*UPDATE 3* Paper cuts: Axe falls on newspaper employees, others return to the grind | Ink By the Byte
Banner, Ink By the Byte — By Christopher Spencer on October 29, 2009 at 6:13 pm** UPDATE at 6: p.m., 11/06/09 ***
Bob Caudle was hired today by the merged Northwest Arkansas Newspaper as a Benton County’s fire and police reporter. The offer was made after Anna Fry, who covered that area previously, decided to find greener journalism pastures in Washington, D.C., sources say.
Here’s the note from his Facebook status:
Bob Caudle For those of you scoring at home, The Morning News called today and offered me a job covering Benton County fire and police. I took it. We’re going to iron out the details on Monday. This has been quite a week….
Also, Razorback columnist and newspaper merger casualty Nate Allen has been offered a freelance contract by Northwest Arkansas Newspaper to write a three times a week sports column. The offer was made after a successful Facebook effort by about 150 people drew attention to Allen’s dismissal from the paper.
Group organizer Beth Presley provided this note today that was written by Allen, thanking people for their support. It reads as follows:
Without my beforehand knowledge or consent, you have made Nancy and me feel like “It’s a Wonderful Life’s” George Bailey.
I have never had such a following other than the last batch of bill-collectors chasing me from Roger’s Rec to the Bank of Fayetteville.
Your sincerity even exceeded theirs. And they were indeed sincere.
Thanks to you, some of them might even start getting paid off, or as much as a sportswriter’s salary pays anybody off.
Last Thursday I signed a 2-year contract that’s supposed to take effect next week to write three columns a week for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
That never, ever, would have happened without you all.
Like George Bailey, you have made me feel like the “richest man in town.”
Because while the money is no greater than what I previously received, the enrichment of so many caring so much to take it upon themselves to lobby for my employment is a treasure lasting forever and infinitely greater than any money I could ever spend or save.
Nancy and I are still overwhelmed by it all.
I would imagine those at the newspapers are, too. Especially with them knowing full well I am too computer illiterate ever to have organized and engineered this since I don’t even Facebook or Twitter or can do much beyond sending e-mail.
The outpouring is nearly as baffling as it is wonderful.
I’m even wondering if a lot of you have parakeets lobbying to keep their favorite target in their birdcages.
Whatever the reason, we will never forget your kindness.
With the greatest love and appreciation to you all,
Nate Allen
I’m pleased that these two columnists were given a chance to return to the work that they enjoy. I think it should also be a lesson to those news reporters who ply their trade silently and want or are asked to keep their identity removed from their work. You remain anonymous at your own peril.
Engage your audience and make yourself known. Take control of your own brand as a writer and cherish it and develop it, building trust with your audience. The public would not likely feel the same connection with Bob and Nate if they were not columnists and had not developed that audience over the years.
In general, newspapers do not want journalists to have power in their own name and exert pressure to make sure that doesn’t happen.
You should resist that pressure.
** UPDATE at 8:30 p.m., 10/30/09 ***
Morning News reporter and columnist Bob Caudle will continue his column as a freelancer. It will be published by Northwest Arkansas Newspapers.
Caudle posted this comment on his Facebook page today:
“Employment update. My column will be in this Sunday’s paper, I’ll take a week off and then pick back up on Nov. 9 on a freelance basis. The editor asked and I agreed. I appreciate everybody’s kind words, thoughts, phone calls, e-mails … etc. And thanks to West Doss, I’m sure Walter Hussman at some point in the day asked, “Who in the hell is Bob Caudle?” Seriously, thanks”
First, a serious caveat. We’re talking about real people’s lives here so I hope anyone who comments will keep that foremost in their mind.
Also, this is a post that’s covering an event in action. It’s a composite based on multiple sources. Everything is preliminary and subject to change as I learn more. If there are mistakes, please inform me in the comments below so I can make those corrections immediately.
For many people, this sort of coverage is inside baseball for the newspaper industry, but for others, this is their livelihood.
Thursday is typically the last day of payroll at the Morning News, so it makes sense that the cuts would come today.
Among the editors:
We already know that everyone at the tip-top stays in place.
Donna Lonchar will be the Morning News’ Springdale editor.
Leeanna Walker will continue as the Morning News’ Rogers editor
Greg Harton will likely remain editor of the Northwest Arkansas Times in Fayetteville
Mike Jones will be Bentonville editor at the Benton County Daily Record.
Among the reporters:
Morning News columnist and reporter Bob Caudle was told today he would not be retained with the new newspaper after almost 17 years.
“There’s really no hard feelings, business is business and, apparently, I didn’t fit into their plans,” he said from his home this evening.
“You look at it from a business standpoint and the guy that makes the most money … I’d probably have fired me to.”
