Good
evening, 919 Gang. We have more discussion tonight about what should be in or
out of the nightly reports. The comments have been interesting, and it's certainly
a fit topic for news people.
My
thoughts:
I
regret running the post critical of Lori Weisberg. A serious error. I failed to
protect Lori, I failed to protect the group, and I failed to protect the person
who wrote the message. Reporters may not appreciate it, but sometimes the best
thing you can do for them is throw the story back. This particular writer would
not have been surprised. I have rejected other messages from him.
You
should understand my motivation. I have known some of you for almost 53 years;
others I have never met but know through your posts. There is not a single member I have had contact with whom
I don't like and respect. Yes, a few of them drive me nuts at times, but that's
part of the job.
This
job consumes a fair amount of my evening. My only pay is that I enjoy it. If I
stop enjoying it or if it turns into something I can't be proud of, my
motivation is gone.
I
don't see any reason for name-calling or bitterness in this arena. Even a
half-decent reporter could write about Jack the Ripper without name calling. No
need to say "the evil" Jack the Ripper, or "the despicable"
or "the terrible." Write the facts; everyone will come to the same
conclusion. You're all talented enough to do that. Wield a sharp blade; leave
the broad axe for the amateurs.
Censorship?
I will continue to reject mean-spirited messages (as I should have done with
the Weisberg post). Be as spirited as you like, but keep it civil.
---------------------------------------------------
JIM RICHARDSON writes:
I hope Lori has seen the comments
expressing outrage about the attacks on her on this e-list. I hope she will
reconsider and stay with us, her friends. For those who feel the need to
attack, please go elsewhere (take it to Facebook). As for those who are saying
they don't want "censorship," please let me respectfully suggest that
censorship is not the issue. Community is the issue. Personal attacks on a
closed e-list, like this one, are akin to someone calling you names across the
dinner table. Sorry, but I am not able to "scroll down" when that
happens. I doubt you are either. You wouldn't tolerate that behavior with your
snotty teenager, and I hope you wouldn't here. Bad manners are bad manners. We
worked together, and some of us socialized together, even after leaving the Union
Tribune. We have enough arenas in our life where we need to keep our defenses
up. I would hope we don't have to do that with our friends, neighbors and
former colleagues.
JEFF ROSE writes:
I often hold back from responding to
something I see in 919, expecting that others will respond for me. I was
saddened to learn several people dropped out as a result of Preston Turegano's
unfiltered personal attack on Lori Weisberg. Jack, you haven't named those who
dropped out, but now I see Lori politely and graciously opting to leave. I had
to resond to that. While I often enjoy Preston's contributions, including the
catty ones, the attack on Lori was unnecessarily vicious (as well as untrue).
When I was editor at SignOnSanDiego and we added forums, one of the first terms
of use we instituted was no personal attacks. That should be the rule for 919.
I hope Lori will reconsider; I have valued her work at the UT and her
professionalism. For her to be accused of unethical behavior is ludicrous.
JONI HALPERN writes:
I appreciated very much the discussion
about how people wish to communicate within the framework of 919. I do not
think there is a disagreement between the two sides. But the discussion may
have conflated controversial ideas passionately expressed with expectations
about how we want to talk to, or about, one another. I think it is crucial to
our own growth that other professionals, or even readers in general, are
allowed to speak the truth about how they perceive what we have said. What I do
not want to allow myself to do is malign someone's motives or character. I
disagree heartily with many things people say in so many walks of life, and to
myself, I may let loose with how I feel at the moment. But I know I am not
always right, and most of the time, we really don't know why people say or do
things. Sometimes they don't know why. So it's hurtful to them and us to
criticize their character or motivations. But I never want to be prevented --
especially in an environment in which people's careers were fostered by the
First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of expression -- from publication in
this forum of statements I might contribute concerning a public statement. That
is a form of censorship we have always called "prior restraint."
RAY
HUARD writes:
Hey Jack. Thought I'd chime in with a
thank you amid all the fuss about ranting and censorship. I greatly appreciate
what you do in putting out the 919 blog. I can only imagine the amount of time
and work it takes. I look forward to the daily blog, rants and all. I'd just as
soon allow the ranting but understand how some might take offense. Anyway, I
think you deserve a thank you now and then.
