Steve said in this post:

This was a sad day for The Spokesman-Review newsroom.

But I guess things weren't so sad a few hours ago when Steve was yucking it up with one of the Chosen Few Oregonites who by and large survived the axe.

Meanwhile, in talking with our cops reporter, Jody Lawrence-Turner, we were speculating on how a state law prohibiting legislators from entering porn stores would operate.

Funny how the entire downtown newsroom survived, even cub reporters. But the bureaus were by and large trashed, with dozens of years experience amongst them.

Tactless, but not surprising. I hope Steve wore his best costume-like fedora to work today, since he might be on TV this evening.

It's a sad day for the North Idaho community. Really. The days of aggressive reporting in North Idaho are over. Sickening. And sad.

Good evening:

There have been some comments posted tonight on Huckleberries Online that I think justify a mild response. (Here's the link.)

Here is what I just posted a few minutes ago:

Folks,

The decisions announced today were made by me and are subject to challenge by any and all. Take your shots. It's OK. The real pain is being experienced by those who lost their jobs.

A couple of points: We're a union newsroom. Layoffs are based on seniority. The only discretion an editor has is to identify affected job classifications. Within those classifications, there are no options.

That seems harsh. On the other hand, it takes away subjective judgment. No one gets laid off because they don't get along with the boss. The calendar rules. As best I could, I made decisions based on strategic needs.

Ad inserts are not a boon, they are part of the problem. As advertisers move from in-paper advertising to inserts, they pay less, much less. As inserts represent a decline in what we call ROP (run of paper) advertising, revenues decline.

Circulation, in and of itself, is not the issue. Newspaper revenue is almost entirely based on advertising. Circulation barely pays for itself. Some circulation in outlying areas actually costs money, has to be subsidized.

Newspaper finance is a complicated topic, not really easy to address here. But I'll respond to specific questions as best I can.

Lastly, I was, until today, the only person in this newsroom who had ever been laid off (twice) and fired (once). The process today was hard, but we managed it in the most humane way possible, following the dictates of our union contract and labor law.

No one received a phone call at home, an e-mail or a voice mail.

We told people they could stay or leave, their choice. If I were among them, I'd have chosen to leave immediately, too.

And under terms of the contract, it is possible, some will regain their jobs in the coming month. Again, we must follow the contract. And I hold out no false promises. But I have hopes.

I appreciate all the feedback here, even the most critical. I know I am always open to accusations of favoritism. All I can say is that those who kept their jobs represent all regional schools, all walks of life, all personalities and styles. Same for those who lost their jobs.

Everyone who was laid off today was hired by me, recruited by me, in one or two cases, mentored by me and nurtured through the first years of their career. There even was a Duck in the group, someone I;ve known for years. They all were my favorites. And my heart goes out to them.

steve

Steve --

With the loss of Jim Hagengruber, who will be covering environmental issues and the Spokane River? Jim's reporting has been excellent and it seems like a true loss to the community to lose someone with his knowledge and credibility.

Environmental and river issues are critical. I hope the Spokesman will dedicate the time and resources of one reporter to cover those issues, instead of letting those issues be incidental to a regular beat.

I think the paper and community has lost a great resource with the loss of Jim and the other great reporters from the Idaho bureau. It is a shame to close the Idaho bureau office.

Rick

Before I begin, let me say that I'm NOT one of the fired people nor do I even live in Spokane or CDA. But I follow the paper and know a lot of the politics there.

What a joke and a monumental blunder. Not to mention insulting, unfair and just plain stupid. I can promise you, Steve Smith, that your decisions today will cloud whatever "legacy" you end up with.

I have a feeling that these reporters will go on to bigger and better things and this will turn out to be a blessing for them.

Meanwhile, the SR slowly sinks because good ol' Stacey needs an extra percent or two to pad his pockets. What was that about buying California TV stations recently?

And what was that he said in your future newsroom report. "We ain't dead yet." Maybe not yet, but you're much closer today.

Steve, if you've been laid off and fired, then you should know the pain involved, but apparently you don't know the injustice of it, considering who was fired and who was kept.

Your people are ensconed, which is all that matters to you. Yeah, you canned some good people (I can feel your tears now), but your home office lackeys are safe.

And I see how effective the union was in all of this.

Let me end by saying that this will only make the SR worse and hurt profits in the long run. Where is Stacey in all of this? On his yacht?

You people are a real joke. Someday you'll get what you deserve, which is something these poor folks didn't deserve today...

