An exchange between a Chronicle writer and me regarding the suckiness of his paper:
To: Nevius, CW
Subject: News isnt in trouble, only printed newspapers (and bad editors)
Everyone will get their newspaper on their cell phone in the future. However if you just have a bad editor like say Phil Bronstein, you're dead no matter what.So ask yourself....How many foreign correspondants does the Chron employ? Does it have a national affairs desk in DC, or an office in NY? Sacramento??? Has it taken anyone longer more than 20 minutes to read the Sunday edition? Does you editor consider the BALCO investigation a HUGE story and validation of the Chron's journalism? Is it a good sign when your best writer covers television? Was defeating the Fang's "competitive" newspaper an accomplishment?
see his responses below...
20 comments:
From: Nevius, CW
To: Compaglia, Tony
Good points. I was a little stung by the television comment though. :')
CWN
From: Compaglia, Tony
To: Nevius, CW
Subject: RE: News isnt in trouble, only printed newspapers (and bad
editors)Hang in there! Its gotta get better. I think.
From: Nevius, CW
To: Compaglia, Tony
Subject: RE: News isnt in trouble, only printed newspapers (and bad
editors)Fingers crossed. How do you have such strong opinions on Phil B? Most people just complain about the paper, don't make mention of the guy at the helm.
From: Compaglia, Tony
To: Nevius, CW
Subject: RE: News isnt in trouble, only printed newspapers (and bad
editors)
Oh my, God. Where do you start? The ludicrous brawl/broken ankle thing,the sham Chron/Examiner sale, the lion attack (!)? Oh, and wasn't Sharon Stone mixed up in there somewhere? Comedy. Further, ever since Bronstein has taken the helm the newspaper has retreated from anything that might be construed as an investment in its operations to improve news coverage
(expanded wine coverage doesn't count). So the sale has played out just as everyone thought..The Fangs kept their subsidy money, the Exam goes under, and The Chron's management/ownership enjoys the benefits of a monopoly-investing nothing in its paper bc its the only game in town. Who else to blame for the current state of affairs but the man (comedy act?) at the top? Shouldn't
he be held accountable? My only hope is that an educated, albeit
painfully annoying PC Bay Area population will eventually storm the 5th/Mission St offices and demand change. And the immediate burning of all Ray Ratto's sweaters. Is this too mutch to ask, CW??
-----Original Message-----
From: Nevius, CW [mailto:CNevius@sfchronicle.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2006 5:54 PM
To: Compaglia, Tony
Subject: RE: News isnt in trouble, only printed newspapers (and bad
editors)
It is not. But you are, at least for now, a lonely voice in the wilderness. As for Ratto's sweaters, I've seen what's under them. We'd best keep them on for now.
i miss CW in sports. he's now become a more female joan ryan. he also wrote the gayest opening paragraph in chron history last week:
My wife and I recently saw "Brokeback Mountain,'' the critically acclaimed story of romance between two cowboys. Being moviegoing veterans, we decided to see a noontime matinee in a Pleasant Hill movie theater on an NFL playoff Sunday. Given those factors, and the film's subject matter, we joked that we might have the entire theater to ourselves.
the man writes a lifestyle column from Walnut Creek- you expect him to have his finger on the pulse of a dying paper?
No, I just found his curioisity regarding my knowledge of Phil Bronstein interesting. As well as his willingness to admit his paper sucks. Im guessing everyone who works there is slightly embarassed by the Comical, but they are powerless to do anything. Again, the advantages to management of being a monopoly.
A cheap web based alternative might crush the Chronilce, Im thinking.
i found those things interesting as well, and you pretty much said what I think about the staff's attitude. I was actually shocked he admitted anything about Phil and it almost read like he glad you were going after him. Remember when all those Hearst execs got up on the stand and pledged to make the Chron the equal to the NY Times? Can we bring them up on perjury now?
I agree with your points, but I think its more divisive perhaps than that. I think some writers at the Chron know their paper is crap. They are even embarassed about it. It sounded like other readers have compalined, too. I think it goes back to the Chronicle executives. And no, as in all things with life..white collar types are rarely held accountable.
