Pain - or Public Relations - Management?
Submitted by Al Diamon on Mon, 06/23/2008 - 7:12am.
Hurting unit: Rebekah Metzler, a reporter for the Lewiston Sun Journal, was seriously injured on June 19 at the Lost Valley Ski Resort in Auburn, while taking a ride in the "Zorb," a huge plastic ball that's supposed to roll down mountainsides with people strapped inside.
Metzler's credibility may also have taken a hit.
Metzler was supposed to try out the ride and write a story, but while she was inside the orb, it hit a post, bounced in the air and landed hard enough to fracture her back. She was hospitalized, and there have been no recent reports on her condition. But before she went silent, Metzler contributed several quotes to a June 20 Sun Journal story.
"I wouldn't want this incident to become a black cloud over the Zorb," she said. "I think if things are done correctly, it's safe."
There's more: According to the story, she thought operation of the attraction was "more relaxed" for her unfortunate run than it would be for the public. "I think there'd be more vigilance if they were doing this for the public," she said. "I don't think they were doing all the things they needed to be doing to make it safe."
And this: "I think if the concern level is there," she said, "it's going to be pretty safe."
I don't understand - and the story doesn't explain - how Metzler came to those conclusions or why she even got in the sphere if she thought it hadn't been properly prepared. Maybe those quotes were the painkillers talking. Or maybe she's confused about the roles of journalism and public relations. Whatever the cause, making excuses for Lost Valley and the Zorb seemed odd.
It seemed even odder on June 21, when the Sun Journal reported the ski area had failed to obtain a state permit and safety inspection before operating the attraction, and the Zorb's owner may not have had permission from the New Zealand creator of the concept to use the Zorb name.
Lawsuits aplenty on the way. No doubt the defense for all involved will be calling Metzler as a witness.
Limping unit: What do you do when revenue and readership at your newspaper are both in sharp decline? You offer readers less for their money.
Well, maybe you don't, but that's what the Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram are doing.
According to a June 22 column by editorial page editor John Porter called "Cost-cutting won't undermine our mission," cost-cutting will undermine their mission. Assuming their mission is to be a good local newspaper.
To save money, the papers are dropping long-time Sunday columnist Nancy Grape and replacing her with columns submitted by readers - that is, columns the Telegram doesn't have to pay for. Local editorial cartoons are also taking a major hit. Mike Prevost, whose work appeared every other Thursday, is history. Steve Meyers has been cut from three drawings a week to just one.Less likely to be missed - or even noticed - is news editor Andrew Russell's blog, "Behind the News." Pseudonymous blogger T. Cushing Munjoy (who insists on calling Russell's blog "Behind IN the News") was first to spot the apparent discontinuation of the seldom updated site.
As Munjoy has frequently pointed out, Russell rarely posted anything and almost never wrote an entry that gave readers any behind-the-news insight. Too bad the demise of this waste of bandwidth doesn't save enough money to give readers another Meyers' cartoon each week.
Gutsy unit: The Press Herald may not have dared to identify any of the 10 Cape Elizabeth High School students who vandalized that facility in March, at least until one of them was nabbed by the cops for speeding and underage drinking. But the little Cape Courier wasn't so wimpy.
The Portland paper waited until June 20 to name James Bump, 19, as the student involved in both incidents.
That's 10 days after Bump was cited for going too fast and having detectable alcohol in his blood. It's also 10 days after Bump was hit with a restraining order, because his ex-girlfriend woke up to find him in her bedroom. All that took place less than a week after Bump signed an agreement with the Cumberland County district attorney's office requiring him not to drink, to abide by a curfew (he also violated that provision), to perform community service and pay restitution, in order to avoid being prosecuted for the school vandalism.
The Courier, a non-profit biweekly paper, wasn't so hesitant. It named Bump and two other students as being involved in the school-trashing way back on April 19, in a page-13 story about how they were handling their community service.
I guess they weren't afraid the kids might have rich parents with influential friends.
Departing unit: C.J. Betit, the administrative officer of the Portland Newspaper Guild, is leaving. Betit announced on June 23 that he's taken a job with another union, the Maine State Employees Association, effective July 7. He'll continue to advise the Guild on matters related the sale of the Blethen Maine Newspapers.
The Guild represents most employees at the Portland Press Herald and newsroom workers at the Morning Sentinel in Waterville.
Betit's temporary replacement will be Guild president Kathy Munroe. In turn, Guild vice president Tom Bell will become interim president.`Toon unit: My political column shares a page in the Portland Phoenix every week with sometimes-Portland resident David Kish's terrific cartoon "Hoopleville."
If you appreciate his quirky, pointed humor as much as I do, check out his latest offering, "Line in the Sand." In conjunction with national columnist and radio host Ray Hanania, Kish offers up a satirical view of events relating to the Middle East and Arab-Americans. It's funny and refreshing.
Warning: The government will probably begin monitoring your e-mail and tapping your phone if you so much as look at this Web site, which has the word "Arab" right in its title. Better you should surf for porn.
Al Diamon can be e-mailed at aldiamon@herniahill.net.
