So long
Farewell to these good people on their last day at the Enquirer:
With this post I'm leaving the blogging business. And let me be clear: No one is silencing me. I'm just tired of it. The Enquirer is hopeless. Thank you for reading and commenting and supporting me.Betty Barnett
Jim Borgman
Marty Eggerding
Ann Haas Ann Hicks
Allen Howard
Jim Knippenberg
Joy Kraft
Tony Lang
Margaret A. McGurk
Sara Pearce
Jennifer Schwertman
Alan Vonderhaar
William A. Weathers
John Wolfe
posted by Newsache at 1:32 PM
35 Comments:
Thank you for what you have done.
Thank you for your tireless efforts in exposing the senseless hypocricy at the paper.
Many years ago, Charlie Scripps told me that "....communities get the newspapers they deserve.....".
Let's find another way .....!
Newsache:
This is likely an unexpected but sincere thank you from the target of many of your posts. Your blog, particularly in its early days, raised some very legitimate criticisms of our work. Sometimes it stung. Sometimes the comments descended into petty cheap shots at hard-working individuals. But in your best moments you nailed our misgivings and challenged us to be better. Reminded me of the glory days of traditional media watchdogs such as the St. Louis Journalism Review (I am dating myself, to be sure). Our industry needs watchdogs if we deem to be watchdogs ourselves.
I will miss you, I think.
Best wishes and please let us know with an occasional e-mail missive at least when we do well or fall short.
Sincerely,
Tom Callinan
Editor of The Cincinnati Enquirer
Awww, sad. Personally, I always thought it was neat that The Cincinnati Enquirer had a free community ombudsman that posted everything out in the public. it's part of what I like about this whole interweb thing. Although a lot of the posts here were goofy and stupid and seemed mired in the 20th century, the blog overall served a role that's needed by both the public AND the media. Each city should have at least one big media criticism community blog that tracks and critiques all local media (not just one or two outlets) with enough style, voice and insider gumption to embarrass media into being more on their toes.
Thanks, Newsache. I am a long way from Cincinnati in both time and distance but remember my Enquirer years vividly, and didn't know a better bunch of people...over and out.
Farewell, Newsache. As a former EQ employee, this blog has been a means of remaining in touch with the craziness that is the Enquirer. The always informative posts and discussions made this a daily view for me.
I will miss the inside information posted by you and the others who have participated.
I would encourage those who have provided Cincinnati information for Newsache to consider using the Gannett blog in the future.
To you, Newsach, and to my former coworkers-those who have moved on and those who still remain-I wish the best.
NewAche, well done. You and I have taken different approaches to the Enquirer and I always valued yours. I hope your former sources will read me at CityBeat.com and contact me at mediacritic@citybeat.com.
Thanks,
Ben Kaufman
I enjoyed your posts, and often learned something from them, so I will miss that. But I can understand why you are giving it up now, since no external pressure is going to force the CE to reform itself. You gave it a good try. It will take people inside the paper, and I don't see that happening.
Could anyone be more disingenuous - and smug - than Tom Callinan. Now suddenly "Editor of the Enquirer." Not "Editor & V.P. / Content & Audience Development" as he is listed on the paper's own web site. LOL.
Dear NewsAche,
I will always love you.
Regards,
Craig A. Dubow
NO FAIR! If you are tired of blogging, FINE--take a break. Even I could post something once a month, I would. If critiquing the Enquirer is your bag, PLEASE DO!
I'd like to get news and information but it doesn't seem to happen.
thanks much. those of us Enq alum who hung in there as long as we could felt a little saner reading your blog and knowing we had fought the good fight -- but in the end valued our sanity more and moved on. happy trails to you.
Just like Tom Callinan to say something to an anonymous blogger when he hasn't said the first "Nice job" or "Good morning" to three quarters of his employees since Gannett shipped his ass here.
I will miss you, NewsAche. Job well done.
Newsache, I’ve been reading your blog since I left the Enquirer and more than once it’s confirmed that I made the right choice. And, for that, I’d like to say thanks.
Regrettably, your departure comes at a time when your voice and the independent forum you’ve created is needed more now than ever. The Post, Sunday Challenger, Dixie News and more than a few other broadly distributed independent print voices have disappeared in the last few years (two soon after Gannett acquired them). And, the largest independently owned newspaper group in the area - The Community Recorder/Press, is now also owned and controlled by Gannett leaving them with far too much power.
And, given what your blog has exposed about the Enquirer’s news judgment and its questionable business practices during your run, your departure now will truly be missed and that’s unfortunate.
