Thursday, January 24, 2008

Ex-Post editor gets sweet deal

Mike Phillips, former editor of the Cincinnati Post, has landed at the Scripps Howard Foundation, succeeding former Kentucky Post editor Judy Clabes as president and CEO.

Will all ex-Post folks get such a deal? The foundation's Form 990 shows Clabes made $177,865 in 2005. Sweet. I wonder if Phillips had a drink to celebrate.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Do they give Pulitzers for cute animals?

This how the Enquirer plans to save itself from extinction.
From: Parker, Linda
Sent: Tuesday, January 22, 2008 11:03 AM
To: CIN-Editors
Subject: Cutest Pet Contest a huge winner

Thanks to all for the great work in promoting this in print.

The contest is by far our most successful GP! promotion to date. In its first three days – Thurs., Jan. 17-Sat., Jan. 19 - it drew 676 pictures (488 Ohio, 188 NKY). That is 40 percent more than our next-best contest, Hometown Halloween, which drew 483 over four weeks.

As we speak, we have 880 entries - 633 in Ohio, 247 in KY.

It has lifted all boats – GetPublished! page views, community page traffic and non-contest GetPublished! submissions.

Deadline for entries is midnight on Feb. 3, so rail items still good to go until then.

Again, thanks! Linda

What will they think of next? College students to cover the presidential primaries?

Sunday, January 06, 2008

Bombs in West Chester make the front page, but not those in Iraq

The Enquirer has put a story about the war in Iraq on the front page just once since December 1. But let some 19 year old kill himself with a homemade pipe bomb, and the Enquirer gives us two front-page stories (here and here), a front-page box on Friday and an editorial. Daniel Ferraro's attempt to win a Darwin Award might be fodder for the Local page. The fact that the Enquirer puts it on the front page shows how little gas there is in the tank at 312 Elm.

The Enquirer is using this tragic death to further demonize the Internet, because Ferraro and his friends wanted to post video of their bomb on YouTube. The Enquirer -- the editorial page in particular -- writes almost nothing positive about the Internet. Would you, if the Internet were kicking your ass so bad?

In the past few days there's been plenty of fodder for good stories: The deal to have Portune and Hartmann run unopposed for the Hamilton County commission is one. The City Manager Milton Dohoney's demand to know why police and firemen are acting like Bengals is another. Both made the front page but neither had a follow-up. Dohoney's memo on the police and fire departments didn't even rate an editorial.

Dohoney wrote that memo Dec. 27, and it took the Enquirer till January 5 to publish it. Would that have happened if the Post was still around?

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Post tribute is back online

Find it here. Kerry Duke, managing editor of the new Kypost.com, says it was an oversight in the manic switch from Cincypost.com to Kypost.com. I hope that stays online a long time.