Too bad this will be the last thing I ever read from the SR.

Signed,

One less reader of the SR

Mr. Lahey and Rick

In concur with some of your points. Over all it's a sad day for the S-R press room. I was particularly impressed with Mr. Hagengruber latest report on the Spokane River. IMHO he may have been too specific about IEPs phosphate load to the river.. By concentration it outstrips the entire City of Spokane. This is Chinatown all over again however this is for another time. I just have this gut feeling that the S-R is taking the hit of the $9M judgment. The S-R has probably the most liquidity of the Cowles' empire. The rest is locked up in assets and trust accounts.

RBT,

You are a piece of work. Do you really think I would layoff half a dozen innocents just to get Jim Hagengruber because he's covering the Spokane River and Inland Empire's contributions to the river's pollution?

Good lord, man. What has happened to you? Karen Dorn Steele, who covered river pollution issues before Jim, is THE reporter who has quantified the paper mill's role. Gee, she's still here. Dan Hansen, a deputy city editor who once covered environment and outdoor issues, covered the river and IE pollution. Of course I promoted him, a sure way to silence him and send a message to all who followed.

Becky Nappi, in her River Dialogues series, wrote about the paper mill. Now she writes editorials, so it should be obvious to all the price she paid.

So Jim crossed the line and I laid off 16 people just to get him out. And as there are no competent reporters left, I can sleep well tonight knowing the paper mill's secrets can be preserved for another generation.

Yup, I pulled the trigger on a whole bunch of innocents just to get at Jim and his nasty old anti-Cowles reporting -- or the potential of his nasty old anti-Cowles reporting as I'm sure you'd argue he has yet to write anything critical.

RBT, if you're going to participate in this blog, start dealing with reality. This post is just sad, not to mention unfair to Hagengruber, one of the best reporters with whom I have ever, ever worked.

steve

Mr. Smith,

Yes, I was a little snarky about Mr. Hagengruber. I really liked his piece and I'm sorry to see him go and all of the rest of the S-R staff.

What is puzzling to me is why so many now. You announced some time ago that downsizing was in the works. It appeared that you were making the prudent but hard choices to balance your budget.

What changed over night? Do you see the entire S-R budget including the newsroom, the press floor, and the ad/business side? As I said above the S-R has the liquidity and cash flow that can be siphoned to other Cowles' enterprises. If the owners' heart is in this paper why are they buying a string of radio/TV stations in middle of California?

RBT

No bones about it. Layoffs suck. I just read the Liberty Lake Splash online. I'm having scary visions of the day when this is what we get for news -- company press releases printed verbatim. Sometimes they even include the boilerplate.

Best wishes to all the SR folks who got the short end of the stick today. Some will say this opens the door to a whole new world of opportunity, but that's just crap that people who still have jobs say to make themselves feel less guilty about not getting laid off. Get a firm grip on your finances and don't go into the restaurant business. OK? Promise?

Steve Smith wrote:

...Hagengruber, one of the best reporters with whom I have ever, ever worked.

Ah hah!!! Now it makes sense. You fired one of the best reporters you've ever worked with.

Wait. That makes NO SENSE AT ALL!!!

Actually sounds like these people got out at the right time. May God have mercy on the SR...

I should perhaps clarify my Chinatown reference before my groupie Mr. Brookbank puts his spin on it.

This is all about the Spokane Valley being the "new" Chinatown (period genre movie re LA/San Fernando Valley at the turn of the century re political/government corruption and water rights). The Cowles' Companies own some 1,000 acres in the Valley and it's all about the Rathdrum Aquifer, the sewers or more appropriately the lack there of. So far the mitigation efforts have been pushed 20 years into the future. It's all about who is going to pay for the infrastructure.

Sorry for digressing. Again I'm very sorry for those who lost their jobs today. My beef is not with the S-R staff but with its owners and their perhaps selfish motivations.

RBT

RBT,

I have limited knowledge of the non-newsroom budgets and no knowledge at all of what's happening in the other Cowles Co. entities.

When I mentioned the possibility of layoffs in August, I said we'd be down 12 to 15 positions.

Nothing dramatic changed over the next couple of months. As I told the staff, I had a budget target, not a staff number to meet. The number of layoffs needed to reach the budget target depends on salaries. When seniority is the basis of reduction, the losses tend to involve those who make less money. That means you need a few more people to reach the total.

That is an oversimplified way of describing a somewhat more complex problem, but you get the drift. In the end, we hit the high end of the range I predicted.

