon but I know of Marshal Matt Dillon. You can find him lying in the booth with Miss Kitty while Festus is watching Doc cheat Newly at poker. Chester will be coming through the doors any moment and Sam will have a fresh bottle for him to open.

 

[Oz]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

I've spent many a night in Dodge City. You would think the high school would use something from it's Old West past as the nickname, but way back then, they wanted to get away from that identity. So they went with Red Demons. Go figure.

Not a bad town. Dodge City is a Class 6A school (the largest in Kansas) and played in the Western Athletic Conference. Garden City is about 50 minutes away, Hays, Liberal and Great Bend -- the other WAC schools -- can be up to two hours. The Globe also reports on the small towns around there, like Cimarron, Sublette, Satanta, Jetmore, etc. And then there's the usual Juco coverage with the Conqs in town. During the summer, there's the USBL's Dodge City Legend to bridge the gap to football season.

In the past, it's been a two-man crew. Recently, I think it whittled down to one, with that one -- the sports editor the past eight years or so, at least -- drawing some night-time news assignments on the side. Didn't sound like the best arrangement. But if someone wants a start, this would be a place to get a ton of experience real quick. Just not sure how much help the paper would provide.

 

[Tom Petty]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

are 1.5 people really considered to be a staff ... or should i say saff in this case?

 

[Football_Bat]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

I can see the phone calls now.

"You don't cover the junior high gun fighters even though they work just as hard as the football team!"

 

[astleford]

Re: Spots writer, Dodge City, KS

I have a few memories of this place.

If anyone wants more information about the area, PM me.

 

[Platyrhynchos]

Spent 5 days in Dodge City (couldn't get the **** out)

Subtle, yet hilarious. ;D

 

[chazp]

Former home of Wyatt Earp. That's all I got.

and Marshall Dillon.

I don't know Marshall Dillon but I know of Marshal Matt Dillon. You can find him lying in the booth with Miss Kitty while Festus is watching Doc cheat Newly at poker. Chester will be coming through the doors any moment and Sam will have a fresh bottle for him to open.

One and the same. Some called him Matt, others just Marshal Dillon.

 

[kamikaze021]

I am the guy leaving the Daily Globe.

First of all, the townspeople outside the newspaper in Dodge City and the sports teams are great and very caring and generous to the sports writers here in town. That's about the only positive about this job.

Unless you want a lot of heartache and a lack of respect, then stay away from here. There isn't a part-timer working at the newspaper right now. The only reason why I lasted here eight years was because of my now ex-wife and my son being from here. I never received a raise in six years (I was due one in May, but the company froze it), and they heckle you about any overtime.

Plus, the one-man sports staff would work for a MORNING paper, not an afternoon, which is a detriment to covering what needs to be covered. I covered the Red Demons, Conquistadors, Legend, Athletics (semi-pro baseball), and 15 other high schools (used to be 20, but never as low as six like the person listed before), while also doing the sports design every night, writing obituaries on Sundays, and was the night news reporter on Sundays and Mondays as well (which takes about 10-15 hours off your time from sports).

The newspaper has been getting lots of crud from corporate about getting more local NEWS stories in and making sure design and copy editing is through before 11 p.m. It seems they have practically decided that sports takes a back seat to their first goals. If you know your game doesn't end by 10-10:30, then they're going to tell you to cover the game over the radio, even at home. I know this because they said it one day last week on a Legend game that was in town less than two miles away.

There is only a three-person staff (plus a summer intern) right now (including me), and the sports person is expected to do extra duties. Basically, your main job is not writing, but laying out sports and helping news wherever possible. Unless you want to have more news in your background and resume, you want to stay away from this job as much as possible.

I was finally able to leave Dodge City when my ex-wife and her boyfriend wanted to leave the area as much as I did. They, the Globe management, knew I wouldn't leave as long as my son was in the area, so when we all decided it was time, I jumped on the first chance to get out.

 

[kamikaze021]

Oh, one other thing. Circulation is down to more like 6,000. It was around 9,000 when I came here in 1999.

 

[Tom Petty]

looking better by the second.

 

[Shaggy]

I really love the honesty. I also feel a little better (but not much) about my job.

 

[Angola!]

kamikaze021 - I am happy you are getting out, it sounds like a miserable job.

 

[Charlie Hustle]

Surprise surprise, that paper is owned by Morris Communications.

On another note, best of luck kamikaze. I'm glad you are getting out of a bad situation, and I hope everything works out for you.

 

[Batman]

So is it fair to say, Kamikaze, that you got the hell out of Dodge?

Sorry, too easy to resist. ;D

 

[kamikaze021]

I'm really going to miss the town and covering the Demons and Conqs, and the area teams; but I'm not going to miss the stress.

 

[kamikaze021]

author=Charlie Hustle link=topic=42711.msg1233179#msg1233179 date=1181622802]
Thanks