Caudle said he plans to take some weeks to burn through his severance and play some golf, contemplating his next move.
Charles Fowler at the Benton County Daily Record was also let go. Charles Huggins, who covered police and Washington County government for the Morning News, was also laid off. Jamie Smith, a reporter for the Benton County will also not be part of the new company.
My thoughts are with each of you.
On the scene
Folks were called into offices this morning and afternoon and told whether or not they made the cut.
Production, the technical side of producing the new paper is still rough. No one knows for sure how all the pieces are going to come together, said one employee who was re-hired by Northwest Arkansas Newspapers LLC.
The new company is expected to begin publishing the combined newspapers on Sunday.
“We were numb going into it but wired. Even afterward, everybody’s kind of like a zombie.”
* Update*
Lament for the Fourth Estate
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (NWA edition)
Stephanie Wheetley
Sue Morris
Chris Cocoles
Michelle Morgan
Bill Etter
Buddy Gough
Northwest Arkansas Times
Robin Mero
Brooke McNeely
Scott Shackleford
Ashley Batchelor
Sandra Cox
Benton County Daily Record
Gary Lookadoo
Tom Treweek
Karen Laskey
Paul Gatling
Sarah Nader
The Morning News of Northwest Arkansas
Tom Sissom
Chris Dunivan
Other employees, including those listed, might not have applied again for their jobs.Please leave a comment below if there are any inaccuracies.
SIMILAR POSTS
- NWA newspaper merger becomes “officially” official as papers drop simultaneous press releases | Ink By the Byte at 6:30 pm on October 26, 2009
- Wehco and Stephens marry as Northwest Arkansas Newspapers LLC. is formed Friday | Ink By the Byte at 12:24 pm on October 24, 2009
- Washington County can no longer house immigrants suspected of residency violations | CF at 10:06 pm on February 28, 2010
- Arrest made in Rogers bank robberies case at 12:48 pm on July 4, 2009
- NWAnews.com gets a new online editor at 11:37 am on July 12, 2009
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91 Comments
Testify, Witness!
Thompson’s run off many good workers during her reign of terror in Springdale, surrounding herself with only the most servile and fainéant sycophants possible.
(Hey, worked well for former President George W. Bush, didn’t it? And look how much better off the country is after his leadership.)
Thompson maintains a culture of fear and oppression, the lowest form of personnel management. Anyone who dares disagree with her — or worse, dares prove her wrong — soon finds himself (note use of gender-specific pronoun) on her hit list, or, as it’s put at The Morning News, “under Lisa’s microscope.”
Worse, she completely gets off on instilling that fear, another hallmark of bad leadership.
Let us hope this proves someday to be her undoing.
Re: Lisa Thompson’s “reign of terror,” runnin’ off good folks, etc.
No paper ‘cept a big Little Rock daily — the old Arkansas Gazette, the Democrat, or the DG — ever won both the Arkansas Press Association and the state’s Associated Press Managing Editor’s best paper award in the same year until the MN did last year.
First time. Ever. Somebody set me straight if I’m wrong.
No paper ‘cept a LR daily had won either of those since the ’80s until she picked up the MN’s plaque the year before that, IIRC. I don’t remember which one that was.
No dog in this hunt. Thought somebody should say, tho’.
At least four of those first-place awards have my name on them, thank you. Some I have the pleasure of sharing with very talented former co-workers. http://bit.ly/2Tm0sr
Wow! On the day that Alvin was let go, the survivors on the desk were told they were “the best.” They must have a lot of awards!!!
Too bad they forget to include jumps or make amateur head busts that even spellcheck would have caught.
Chane of fools….
Many talented people continue to work at The Morning News and contribute what they can to the product.
I don’t know anything about the awards, but the paper absolutely sucks now. That’s the bottom line. It used to compete somewhat with the Democrat. Now it hardly competes with that little rag Northwest Arkansas Times. I guess that’s what the MN is shooting for. Go get ‘em MN. Maybe one of you will get more classified ads than the other because neither certainly has a news or sports dept. worth reading.
Hear Hear Jub Jub and Alvin!
Alvin was the best of the desk at the MN when I worked there.
He is a walking AP Stylebook, a fantastic designer and the best copy editor I’ve ever met. But because he didn’t suck up to Lisa and her cronies, he got the boot.
Chane of fools indeed Casual Friday.
Whoa, folks. Lots o’ bitterness here.
That wall of awards is impressive, Mr. Polk. Two of those first places were in 2007. One in 2008. Those are the years the MN walked home with sweepstakes awards, right? You helped. Well done.
But how many first place awards does a paper that win sweepstakes bring home in a year they win?
It’s no dig at you that a paper has to win a lot more than two.
Yeah, the MN’s weak now. Maybe cutbacks forced by the collapsing economy hurt? I’m guessing there were staff cuts before now.
is this the same chris dunivan from augusta, georgia?