There is nothing fair about any layoff process. The previous editor, in two rounds of layoffs in 2000 and 2001, did not have a seniority clause in the contract. He was able to pick and choose those he was firing.

I'm sure he did the best he could in the circumstances. But he inevitably left himself open to charges he picked people he didn't like and saved those he did.

I now follow seniority rules that limit my discretion. I like that system. Because regardless of what people say here, it means that no one was laid off because I didn't like them, didn't like their clothes or hair or didn't like their work. And not a one of them has to worry that they were laid off for performance issues and all know that I will do, all of our editors will do everything I can to help them find another position.

I would take the contract restrictions in a heartbeat given the alternative.

steve

Mr. Smith,

Thanks for your reply. I now have a better understanding. I think I'd compare notes at the water cooler with the other department heads. Think about it for a minute as any investigative reporter would.

In that vain in all seriousness and in no disrespect to you but do read this piece of perhaps how ruthless and cunning the S-R owners can be. Again my point re the importance of the loan to Mayor Hession's campaign by Ormsby et al.

Coming from a union shop and having had to negotiate with meet and confer rules et al, trust me I understand the complexity.

Again I would not want to be in your shoes right now.

RBT

Hey guys. I'm enjoying this blog a lot right now. Got a lot of time on my hands, I suppose. So, please keep posting so I have something to read in the days ahead. Sorry if that sounds snarky. I'm just trying to understand all this right now. Best, Jim.

Mr. Hagengruber,

You are a good investigative reporter. Your latest piece on the Spokane River was excellent. Do read my link above in context with Chinatown and perhaps do a little freelance work. I have a hunch the WSJ be in need of some good freelancers on the ground in Spokane in the near future.

RBT

Steve loves to tout the seniority system as the savior that makes his decisions more "fair" and equitable.

But any casual observer will note that there is nothing fair about Parker Howell, a veteran of 8 months or so, keeping his job while one of the preeminent environmental reporters in the country, Jim Hagengruber needs to consider selling his home tonight.

Perhaps Steve could be slightly more transparent about his intentions to shutter the North Idaho bureau and farm out the majority of coverage to non-union correspondents reporting to the Voices, which, by the way, is proudly touted by the publisher as one of the only profitable ventures at the newspaper.

Perhaps the demise of the Idaho Edition altogether, with reporter Erica Curless parachuting in on stories that may seem noteworthy enough for readers in the metro.

Oh yes, fairness all around tonight. Reporters with six months experience at the most will go to work Monday, but 10 year veterans with mortgages, spouses and children just had their entire worlds turned upside down.

Yes. Let's talk about how fair that is.

Again I harp on my earlier point: where's the logic in firing "one of the best reporters with whom I have ever, ever worked."

No one seems to be able to answer that one for me...

The owners and editors of this paper need to realize that people don't want to read crap. People want insightful, accurate and thorough reporting. How will they now get that in N. Idaho? If they want the usual crap, just turn on TV news.

-- Maybe its not that there are fewer readers, so papers are declining. Maybe papers are declining, so fewer people read them. --

If these are business decisions, your paper is finished.

Way to go, Stacey. Your oligarch ancestors would be shaking their ivory canes in your honor at your cowardly show of greed. But we understand your desire to be buried in a casket of gold. After all, gold is what, like $600 per ounce these days. That's a lotta casket...

Or the fairness that almost every single department, from copy desk to Idaho to Valley to Graphics, saw a cut.

But the two largest departments, editorial city desk and sports, saw absolutely zero SES cuts. Not one. Not a single person was deemed expendable from those desks. Not one.

Absolutely, though. Talk about fairness if that helps you sleep better tonight. After all, about 12 people tonight are probably going to have a tough time getting a good night's rest.

Well, I guess if you slop all over Smith's knob like the 7 crew and have ABOSLUTELY NO NEWS EXPERIENCE WHATSOEVER, your job is safe.

Yep. Nothing to see here, folks. Smith is the savior of journalism and that's that.

How, you ask, can someone with less than a year of experience keep his job while someone with "seniority" (presumably someone who's better or more valuable) get laid off? The trick is in how the company groups or how it separates the job classifications. I've been involved in all kinds of layoffs, from seniority-based cuts to skills-based cuts, and believe me -- if they want you gone, they can make it happen. They have a dollar figure they're targeting and any system devised by mgmt and the human resources department can be gamed. There are many, many legal ways to slip through an adverse impact test. Management also tends to protect the "vital organs" and will sacrifice the extremities, i.e., the outpost operations. Where I come from it's called the geographic penalty. N. Idaho was right in the bull's eye...too far from the decision makers to influence the outcome.