RITA CALVANO writes:
Jack, I agree with those who have said
that 919 readers can be their own censors -- whether to read something or not.
God knows, we're old enough to decide. As for dear, dear Preston Turegano, he
is as he is, but I have, in the past, suggested he reconsider the nastiness he
wants printed and reread it before sending it to you -- just on the off-chance
that he might want to edit himself a bit.
That said, I'm staying with 919.
Frankly, I think we need more controversy, not less, particularly as it comes
to important matters of the day, even political ones, yes. I often write
nothing because I feel so intimidated that it won't pass muster, no matter how
well written, and therefore not be printed, just because the subject itself
might invite "controversy." Discussion, especially on such topics as
freedom of information and the future of journalism, period, not just
newspapers, and even how we veterans might assist in devising a future in our
trade that still demands fairness and accuracy, is some of what I'm after in
this blog. In other words, something to think about.
MICHAEL KINSMAN writes:
1. As I'm sure you've already figured
out, it is Pete Seeger, not Pete Seegar.
2. Here's a link to the Hoover High
School dispute and the result decades later:
3. Let the Seeger episode teach us all
about censorship. I, too, like to select what I read and listen to. When I
discover things and people that leave me irritable, I just bypass them. A
couple of them are 919 members who, when they write, I'll usually skip over.
I'm not a fan of personal attacks, but think a public conversation about being
friendly and listening to sources is as good a journalism topic as 919 could
ever have. I don't understand people who are quitting the 919 gang over it, but
they seem to represent an awfully small group. Nevertheless, I don't condone
personal attacks here, but I welcome people to speak their mind on issues.
Can't we all agree just to not make this personal and move on? That seems like
the adult thing to do.
REBER: A number of members sent me private messages about what they don't want
to see in our blog. But one person passed some compliments I want to share with
you. He said he particularly enjoys Gene Ciechanowski's referrals to web sites
and he appreciates medical writer Cheryl Clark's posts.
--------------------------------------------------
REBER:
"Seegar" wasn't the only typo last night. I have to take the rap.
KENT FREELAND writes:
I
can't tell if Suzanne Mack's references to "glutton-free diets" are
mistakes or sarcasm If it's sarcasm, I don't get it. Must be missing something.
LAUREL SCOTT writes:
I think auto-correct got to Suzanne
Mack or maybe there's a new diet I really need, the glutton-free diet!
And Bob Rodriguez's tire tale sparked
the impulse to share. I live in San Angelo, which is a bit of an island
surrounded by about 200 miles of near emptiness in every direction except for
the mighty metropolis of Abilene 90 miles to the north. You can imagine my
dismay when I discovered, because of a flat, that my 2012 Hyundai came without
a "donut" spare tire. The disadvantage outside of San Angelo is the
same as Bob's experience, no service. I have the added issue of driving a small
foreign car so not everyone carries small enough tires in this land of the
four-wheel drive. But if you put your hood up, every good ol' West Texan in a
pickup will stop and change the tire for me ... if I have one. Spent about $100
and now have a "spare tire kit" of my very own that includes the
missing jack as well!
MARJORIE RICE writes:
I’m sure you’ve heard from many about
the “glutton-free” diet, but I have to say it’s one of the best typos I’ve seen
in long time.
I enjoyed the ventriloquist item as
well. Good to get a laugh after all the strum und drang. Thanks for all you’re
doing to keep us connected.
----------------------------------------------
ERNIE COWAN writes:
Jack...new topic...I'll it call it
Bureau Rats!
Back in my prime as a mild mannered
reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper, the U-T had a constant ebb and
flow of Bureau Rats. These were the folks sent to remote corners of the county
to man the bureau offices and report news from afar. Ok, it's wasn't quite like
being a foreign correspondent, but close.
Here's the interesting part. The rest
of the journalism world in the Big City looked upon our assignment as some form
or purgatory. In actuality, it was a plum assignment. We had a clear task to
generally fill a page each day and that was in the 1960's and '70's when
newspapers were big. (large?) We covered the news, but also had wads of
features in our pocket for the slow news days.