Hurting unit: Rebekah Metzler, a reporter for the Lewiston Sun Journal, was seriously injured on June 19 at the Lost Valley Ski Resort in Auburn, while taking a ride in the "Zorb," a huge plastic ball that's supposed to roll down mountainsides with people strapped inside.
Metzler's credibility may also have taken a hit.
Metzler was supposed to try out the ride and write a story, but while she was inside the orb, it hit a post, bounced in the air and landed hard enough to fracture her back. She was hospitalized, and there have been no recent reports on her condition. But before she went silent, Metzler contributed several quotes to a June 20 Sun Journal story.
"I wouldn't want this incident to become a black cloud over the Zorb," she said. "I think if things are done correctly, it's safe."
There's more: According to the story, she thought operation of the attraction was "more relaxed" for her unfortunate run than it would be for the public. "I think there'd be more vigilance if they were doing this for the public," she said. "I don't think they were doing all the things they needed to be doing to make it safe."
And this: "I think if the concern level is there," she said, "it's going to be pretty safe."
I don't understand - and the story doesn't explain - how Metzler came to those conclusions or why she even got in the sphere if she thought it hadn't been properly prepared. Maybe those quotes were the painkillers talking. Or maybe she's confused about the roles of journalism and public relations. Whatever the cause, making excuses for Lost Valley and the Zorb seemed odd.
It seemed even odder on June 21, when the Sun Journal reported the ski area had failed to obtain a state permit and safety inspection before operating the attraction, and the Zorb's owner may not have had permission from the New Zealand creator of the concept to use the Zorb name.
Lawsuits aplenty on the way. No doubt the defense for all involved will be calling Metzler as a witness.
Limping unit: What do you do when revenue and readership at your newspaper are both in sharp decline? You offer readers less for their money.
Well, maybe you don't, but that's what the Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram are doing.
According to a June 22 column by editorial page editor John Porter called "Cost-cutting won't undermine our mission," cost-cutting will undermine their mission. Assuming their mission is to be a good local newspaper.
To save money, the papers are dropping long-time Sunday columnist Nancy Grape and replacing her with columns submitted by readers - that is, columns the Telegram doesn't have to pay for. Local editorial cartoons are also taking a major hit. Mike Prevost, whose work appeared every other Thursday, is history. Steve Meyers has been cut from three drawings a week to just one.Less likely to be missed - or even noticed - is news editor Andrew Russell's blog, "Behind the News." Pseudonymous blogger T. Cushing Munjoy (who insists on calling Russell's blog "Behind IN the News") was first to spot the apparent discontinuation of the seldom updated site.
As Munjoy has frequently pointed out, Russell rarely posted anything and almost never wrote an entry that gave readers any behind-the-news insight. Too bad the demise of this waste of bandwidth doesn't save enough money to give readers another Meyers' cartoon each week.
Gutsy unit: The Press Herald may not have dared to identify any of the 10 Cape Elizabeth High School students who vandalized that facility in March, at least until one of them was nabbed by the cops for speeding and underage drinking. But the little Cape Courier wasn't so wimpy.
The Portland paper waited until June 20 to name James Bump, 19, as the student involved in both incidents.
That's 10 days after Bump was cited for going too fast and having detectable alcohol in his blood. It's also 10 days after Bump was hit with a restraining order, because his ex-girlfriend woke up to find him in her bedroom. All that took place less than a week after Bump signed an agreement with the Cumberland County district attorney's office requiring him not to drink, to abide by a curfew (he also violated that provision), to perform community service and pay restitution, in order to avoid being prosecuted for the school vandalism.
The Courier, a non-profit biweekly paper, wasn't so hesitant. It named Bump and two other students as being involved in the school-trashing way back on April 19, in a page-13 story about how they were handling their community service.
I guess they weren't afraid the kids might have rich parents with influential friends.
Departing unit: C.J. Betit, the administrative officer of the Portland Newspaper Guild, is leaving. Betit announced on June 23 that he's taken a job with another union, the Maine State Employees Association, effective July 7. He'll continue to advise the Guild on matters related the sale of the Blethen Maine Newspapers.
The Guild represents most employees at the Portland Press Herald and newsroom workers at the Morning Sentinel in Waterville.
Betit's temporary replacement will be Guild president Kathy Munroe. In turn, Guild vice president Tom Bell will become interim president.`Toon unit: My political column shares a page in the Portland Phoenix every week with sometimes-Portland resident David Kish's terrific cartoon "Hoopleville."
If you appreciate his quirky, pointed humor as much as I do, check out his latest offering, "Line in the Sand." In conjunction with national columnist and radio host Ray Hanania, Kish offers up a satirical view of events relating to the Middle East and Arab-Americans. It's funny and refreshing.
Warning: The government will probably begin monitoring your e-mail and tapping your phone if you so much as look at this Web site, which has the word "Arab" right in its title. Better you should surf for porn.
Al Diamon can be e-mailed at aldiamon@herniahill.net.
The views expressed on this Web site are those of the authors alone and do not necessarily represent the views of Down East Enterprise or its employees.