My prediction for 2006 (trumpet here): A web based bay Area news"paper" is going to give these clowns the ass kicking music retailers got from Itunes or the illegal sites. Its coming.
the writers are guild members; they cant be axed for grinding an axe. phil b is management; evil. i read it like CW was egging tuna on to expound. i thought that was great. who better to expound! funny about your online prediction; was thinking the same thing. more people read craigslist here than the chronicle.
my buddy at work has a stepdaughter working for the Chron (medical writer). I'll ask him. I have no idea how divisive things are there, but both Nevius and Villalon intimated frustration to some random guys who sent hostile emails, so it can't be good
have you guys seen The Huffington Post? It's blatantly leftie but it has stirred some sheeite with Russert and others. Is that the kind of format you're referring to?
perhaps you'd be interested in funding this venture. i'll send you my proposal...
no, the huffington thing is whacked; vitriolic and too many wire stories (fun though). not what i had in mind. i just think a comprehensive well designed online paper with say about 6-10 employees and a bunch of freelancers (non union - fire all slackers) could cover the city's politics, labor, sports, and a&e better than the Comical. Get messboards up, and blog, and those things drive traffic. ad revenue from non intrusive text ads and such. podcast interviews. press pass for the bottom of the hill!!!
so a cross between salon and craigslist done local style?
How does Publisher Bradley sound?
Of course, then we couldn't hang out, cuz you'd be management and I'd have to hate you, but given my behavior of late, that's probably quite an enticement (the not hanging out part)
Continuing with Brad's line of thinking...Just think about how much traffic you could generate via a really good business section. I know your groaning right now, but there is no good business section in the BA- home of so many techie co.s I cant even list em all. In addition to that finance, law, real estate, etc. And if it was inter-active (blog) where news, gossip, etc were posted. Dude, I know your eyes glaze over thinking about this section, but it would pay the bills for everything else.
yeah. salon is apt, but their model depends on evergreen a and e pieces. they're a bit leftie too i think (havent read dick there since they started charging). local could just rip if done right. that girl i met at elbo said she found out about the show at some online website. people aren't reading the chron. tuna's right.
the other idea i've been kickinig is a record label that only sells online via itunes. no cds/lps. for years labels have said their value is promotion. cut out the cost of production and you might have something.
the other thing an online pub could/should do is just ignore every wire service and press release service. kids today know where that shit comes from, and when joel selvin writes about a box set, they tune out because they can just read the PR, or they hate selvin because they know all he did was crib a release. kill pr, kill wires. homegrown all the way. 1850 all over again.
do people read sfgate?
do kids read joel selvin? I'm serious, I don't think kids read reviews at all- they listen to their friends or to myspace or even to radio (though less and less these days).
ya know, it sounds a lot like one of those local rags up in NoCal, with a staff of 3-5 making it all happen and writing only about the community
exactly. anderson valley advertiser in boonville is apt. just put it online and fuck print costs. people glance the gate front page. they dont blog there because you have to be registered to avoid 'malicious' posts. what crap. what's bloggin without malice?
Kids; they dont read it per se, but i imagine they do what we all did when we were kids; glance at it at the breakfast table while the old man read lowell cohen.
one other point, that goes to something both you said. medical writer/wine section. that shit is for baby boomers. i have never read the wine section and am a better man. the chronicle's medical writing? no offense whatsoever to your colleagues daughter, but what chance does a Chron medical writer have to make an impact when the lancet, the NEJournal of medicine, UCSF, and the mayo clinic can be accessed online?
i'm gonna shut up now and smoke 5 cigarettes. i havent been this enraged/inspired since the ethan dumped uma.
she does more with health care and how changes/politics related to health issues affect costs, patients, etc. It's the business side of medicine, if you will.
That Wine section had a fun article in which three local brewers went to their favorite brewpubs in the area and commented on what they imbibed. That is the only article I've ever read, and I've yet to see another beer article.
And just for the heck of it, Peter Hautlaub
Hartlaub was at one of Clint's press conferences and he looked about 12. His one question: "How old are you?"
Ya know, as mean as this is, I'll bet you he's a fun young man to hang with. I'm just not down with his playto20somethings "journalism"
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