So what you end up with usually for survivors is a mixture of people with talent and experience, talent and little experience (less expensive), and people with the skills to do an essential job that no one in his right mind wants to do but actually seems to enjoy it. And then there's a handful of savvy political players who always manage to land on their feet because they're not crippled with much of a conscience.

Not to mention that there won't be any ill-will festering about the downtown newsroom next week or in the coming months because, let's face it, when it came to company-wide layoffs, that downtown newsroom made zero sacrifices. Zilch.

So they can just keep on working along their merry way. They all survived.

Allow me to break the layoffs down into easy-to-understand numbers for you, the valuable blog reader, just like the ever-important alternative story forms:

Bureau Reporters (Including Idaho and Valley): 10 employees
Laid off today: Six. (A seventh may be coming.)
Percentage: 60 percent

Editorial Assistants: Five employees
Laid off: One
Percentage: 20 percent

Graphics: Two employees
Laid off: One
Percentage: 50 percent

Copy Editors: 19 employees
Laid off: Two
Percentage 10 percent

Photographers: 10 employees
Laid off: Two
Percentage: 20 percent

Sports: 13 employees
Laid off: ZERO.
Percentage: ZERO.

Features (which includes the beloved 7 section): 8 employees
Laid off: ZERO.
Percentage: ZERO.

City desk news: 26 employees
Laid off: ZERO.
Percentage: ZERO.

So, pre-layoff, the affected departments accounted for 46 employees. The three untouched departments accounted for 47 employees, more than half of the union.

But the three untouched departments saw zero layoffs.

Isn't that just strange, everybody?

Also, the bureau reporter with the least seniority that was laid off today still has more seniority than at least four other, more recently hired reporters working in sports and city desk downtown.

Oh yes, the union contract makes all of this legal. Fairness isn't written into the contract, and I certainly wouldn't expect it to come from Steve Smith.

Fallout from this decision will be far-reaching.

I know the criticism in here is tough, Steve, and I'm only happy to oblige when you said, "Take your shots."

But I'd keep a copy of Dean Gleason's number pretty close by for a while. You might need it before long.

Don't get snookered by the talk about "classifications." Editors have absolute authority to re-assign reporters and copy editors as they choose, so hiding behind "classification" as justification for keeping a less-tenured (and lower-paid) employee while dumping a more senior (higher-paid) staffer is dishonest. True fairness would have been cutting from the bottom, period (last in, first out) and then re-assigning those remaining to plug holes.

Oh, and what IS the current profit margin of the paper anyway? Bet we're still talking large numbers in black ink -- unlike the layoffs' personal accounts in the near future.

Hey guys. I'm enjoying this blog a lot right now. Got a lot of time on my hands, I suppose. So, please keep posting so I have something to read in the days ahead. Sorry if that sounds snarky. I'm just trying to understand all this right now. Best, Jim.

Posted by Jim Hagengruber | 1 Nov 11:07 PM

You and me, both. Let me know if you can make sense of it.

My family heard this news last night and being huge fans of Taryn and the others called this morning to cancel our SR subscriptions for good. That's 3 less papers for the poor struggling paper to worry about publishing every day. Hope that helps! Smith, you should be ashamed.

What a sad day for this paper. From across the country I've followed some of the excellent environmental reporting done by the staff- not just on local issues, but even on issues from outside the region. While I dont know the politics behind these decisions- and don't fool yourself, there are always favorites being played out in these decision- best wishes to the reporters now looking for work. The SR just lost its very best assets.

Steve:

Sounds like now is the time to dip into the Editors' Playbook and pull out a few chestnuts.

You could start by saying how much more intelligent today's 20somethings are, and how they've had "internships," which today seem to be worth 10 years of experience, blahblahblahlielieblah.

Just from looking at these numbers, it does seem unusual that 60-70 percent of the bureau reporters would be cut while no city desk people would be cut. (A side question: Does your newspaper have the mandatory "big hat, no cattle" city editor who talks a big game, yet edits no copy?)

Anyway, you should feel comfortable in the knowledge that you could spin this in any number of ways, and few people in the industry would challenge said spin.

Steve Smith has a considerable nationwide reputation of poor management and ill will at many of the papers that have seen his hand at work.