We worked hard, but played hard as
well. Lunch hours might be two hours, or on good copy days, we might be out
playing after 2 p.m. No editors were looking over our shoulders and we filed
copy via teletype machines. I even recall filing a dramatic news account of a
plane crash via CB radio from the side of a mountain south of Rancho Bernardo.
We thrived on the challenge of reporting the news from remote places.
I was the master of memo writing, or
what some might consider story pimping. Maybe the editors just took pity on me
because of my Bureau Rat status, and I got the green light to trundle off to
the wilds of Baja, the Sea of Cortez, the River of No Return in Idaho, the
white water rapids of the Mighty Colorado River, and countless shorter
adventures in our own backyard wilderness of Cleveland National Forest and
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.
Those were glory years when my beat
was the backcountry and I touched oldtimers who were the real deal. I
interviewed old stagecoach drivers, cattlemen, ranchers and prospectors who
gave life to stories of the old west because they lived it. I even interviewed
the elderly brother of Charles Hatfield, the Rainmaker who brought floods and
distruction to the county in 1916. He told me the secret of his late brother's
rainmaker efforts would go with him to his grave.
I am sure other Bureau Rats will have
similar stories.
----------------------------------------------
STEVE CASEY writes:
I'm a few days late answering my
friend Mike Richmond's query about the shingles virus that has caused Alice and
so many others to suffer, but in hopes someone may find this helpful: In the
fall of 2011, Adrienne and I had just started a small-ship cruise up the Hudson
River. I developed an abdominal rash, but didn't think much of it. In one
charming port town, I got off the ship and walked about a half mile into town
to a pub for a delicious lunch. Lunch half eaten, discomfort forced me back to
the ship, walking like a guy who'd just been hit by a truck. I walked past a
couple of questionable types sitting by the river and thought "I hope
these guys aren't predators; I am absolutely defenseless." Never felt like
that before. Couldn't raise my arms much, my back felt like someone had stuck a
knife in it. We called a friend, a nurse practitioner in Oregon, and Adrienne
described my symptoms and my rash. "Shingles," she said. Couldn't be,
we thought. Doesn't shingles put you in agony just with clothing or bed sheets
barely touching the skin? My skin looked scalded, but it didn't particularly
hurt.
Well, shingles it was, as confirmed by
an ER doc who gave me four -- count 'em, four -- Oxycodone pills for the pain.
Clearly, that just wouldn't do. We arrived in another town the following day,
and while others explored, I headed for the local ER where they mistook me for
an ATM. Chest x-ray, scan of some sort, talk about admitting me (until Adrienne
set them straight) and after eight hours, about an $8,000 bill. I imagine
Medicare negotiated hell out of that; at least I hope so.
It was weeks before the shingles rash
abated, not as long before the pain went away. Still, I was a whole lot luckier
than most. Mine was confined to my abdomen. And that curious thing: no pain on
skin contact. Very unlike virtually every other case I've heard about. Perhaps
this is the key to the mystery: I had the shingles shot. A doctor friend told
me "the shingles shot is 100% effective for 50% of the population."
Apparently, I'm in the other 50%. But I believe it enormously lessened the
severity of my attack. Take-away from all this: Get the damn shot!
Oh, and Suzanne Mack raised the
question of whether it's an annual shot or once is enough. I asked, too, and
was told it's a one-time deal.
REBER: Another shot I knew nothing about until too late is for pneumonia. My
doctor said they don't give it to anyone under 65 and it's a one-shot deal --
for life.
---------------------------------------------------
JOE GANDELMAN writes:
I was really grieving over Patch since
it was one more organization that employed reporters and editors. I did a very
very quick blog post on this coupling it with the news out of The Washington
Post that they are expanding (another report I read said they're planning on
adding a lot of bloggers on specific issues and areas but whether those will be
paid or paid anything worth getting is another story). I'm sure the Post will
pay but most blogs like The Moderate Voice don't and can't and even The
Huffington Post doesn't pay its bloggers famous or nonfamous). This can NOT of
course be confused with a newspaper story OR even the column I do for Cagle or
the paid contributions I've done to online news sites. This is a quick blog
post (and if anyone ever wants to experiment with blogging DO let me know and
I'll get you the codes to TMV!)