Now I’m just curious.
Mr. Polk; you’re good at what you do, it looks like.
And the boss drove you off because you wouldn’t grovel?
That’s it?
Havin’ a hard time believing that out here.
You did nothing to make yourself one of the cuts when the cuttin’ started?
Nothing?
Don’t sound likely. What’s missin’?
The Japanese have a saying: It is the nail that sticks up that gets hammered down.
Interestin’ Japanese sayin’. Heard that before.
So when I got a nail stickin’ out where it’s not supposed to be, what am I supposed to do?
Just wonderin’
spent 2-plus years in the trenches of the wars at the BCDR back in the day. sorry to see so many good writers/editors out of work here. good luck to all.
Wow, Just thinkin, I assure you from my time at the Morning News, no paper editor in their right mind would let an employee of Alvin’s quality go.
The reason he was let go was that he wouldn’t fall in with the cronyism and because he had been there long enough to make a decent salary.
I really find the implication you’re making without knowing anything about Alvin quite offensive.
It’s funny because by suggesting that Mr. Polk, who according to your opinion was apparently very good at his job, was let go because he wouldn’t fall in with the cronyism and had been there long enough to make a decent salary you are implying the reverse – that anyone still employed at the newspaper now who is also very good at their job must then be falling in with the cronyism. I find that implication quite offensive. As far as the reasons Mr. Polk was let go again, my guess is only the people who made that decision know why and perhaps Mr. Polk himself and I am betting the two sides to that story are probably a little different.
“I really find the implication you’re making without knowing anything about Alvin quite offensive.”
You accuse this Lisa person of everything except setting loose flying monkeys. Then you get offended when I ask an accuser a question.
Polk’s clearly talented. He didn’t win those awards for typing. Am I really supposed to believe he was let go because he refused to give up the ruby slippers?
Oh, Just Thinkin’, you’re too funny. If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
But, more importantly: I’m a bitchy, bipolar old queen and the first to admit it. It’s part of my charm.
I’ve never strived to be an exemplary employee, and I have no doubt my unwillingness to kowtow and what I was being paid ($18.76 an hour when I was laid off; no cost-of-living raise during the last year there) are chief among the reasons mine was the first name (all caps, bold and blinking with stars and double underline) on the layoff list.
OK. I didn’t mean any offense, but asking a guy to discuss on a blog why he was handed his walking papers is gettin’ too nosy. You don’t have to answer my earlier question, Mr. Polk.
It’s pretty clear that we’re not gettin’ the whole story, though, and anything a whole lot more tangible than “Lisa T’s a witch” would be appreciated.
Whoa. We clearly just passed each other on the ‘net. You replied before I could withdraw the request.
Sounds like you and Lisa got a lot in common.
And, wait. This ain’t about me. I didn’t cause the demise of The Morning News. Those decisions were made far above my pay grade.
Focus, people! Focus!
I’d love to be able to put that on a resume, though: “Brought about the near-collapse of a multimillion-dollar regional newspaper with sheer obstinacy, frequent bitching and occasional Bundt cakes.”
No one ever mentions the Bundt cakes. *sigh*
Oh, JT, you’re so right. Such similarities! You _have_ hit the nail on the head.
The difference is that one of us admits it.
I have no secrets. I play with all my cards on the table. That’s the reason some folks don’t like me very much.
The NWA Times and the BenCo paper look a whole lot more demised than the MN. President of the corporation – DG guy. Publisher – MN guy. Executive Editor – MN guy. Managing Editor – MN lady and her flying monkeys. Who is the highest ranking Fayetteville/Benco guy left?
And who suffered the most cuts down in the ranks?
“Oh, JT, you’re so right. Such similarities! You _have_ hit the nail on the head.
The difference is that one of us admits it.”
I don’t think I could accuse either of you two of being shy.
Strong personalities clash. That’s true. I’d just like to hear the story from somebody who wasn’t let go by Lisa T. Whole lotta’ ax grindin’ goin’ on.
Yes Dooley, I am implying that many of the people there ARE still there because of their willingness to toe the management’s line. I make no apologies for that. I would have thought you had gathered that from my previous comments.
That’s not to say there aren’t some very talented people still there. I am friends with many of them and I happen to live with one. Someone has to pick up the slack or the paper wouldn’t get published. And kudos to those people, I hope they continue to be successful. Goodness knows they deserve it after this stressful merger mess.
Good luck with that, JT. “Culture of fear,” I think one poster said.
Anyway, as far as the cuts, look who did the pickin’.
“Good luck with that, JT. “Culture of fear,” I think one poster said.”
Everybody left at the MN’s a coward? Can’t believe that, AP. Not even Stalin could get that done.