Nationwide analysis of these layoffs will certainly paint a different picture than what Smith will attempt to portray on News is a Conversation. Of course, he'll defend himself to the death on here. Steve Smith doesn't make mistakes, right?

I'm having trouble picturing a scenario where Mr. Smith would not be under intense criticism and second-guessing today, considering he had to cut personnel. But as he said, no matter what, it's the laid off employees who are taking the biggest blow.

But I am somewhat puzzled by the idea that strict seniority is a better formula for such decisions. I would think that for the purposes of putting out the best paper possible, performance-based decisions would be more logical.

Granted, that opens the door to a great deal of subjectivity and even greater criticism, but in the long run, having the most talented and productive people stay seems more wise. I know that's not how the guild contract works but that doesn't mean Mr. Smith has to agree with it.

Determining who stays and who must go is certainly easier if you must follow a formula, but is it really better?

Anyway, best wishes to everyone at the S-R, and those who used to be.

RBT,

Oliver Stone called. He needs you back on the set.

If you have any decency, you'll set aside the theories for a day or two. I know that's asking a lot given the import of everything you've imagined. I know that "they" will continue with their evil plots while you rest.

But think about it. OK?

Thanks.

Why don't you guys at least take down the names of the people who were fired from your staff list. Don't make it more painful for them to have to see their names still on the masthead, but know they have no job there. You don't have the right or the privilege to associate their names with your gutted newspaper anymore.

Tell your online guy.

Or did you fire him, too?

Hopefully all that fresh, clean money you're rolling in today smells good.

A former reader.

RBT

Gary Crooks has a point.

I love the Mel Gibson movie "Conspiracy Theory"...but.....reality is what it is. As you know by now we share Homeland Security in common via San Diego (FBI/NSA)....but... you are harming your own credibility here. There are no black helicpters and the sky is not falling. To restore any semblance of credibility, you might want to apologize and "restate" your thinking. I am trying not to be harsh here, but Gary and I both are being gentle. You need to consider reality and not the goblins that were out 2 nights ago on Halloween. If you are a former cop (Ron, seriously)...then I suggest you reconsider your postings here.

Thanks

David Elton (999-2569 cell)
EltonResearch@msn.com email

------------------------------------

Posted a couple days ago on one of your other blogs:

----

Editor Steve Smith is blogathonning with Dave F. Oliveria, and senior editor Carla Savalli is out reassuring young journalists that there is a future to this news industry?

----

WHAT? A future? Ask the 14 people who just lost their future. Maybe Savalli knows where it went.

Bud,

There is no right or wrong in your question/suggestion.

Yes, a straight performance based layoff gives a manager greater discretion and holds the potential for preserving the most talented.

But the subjective nature of the unregulated process leaves open the possibility that decisions will be made not on the basis of talent, but on other measures, including personal likes and dislikes.

I know I'm being accused by some of just that under the current circumstances. But even if that were true, my ability to maniuplate the organization to satisfy my unfair and unchecked interests is tempered by the contract and its restrictions.

In the end, one of the things I have to worry about is the morale of those who are left (recognizing that morale is going to be very low for some time). To the extent possible, whatever fairness is perceived to have gone into the process, gives folks some reassurance layoffs are not totally random. That's important for the long term.

steve

Does Steve Smith realize how lame this sounds: "sometime next week, after senior editors have had a chanced to regroup...we'll begin to plan for the future." Ummmm....senior editors are paid to have short, mid- and long-term future plans in hand before making significant headcount changes. This is the difference between an executive - a leader - and a supervisor who thinks week to week. The planning should have been done, with contingencies accounted for, before a single employee was approached. I assumed this plsnning was being done when the artless "brace yourself" memos starting appearing earlier this year. Get a grip - plan and then act. And think of the PR fumble of acting right before the holidays - summer would have been better. Who can land an interview - let alone a job - over the holidays with budgets used up? People are supposed to move their kids in the middle of the school year?? The worst time of year to sell a house?? This has bush-league written all over it. You should be ashamed of yourself. Your paper needs a leader, not a fast-food shift leader.

Steve, you have the hardest job in the world today. You have suffered a lot of criticism here on your own blog. I can imagine how that must feel and I'm sorry for you. If your skin is not cowhide thick already, it will be after this. Tough break. Good luck to you and the S-R. Here's to better times ahead.

**************************************************************************
"NOT an Actual Newsroom Manager"
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That post above is very obviously NOT written by a newsroom manager. At least not one with genitalia. Those of you slinging arrows at the editor should have the courage to USE YOUR REAL NAME !