I'm still so sad about this:
---------------------------------------------------
DENNIS FOLEY writes:
Hey, David Farmer, my wife was
diagnosed with Celiac’s about seven years ago and pizza is what she missed the
most. But food for the gluten-free crowd has come a long way. Here are the best
pizzas for the gluten-intolerance afflicted that have San Diego area outlets:
BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse (thick crust). They also serve decent
gluten-free beer: Omission. And they have a killer gluten-free desert – the
pazookie: a chocolate-chip cookie baked in a pizza pan and topped with ice
cream.
Next would be Z Pizza (thin crust),
then, far down the list, Spin Pizza (which also is overpriced, IMHO). If you
get to Orange County, try Zito’s Pizza, which is almost as good as BJ’s (but
does not have gluten-free beer). Udi’s, as you mentioned, has the best bread
and hamburger buns (you can get a burger with one at Ruby’s). No one is
producing a decent hot dog/sausage bun. If you do your own baking, Pamela’s
Products substitute well in most baked goods; it also makes the best cake
mixes, waffles, pancakes and muffins.
Fortunately, tequila and bourbon are
fine, as is wine. Bon appetito!
-------------------------------------------------
JOE GANDELMAN writes:
Interesting on how "journalistic
utopias don't work"
FYI, This economy is truly crazy and
scary. Since getting back from my national tour of schools Sept 2011 - May 2012
where I drove 49,000 miles and did shows (often more than one at a school) at
260 schools under a contract with the Bureau of Lectures (a 100-year-old company
and really the last company left booking school shows in the U.S. and Canada),
I've wanted to see if I could get totally or largely partially out of
entertainment.
But as we see with the market, jobs
for writers, editors, bloggers are not plentiful which is NOT to say companies
aren't hiring them. So ironically the entertainment has remained my main source
of income. Who EVER would have thought ventriloquism would be something to fall
back on for a Medill grad??
The unofficial news is the Bureau asked
me to sign for another tour for 2014 and 2015 -- and I agreed. One reason: it's
a brutal travel sked (all but about three weeks in Dec/Jan on the road and
about a month when I do CA schools on the road staying in hotels driving from
one part of the country to the other) but it's also fascinating to SEE the
country and drive it and be able to connect with friends and relatives. So I'm
locked into that and part of it is the economy and that no matter if I make a
lot or a little I'll have Sept - May locked into weekly paychecks.
A shakeup is going on in the media.
When I started my modest blog in 2003 blogs were booming and were a source of
commentary and in a few cases news. Now you have the super online websites that
also have some blogs or blog style: The Huffington Post, The Daily Beast and
more. They've been sucking up talent from the print media and also spitting
some out as some of THEM have cutbacks (the Daily Beast and Huffington Post are
not making big profits but have huge bankrolls behind them). I'm finding
bloggers on The Moderate Voice are discouraged by the vitriol in our politics
so on all sides some just stop writing so I now have some seniors (oldest is
89) and young people (youngest formal active coblogger is about 24).
But many blogs have closed or withered
as Google changed the way it ranked stories on Google Web and Google News (TMV
is on Google News which offers it as a blog news source). It used to be the
CONTENT, writing and links got you a high ranking based on what the robot sensed.
Now they rank it largely on the size of the website's existing hits (so the
Huffington Post). And YES when someone wants to contribute they do a guest
voice and if they like it they get the codes to contribute.
-----------------------------------------------
BOB
LAURENCE writes:
I don't know anything about Jan
Goldsmith, but has anyone besides me wondered -- what's with the Hitler
haircut?
-----------------------------------------------
REBER: Tonight we wish Happy Birthday (Jan. 31) to Nancee Lewis and Valerie
Scher.
----------------------------------------------
GENE
CIECHANOWSKI forwards:
The Policeman
P.O.
Box 2239
Ramona,
CA 92065
U.S.A.