“Anyway, as far as the cuts, look who did the pickin’.”
???
No irony attempt by me here, AP: What am I missin’? Looks like the MN did the pickin’. That’s the point
Goin’ to bed. Wish I had some Bundt cake.
Good Garner. Just so long as you aren’t so bitter that you can’t admit that there are still people employed at the papers who are every bit as good and perhaps even better than Polk. I happen to live with one of those folks and have a sibling who was laid off back in April who fit that bill in every way.
I must be blunt: It’s a shame they kept Leanna Walker. For years she’s operated self-servingly and with an overinflated sense of entitlement. I know because as a young person starting out in the business, she did nothing to tutor or mentor me and even seemed to enjoy making things more difficult. I hope she’s changed.
As I said before, some very talented people continue to work at TMN and contribute what they can to the product.
Tablet, brick, potato, llama.
Yes Dooley you mentioned your friends and roommate in prior comments. I’m glad we can agree on one thing if nothing else.
Best of luck to all parties involved, the beleaguered journalists who were let go and the beleaguered journalists who still remain in the trenches. I hope they all will find a way to wade through this craziness and succeed.
Bold moves Christopher, letting these comments go straight up without moderation on what has proved such a testy topic! My my, you are fearless!
Garner, I don’t disagree with anything else you have posted or anything at all now that you have clarified your statements. Before it read that you felt all employees left behind were there for reasons other than their considerable talent. The rest of it? My partner has opinions on a number of the people who have posted here since he has worked with most of them in his years here. Since I don’t know any of them I have to simply watch and listen, basing my own opinions on what they say. I just tend to get my considerable hackles up a little if it feels like someone is knocking him, intentionally or not. I’m a woman, what can I say?
Double on your wishes for those involved. Have a good one.
Dooley, I hear you there. My hackles are all out of sorts lately over so many things…
Anyways, glad we agree and here’s hoping the ones we live with will hold on to their positions. I’m sure they deserve them.
Enjoy your evening.
Wonderful news for Caudle and Nate. How uplifting to hear that the readers spoke out and the powers that be listened!
What?!?!? Newspapers giving readers what they want?!?!? There may be hope for this business yet…
Rehire Bill Etter! That man is a saint and a fantastic copy editor, yet they kept far less qualified individuals on staff.
Judging from the quality and content of the new NWA Times I would say they kept a whole lot of incompetent people. Lisa Thompson and her husband and their clique may think that we are stupid but they are sorely mistaken. Everyone in Fayetteville is well aware of the fact that they butchered the staff at our local paper, keeping less than half of the employees on board for the new venture. Take a look at the casualty list – what a shocker that The Morning News suffered the least number of hits.
The big shocker is that the Thompsons and their buddies think the Fayetteville readership is going to fall for what they are trying to pull over on us. We can clearly see there is no local paper in Fayetteville anymore. There is now simply one regional paper with the exact same content in all four papers, just slightly rearranged so as to appease us dumb readers. As I recall, they have tried this twice before with dismal results. It will be no shocker when they wind up with the same results this time.
The new NWA Times sucks. I wish I could dress that up or make it sound nicer or more politically correct. I can’t. Neither can anyone else I’ve talked to. It just sucks. I was hoping it was going to be different, that the naysayers were wrong. I was wrong and they were right. It sucks and it just irritates the heck out of me. If our paper fails and dies after over 150 years in business, I will place the blame squarely on their shoulders.
Sorry, Morgan, ‘cuz no one likes to hear “told ya so.” (BTW, say hey to Josh, he’s a great guy.)
These people have spent more years doing CYA than they have providing journalism to the community. It’s all about save your own necks with them. I saw two of these charlatans at the football game Saturday and hoped beyond hope that Tusk II would run them down right then and there. Guess their karmic costs will be collected in some other fashion.
I urge you to support community journalism, either by participating and enriching practitioners such as Ozarks Unbound, the Fayetteville Flyer, as well as sites by Lessie, Jonah and Aubrey. These people provide open forums and would welcome your input. Some may go far out on a limb (just like Hearst and others did) and some will be flat out wrong. But they had and have one huge thing in common: THEY CARE.
George Bush doesn’t care about black people, and the new print media entity doesn’t care about anyone who can’t make them richer. They sure don’t care about you or me or journalism. Journalism is just a front for their attempt to generate revenue.
Long live citizen journalism!
Thanks for the rally of support.
I’d go so far as to say that as newspaper are forced to contract their news because of economic realities, citizen journalists must step into the void. It’s liable to be messy for awhile and maybe a little bit confusing even, but that’s really the way news is anyway.
I’m trying to put together a weekend program dedicated to developing citizen journalists that I hope will help in take place in May. I think it’s a good step, especially in rural areas of the state.