Cowardice, thy name is "actual newsroom(fake)manager"

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Is there any ACTUAL newsroom professional willing to use their real name, and thus be professional and acountable ?

We await your response. Or are you too busy playing Xbox with your pals, laughing at the pretense of pretending like you are a real professional. Spit out the bubblegum. I am guessing you are a 19 year old college sophomore (sophomoric).

Steve Smith....hang in there !

(-:

David Howard Elton
Actual Person With a Name
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As much of a fan of the color green as our friend Steve here is, I must disagree w/ the way he's handling this once-prestigious newspaper. People in Spokane wonder why so many young, hard-working individuals leave the city for other places, like Portland, Seattle, and as sad as this is to say, even Boise. Well, it's b/c of people like Steve Smith, who make horrible decisions about the well-being of the newspaper with the same frequency that Bush makes horrible decisions about the well-being of our country. There, I said it, Smith is Bush. He's giving away all this money and power to his friends (good luck w/ the Chair position at U of O, Steve), while screwing over reporters who actually care about the community they live in. So until people like Mr. Smith leave Spokane, and until their predecessors learn what it takes to instill a strong sense of community in his/her employees and the citizens of Spokane (here's a clue, take a look at how much the local media and citizens of Portland take pride and actually CARE about their communities), flocks of young people will leave this town at the same rate as people have stopped reading the JOKESMAN!
Now who wants to wrestle.
The Green Bastard

To "newsroom manager's" point...

You are correct. Good leadership demands that plans be in place at the front end of the process, not the back.

In fact, we have made a few decisions. Others will depend on our ability to hire back some of those who were laid off, a possibility that actually exists until the end of November. We don't want to take any step that limits our ability to do that.

But to the larger point, let me share this anecdote:

I was laid off for the first time, at The Minneapolis Star in the spring of 1982. The layoff was seniority based, Minneapolis being the home of the very first Newspaper Guild local. I was at the bottom of the list being the last reporter hired by The Star.

The 40 or so of us laid off were given a couple of hours to clean out our desks. As I was boxing things up, the reporter sitting across the aisle from me burst into tears, hysterical sobs. She hadn't been laid off, too senior for that. But in the reorganization that was announced simultaneously, she had been given my assignment. She felt my job was a demotion from her previous assignment, hence the sobs.

I was leaving, my career at best interrupted, at worst over, and she was upset with her JOB.

I will not get into our reorganization plans for at least a week, maybe more. Many folks whose jobs were saved will have new assignments. If they want to shed tears over those assignments, they will do it afetr those who have actually lost their jobs have received all of the support and help we can provide.

That's the way it's going to be. Period.

steve

I would not presume to comment on how these cuts were decided. But I do question the timing...just before the holidays!! That is cold. And I do question the fact that Oliveria remains on the job. Mr. Smith, after last weeks love fest meeting on blog ethics, the always odious Thom George posted another one of his appalling photo shop hack jobs. I don't care which side of the fence you sit on, this was way over the line. And, to be frank, a case could be made for libel. Ethics and civility seem to be non-existant on your blog. I suggest that if you have not seen this juvenile and insulting picture, you check it out immediately. As I understand, Taryn Brodwater has been let go. An excellent writer and reporter. Yet Oliveria remains. This man doesn't even write his own stuff. He just prints what his bloggers have posted. You certainly are under no obligation to explain yourself, nor do I ask you to do so. But firing Taryn and keeping Oliveria just defies logic.

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Another person takes a cheap shot without using a real name. Where is the courage ? Does nobody have the guts to use their real name and take responsibility for their opinion(s) ? If you are reading this and considering a blogpost here, maybe you need journalistic Viagra. If you really think the editor is satan, if you feel compelled to put it into words on the blog, for goodness sake show some chutzpah and use your real name.

Otherwise, you are NOT CREDIBLE !

I wonder how many wussies will continue to piss and moan, but do it in the mode of cowardice. To quote a great western..."WHAT IS YA...YELLOW" ? Is there nobody willing to say something and give us a real name ?

COWARDS ! ....all of you not using your name.

