Comments on: Traditional media on life support?

By: Colleen

Colleen — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 23:14:24 +0000

@Buzz – so very sad to hear about Jeannie. She was always one of my favourites to work with.

You’re completely right about PacPress being behind on their uptake of SocMed. they have terrible blogs (and I hesitate to even call them that) and are stuck in an old school form of media. Unfortunate really.

By: bz

bz — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 21:57:33 +0000

I get you on the CityTV thing.

Sadly, Jeannie Read passed away last year.

PacPress has long been behind in the convergence. They have token blogs that are difficult to find and not regularly updated.

By: Colleen

Colleen — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 18:54:46 +0000

@Sarah – good to hear from a NJ’ers perspective what’s going on in the local scene. Interesting that your friend is headed to Nat’l TV… it all blows my mind.

@Buzz – CityTV moved all of their news to Toronto and cut everyone who was connected to the 6 pm news. Entertainment beats were cut before that. The Province has lost reporters and people still there (I’m thinking Jeannie Read right now) are covering more topics under their “regular” beat. They’re using wire coverage almost entirely for certain sections and topics. The Sun has faced the same problem. They’ve cut some reporters – the Hollywood North reporter whose name is escaping me at the moment – and had others – Yvonne Zacharias is in her place now, along with everything else Yvonne has to cover – add the coverage to their plate. Maurice Bridge moved city side at the sun and is now covering the work of two reporters. The education reporter is stretched so thin she doesn’t have the time to cover some of the local stories because there are too many regional “traumas” as she called them. There are several producers I know that are not only doing the media shuffle that always occurs but are moving away, or looking at other avenues because their gig changed or went sideways.

I could go on. It’s happening all over.

I don’t know much about the radio side as the majority of my work focused on lifestyle products that would work better in print or on TV, but I know it’s happening a lot where print and TV are concerned.

By: buzz

buzz — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 15:51:15 +0000

Would like to hear your examples of local media downsizing and converging.

By: Sarah Morgan

Sarah Morgan — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 15:30:13 +0000

I have a friend there. He’s taking the buyout. He’s an awesome reporter. And he’s thinking of going to a national broadcast news outlet. I hope he does for his own sake, because he’s a fantastic guy and a great journalistic talent. But it DOES say something about print news, that this Pulitzer-Prize-winning lifelong print journalist is going to TV. Sad stuff.

On the other hand, the Star-Ledger has just launched Ledger Live – http://www.nj.com/ledgerlive – a fabulous daily newspaper vlog – which sounds counterintuitive but is really a great look at newspapers taking the plunge into newer media the right way. Whatever decision the Newhouse family make about selling the paper, I hope LL sticks.