Best of luck.
Please stay, Newsache? Is there ANY chance of changing your mind?
To 10:03: "two soon after Gannett acquired them." What were those titles that Gannett acquired?
Inspire and Design Magazine.
Thanks for all you've done to raise awareness. You will be missed.
We (every last one of us) NEEDS to get past the Biden/Palin VP debate. This insanity protects the life of President.
Now, if you live in Cincinnati (or care about it) can you see MANY, MANY stories, with pictures, of BLACK WOMEN harming their children?
Lopsided, convictions are many on one side of Division street.
Aw. I'm sad that I won't be able to read comments from outsiders who (most of the time) have no idea what they're talking about.
Glad to see the Enquirer's circulation increase...too bad the full story on how they bought and paid for it won't be shared.
Talk about not reporting the full picture. Daily circulation is up from 2007 only because the Post shut down, and a few thousand of its subscribers switched to the Enquirer. Sunday circulation doesn't reflect the artificial Post gains because the Post didn't run on Sunday. Enquirer circulation on Sunday, as of March 31, was at 279,825. The year before it was at 290,501. In other words, sales of the flagship Sunday paper fell 3.6 percent.
...and I received what is most likely a paid sample copy of the Enquirer yesterday at the bottom of my driveway. Way to keep buying those numbers home delivery numbers.
If I get anymore of this on my driveway (or within my yard), can it be called littering? I am not a subscriber and I don't want either the Enquirer or any other Enquirer stuff. I have asked several times for it to stop but still, every couple of weeks I have this crap. I don't want it! If the Enquirer can't stop themselves, can someone else like the police, ticket them for littering?
And, I don't want the "gannet" version of yellow pages either. I don't even want the REAL Yellow Pages. Phone company gets it... uhmmm... it saves them money!
What does one have to do to get off the mailing to the mailbox and throwing somewhere within the driveway thing? And the cute kid that delivers community paper... very cute, very polite. Can I pay him NOT to bring it?
You can contact the Enquirer directly to stop mail delivery, driveway delivery and and even the Community paper delivered by the cute kid if you don't want it.
Gannett CEO Dubow and Dickey are apparently coming to Cincinnati Friday for a town hall meeting….too bad Newsache isn’t around for comment.
I went back to school and I've been swamped with work. And I'm just reading this and I must say...wow.
Just thank you. Thank you for writing what so many already knew but would never give voice to. Thank you for always pointing out the elephant in the room. Thank you for never sinking to the lowest common denominator and posting the bad and the ugly but every now and again, the good.
Thank you for linking to me - and for making me feel that I, too, am a Cincinnati blogger and a part of the connection. I'm always proud to have you in my referral logs.
I'd really like to use this to say a choice few words to Tom Callinan but I won't. I'll do as you have done and end this post with dignity, class with the addition of hope that one day you'll find it in your heart to return - if not to this blog then to another venue.
Bonne Chance! Here's to moving onward and upward!
October 28, 2008
To: USCP Publishers & General Managers
As all of you are painfully aware, the fiscal crisis is deepening and the economy is getting worse. Gannett’s revenues continue to be severely impacted by this downturn, and our local operations are suffering. While we are doing our best to reduce all non staff-related expenses, I am sorry to report that we must do another round of layoffs across our division.
To that end, we will institute an involuntary staff reduction of approximately 10% by the first week of December. The terms of the severance will be one week for each year of service with a cap of 26 weeks.
Each Publisher is responsible for developing their local plan to achieve the expected goal. Decisions will be made locally because each of our markets is unique, with differing market conditions and individual needs in light of our previous reductions.
I have asked that all plans be completed by November 14th at which time they will go through the standard review process.
I fully understand this announcement will cause you concern but I felt that once a decision was made it should be communicated as quickly as possible.
While this is more bad news, it is a sign of Gannett’s determination to remain healthy and viable as a company during these turbulent economic times. We continue to be a leader in our industry, not only because of our fiscal strength but also because we have a plan to aggressively grow the company when the economy returns.
To that end, I encourage you to contact me with your thoughts and ideas. We need to grow revenue as well as continue to find efficiencies. I would appreciate your help and ideas on both fronts.
My email address is xxx@gannett.com. I promise you will be heard and receive a timely response.
I appreciate your understanding and commitment during these challenging times.
Thank you.
http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/blog-137-layoffs-coming-to-enquirer.html
Word apparently went out today about lay-offs. Anyone have names?????
Best wishes, NewsAche. You done good.
Hello?
Seems that you were one of the people on that list... Bought out so now you lost your source.
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