David Howard Elton
Spokane
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Liquor and loose-women (b/c I can't use the other word on this blog) are the only way to get through this sad time. I dig 7 as much as the next person, but when we as a community start supporting entertainment over environmental issues, "we've got some serious 'xplainin' to do." Steve Smith is a joke, his newspaper is the Jokesman, and until he leaves, it's only going to get worse. Where is the Cowles family in all of this? Is Steve really the bastard son of one of the family members, and that's why he carries so much power? Does anyone really care about quality anymore? What's happened to you, Steve, you used to be so damn sweet (imagine a soft slap across your cheek). Spokanites, get out while you still can, before Steve and his newspaper call your sexuality into question, smear your name throughout the Jokesman's pages, then fire all their best reporters.
I need more liquor. And more loose women (b/c I can't say the other word on here.)
Bubbles from Nova Scotia

I need more cheeseburgers. And a new editor of the Jokesman. And all the quality reporters to get their jobs back.
But especially more cheeseburgers.
Randy

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BUBBLES=COWARD
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Anonymous=Cowardice

David Howard Elton
NOT anonymous
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==========================================================================
RANDY = COWARD
==========================================================================

Do you have a last name Randy ?
-----------------------------

David Howard Elton

David, we don't discourage people from using pseudonyms. It allows people to safely express unpopular or risky opinions.

On that note, though, using multiple avitars - and I'm looking at you Green Bastard/Bubbles/Randy - to make it look like others are agreeing with you, is just kind of sad.

I just wish people had a smidgeon of courage. I understand the positive side of being able to post an anonymous entry. But the amount of people saying outrageous things which cannot be backed up. People pretending and/or claiming to be a "newsroom manager" when they clearly do not even have the capacity for clean expression and skilled verbiage....it just bugs me to see so many cowards and idiots. I do have compassion for the actual people who were fired. Keeping that in mind, you would think they might have the clarity to express their angst/rage/disappointment.

Oh well, as Herb Robinson would say...it is out of my control. I hope someday soon the Spokesman will require full names and registration so we do not have so many wack jobs using up broadband and wasting valuable space where actual writers and thinkers can have intellectual intercourse. I suppse it will be back to normal in 2 days or so.

Carry On (-:

David Howard Elton

This thread can at least serve as an example of how quickly online conversations can/do devolve.

But thank you Steve for being so open on what has happened, while not subjecting the laid-off employees to uninvited public scrutiny.

You also have been through difficult times but, as you would say, YOU still have a job.

Your answer to the question of having a plan in place was nicely done.

Well, when you use your real name, people start making up lies if they don't like what you say. (Hence the danger of expanding SHIEEEEEEEEELDLAW, but that's a whole other issue.)

Anyway, about the long-range planning -- there is none. Newspapers like it that way. And the people holding the pursestrings don't ever have to change because they can just cut from the newsroom, and pylons like Steve Smith (sorry, man, it had to be said) fall over.

Every entity out there states that publishing personal information on the internet, especially blogs and chat rooms, is a dangerous and foolish thing to do. It has nothing to do with the courage of your convictions and everything to do with safety and security. They even have public service announcements on TV suggesting you not give out personal info. Cheap shots are in the eye of the beholder. Just because one may disagree with anothers position, doesn't mean it is a "cheap shot". Cheap shots are baseless accusations about a persons motives without any basis whatsoever.

Comrade Paulman,

Excellent work. You're monitoring of the IP addresses suggests a promising future within the empire. Too bad the stasi are no longer hiring.

Continue to snuff out the subversive elements!

That's so creepy ... don't tell me you're another Oregon grad?!? What do they served at the school keggers - kool-aid?

Is this who you dreamed of becoming as a child? Someone who tracks the IP addresses of people who speak their minds in a public forum?

Check your soul, man ...

There was no need to check the IPs. Sometimes it's just painfully obvious.

Fourteen good people lost their jobs yesterday. The rest of us are doing the best we can to help and support them and cope with losing good friends and colleagues.

And yet some of you want to use this as an opportunity to play little blog troll games. "Check your soul," indeed.

Please, do your best to have some decency, and take it somewhere else.

Please...PRAVDA ?
----------------------------------------

Russian : Ya Idu na Pochtu, Pazlat Peezmo.

Now look that up Kiriel Palich/PRAVDA. I think you exaggerate like Donald Trump on crack. Equating Steve Smith to the stasi and communism/fascism. Now I now the blogposters are somewhat insane. The Spokesman are gentle about saying it, but I am a blogger that is not a fan of Cowles or Smith....yet here I am defending him because you people lack any sense of logic or reason. Is this whole city full of people that have no grasp on business ? A newspaper cannot stay in business unless it is profitable. The cutbacks here in Spokane are actually a little less than in many major markets. The industry is undergoing massive transformation. Do you simpletons not get that ? I know it sucks when people get fired.....but.....get a grip.

