May 16, 2008
A funny list of rules pulled from a Tampa Bay blog
old school TV news vs new school
Old rule: news is news. New rule: news is marketing.
Old rule: news is never old New rule: news has an expiration date
Old rule: live shots compliment the story New rule: live IS the story
Old rule: weather gets the attention it deserves New rule: rain is a lead story
Old rule: Cover the issues New rule: cover the emotions
Old rule: Staff experience is valuable New rule: 1 year is experience
Old rule: Cover breaking news New rule: make up breaking news
Old rule: Be good storytellers New rule: more stories, less telling
Old rule: Report the facts New rule: report what people say
Old rule: Follow the news director's lead New rule: Who's the news director?
Old rule: Consultants suggest New rule: Consultants control
Old rule: Ratings rule New rule: Demos dominate
Old rule: Know your community New rule: know your research
Old rule: Bad staff behavior is not tolerated New rule: address your questions to our attorneys
Old rule: Build credibility and gain a bigger audience New rule: Reach more people through the Internet
May 15, 2008Demographics of American Newspapers
(Here's how to keep all that political "news" in perspective)
The Wall Street Journal is read by the people who run the country
The Washington Post is read by people who think they run the country.
The New York Times is read by people who think they should run the country and who are very good at crossword puzzles.
USA Today is read by people who think they ought to run the country but don't really understand The New York Times. They do, however, like their statistics shown in pie charts.
The Los Angeles Times is read by people who wouldn't mind running the country -- if they could find the time -- and if they didn't have to leave Southern California to do it.
The Boston Globe is read by people whose parents used to run the country and did a poor job of it, thank you very much.
The New York Daily News is read by people who aren't too sure who's running the country and don't really care as long as they can get a seat on the train.
The New York Post is read by people who don't care who are running the country as long as they do something really scandalous, preferably while intoxicated.
The Miami Herald is read by people who are running another country but need the baseball scores.
The National Enquirer is read by people trapped in line at the grocery store.
The Seattle Times is read by people who have recently caught a fish and need something to wrap it in.
January 21, 2008
It had to be reported on Martin Luther King Day
The play story in today's Beacon Journal on Martin Luther King Day reports that Coming Together Akron, the non-profit organization to promote racial harmony and cultural awareness, has ceased all operations although it has not yet taken a vote to dissolve. "We're simply out of money," says president Lynn Clarke. "At this point it is pretty doubtful that our existence will continue."BJ types will recall that "Coming Together" grew out of the Beacon Journal's Pulitzer prize winning series on race relations, "A Question of Color."
The offensive color today is green, the color of money. The BJ funded the group and it had offices at the BJ for two years. Then it got money from the Knight Foundation for a while. Today, however, the BJ is no longer a Knight Ridder newspaper--and the green stuff has faded away. ~~ liggettClick here to see the story.
November 9, 2007
She's 26 minutes older than brother who was born firstA woman in North Carolina gave birth to twins last Sunday, right around the time that Daylight Saving Time ended.
Peter Sullivan Cirioli was dubbed "Baby A" at WakeMed Cary when he arrived early Sunday morning.
“Yes, Peter was born first, it was at 1:32 a.m.,” mother Laura Cirioli said.
Thirty-four minutes later, Peter's twin sister, Allison Raye Cirioli, known as "Baby B," made her entrance into the world.
Because of Daylight Saving Time, Allison's time of birth was 1:06 a.m., which makes her 26 minutes older than her brother even though he was born first.