I continue to challenge people to have the guts to use their fu
ll name. Courage... Honesty.

David Howard Elton
Spokane
----------------------------------

Comrade Paulman,

Don't hide behind the layoffs of the others to insulate yourself from criticism. That's not noble, that's cowardice. (What's next? yellow ribbons and "Support Our Troops" bumper stickers?)

What is your job exactly? Cause if you get paid to post these boot-licking blog items, ths s-r is waisting it's money ... have you ever written anything that might ruffle your bosses feathers *quack-quack*

maybe you get paid to divine who a person is based on their writing. you're telling me you can't track an IP address? hah.

David Howard Elton III - I've read your bloated, self-congratulatory posts. sorry bud, you ain't worth my time.

I'm not taking your bait.

Once more: Take it somewhere else.

No one's interested in having a flame war with you.

Hey Dave,

You even wrote it wrong in English. Your attempt at Russian should go something like this: Ya idu na pochtu, poSLAT piSMO! And it means: I'm going to the post office to mail a letter. Impressed.

I'm sooo impressed with your elementary Russian. Try this one out: ti sami bolshoi durak zdes. O gazetax, ti nichevo ne ponimaesh i eto bi bilo lutshe esli ti prosto ishol na xui!!

Can you translate that, Dave?

And you're the one without any sense of business. If you knew anything about newspapers, you'd know that they're cash cows and the stock price drops if they don't produce 25 percent profits each year. The SR makes plenty of money, but its never enough.

One more reason why newspapers should really be non-profits.

If Mr. Cowles keeps these Oregon hacks running his paper, it sounds like it will be a non-profit soon enough...

Sad.

PRAVDA-V-Elton (2007)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

I feel sorry for you Pravda, aka "Wussie/Coward" (no real name ?...NO REAL COURAGE !). Instead of trading blows with you, maybe I should turn the other cheek and understand that you might be a close friend of one of the infamous 14 who had the misfortune of losing their job. Is that the case ? Otherwise I would find it difficult to explain your anger and utter lack of logic. Are you emotional about this because of a friend ? Maybe we could settle this with Russian...CHESS that is !~ (-:

Shall we play a game of chess ?

Ken Paulman will not take your bait, but I certainly will. I am a sucker for a good debate. So, "Comrade", you are "one of those" who despises companies who are profitable ? I bet you hate wealthy people too. Do you hate the jobs wealthy people create ? Do you also hate the philanthropy that comes from people like Bill Gates and BONO ? You might be a good case for something we like to call cognitive dissonance (proposed by Leo Festinger, 1957)....Cognitive dissonance, to summarize, is a psychological term that describes the uncomfortable tension that often is a result of two conflicting thoughts occuring at the same time which conflicts with your beliefs. Since there is massive contradiction in your 2 previous posts, I suggest you look it up in the dictionary. It will help you better understand yourself and the unreasonable anger you have...as witnessed by your striking out at me.

Think about it.

I am not a PhD or a psychologist, but I would be happy to provide you with therapy. The first step is admitting you have a problem with anger (logic too). Once I help you understand that...and thus yourself, then we can move on to your issues with Russian and your latent liberality (-:

Elton profile on Pravda (aka "wussie"/COWARD)...--**This is humor Pravda...teezing below**-- (this disclaimer brought to you by the fact that liberals lack a sense of humor)

PATIENT: "PRAVDA" (aka Coward)

1) Approximate age 27
2) Well educated, but no college degree
3) Breast fed...unfortunately until age 23. (Hillary ?/Takes a Village(idiot)
4) Father was almost non-existent
5) Father was alcoholic
6) Father also breast fed you (but stopped at age 9)
7) Hate/jealousy issues with wealthy
8) Excellent writer (you are good...gotta give you that)
9) Reads too many Elton posts (-:

Carry On (-:

Please respond in Farsi or Mandarin (your Russian is weak)...Or respond in Latin. that would be super cool.

David Howard Elton
Provocational Nerd
3 am ....sheeeeesh (-:

What is the point in Posting without owning it... the power of my words has some measure of reality based on who I am and what is being done with this life i've had extended and given to me..

I am able to speak with some knowledge and authority on a fair number of subjects based on my life experiences and places I've lived and things done with the time alive...

It is difficult for me to imagine posting and not using my own name.. and style... to bring a point to the table that might not otherwise be raised...

What I write has validity because of who i am. As long as one engages in disussion of issues, and not ad hominum's there is likely not much need for being secretive about my name..... Gus