Los Angeles Times Pressmens 20 Year Club: November 2006

LAFD News & Information: RED FLAG ALERT CANCELLED

The Twilight Zone

The end of November is upon us, and with that, comes the dreaded month of December for Los Angeles Times employees. Just like clockwork, employees are let go in the last month of the year at the newspaper, and this year will remain the same if history repeats itself.

Just yesterday I heard from the square that our computer help desk employees will be outsourced to the Philippines, with five to ten employees being let go. The Information Technology employees are taking each week as they come, not knowing how much longer they will remain with the company, before their jobs are outsourced.

With all the outsourcing we have witnessed at the Los Angeles Times it causes me to reminisce about Rod Serling and his black and white television program called The Twilight Zone. In the episode titled “The Brain Center at Whipples”, which was released on May 15th, 1964, Mr. Whipple attempt’s to be more efficient in his factory, and replaces all of his employees with machines. He himself is let go when a robot replaces him.

Machines are replacing American workers at an alarming rate, but countries like India and the Philippines, instead of machines, are taking jobs away at a much faster pace than anything else.

The outlook for future generations of Americans is not a bright one.

Los Angeles City Nerd: LA City Slogan

Correction: CITGO Makes Name Change

wtweldon said...
sorry to burst your bubble but...Citgo is not renaming to Petro Express.. Check your sources in the future. Snopes

Thank you WT,
Ed

Earthlink Email Problems

My Internet Service Provider (Earthlink) is experencing problems with DSL, Web Hosting, and Email. I'm unsure if the high winds are playing havoc with the system or not, but my backup email account can be accessed through Yahoo at edward_padgett2002@yahoo.com.

Los Angeles Times Mail Services

(Managers and supervisors: Please share this information with your employees who do not have e-mail. Thank you.)

As we head into the holidays, increased demands placed on the Mailroom and Shipping & Receiving employees make it necessary to clarify the policy regarding company mail services:

Employees should not have personal mail sent to the work site.

Employees should not have packages (including Federal Express, DHL, UPS, Airborne, etc.) sent to the work site.

Any and all incoming mail will be initially screened in the mailroom.

Any and all packages will continue to be processed through Shipping & Receiving where they are x-rayed and inspected for suspicious content but not opened.

For these reasons, you should have all personal mail, packages, and etc. delivered by the U.S. Postal Services or other services delivered directly to your home address.

We thank you for your understanding of and adherence to this policy.

FACILITIES DEPARTMENT

Take Back the Times: New York Times Vastly Outshines LAT This Morning In War News

Tribune says review drawing 'strong interest'

By William Spain, MarketWatch
Last Update: 8:43 AM ET Nov 29, 2006

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- A "strategic review" at Tribune Co. has "generated strong interest from a number of parties," the media company's chief executive said.

After the close of regular trading on Tuesday, Dennis FitzSimons said in brief statement that "advisers to both the company and the independent special committee of the board have recommended that the review process be extended to ensure thorough consideration of all proposals."

Potential buyers have been circling around the company, looking for pieces to bite off as Tribune (TRB) has been stung by advertising and circulation declines at its newspapers and turmoil at one of its best-known properties, the Los Angeles Times.

Continue reading

Photos from Iraq

The photographs from Iraq were supplied by a friend of my children. I could not share many of the pictures because they are too graphic, but if you would like to see what I could not display here, drop me an email.

LAFD News & Information: RED FLAG ALERT-No Parking Restrictions in Effect

Tribune Press Release

TRIBUNE UPDATES STRATEGIC REVIEW PROCESS

CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2006—Tribune Company (NYSE: TRB) today announced an update to its strategic review process.

“This process has generated strong interest from a number of parties,” said Dennis FitzSimons, Tribune chairman, president and chief executive officer. “Advisors to both the company and the independent special committee of the board have recommended that the review process be extended to ensure thorough consideration of all proposals.”

William A. Osborn, Tribune’s lead director and chairman of the board’s independent special committee said, “We are committed to a complete review process that will yield maximum value for all Tribune shareholders. We anticipate a final recommendation to the full board during the first quarter of 2007.”

Separately, the company said that the FCC has approved the sales of WCWN-TV in Albany and WLVI-TV in Boston. Both transactions are expected to close in December and are part of a performance improvement plan announced earlier this year. To date, the company has sold or agreed to sell approximately $450 million of non-core assets.

TRIBUNE (NYSE:TRB) is one of the country’s top media companies, operating businesses in publishing, interactive and broadcasting. It reaches more than 80 percent of U.S. households and is the only media organization with newspapers, television stations and websites in the nation’s top three markets. In publishing, Tribune’s leading daily newspapers include the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Newsday (Long Island, N.Y.), The Sun (Baltimore), South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Orlando Sentinel and Hartford Courant. The company’s broadcasting group operates 25 television stations, Superstation WGN on national cable, Chicago’s WGN-AM and the Chicago Cubs baseball team. Popular news and information websites complement Tribune’s print and broadcast properties and extend the company’s nationwide audience.

Tribune extends deadline for review process

By Michael Oneal
Tribune staff reporter
Published November 28, 2006, 5:14 PM CST

Judging that it would be unable to complete a deal to sell the company by the end of the year, Tribune Co. announced today that it planned to extend into the first quarter a process to review options to boost the company's stock price.

[snip]

As a result, said Tribune Chairman and Chief Executive Dennis FitzSimons said in a statement, "Advisors to both the company and the independent special committee of the board have recommended that the review process be extended to ensure thorough consideration of all proposals."

[snip]

Separately, the company said it had received federal approval to sell television stations in Boston and Albany, N.Y., bringing to $450 million the amount raised from assets sales since the company said earlier this year it would unload $500 million of "non-core" assets.

Complete article

Update from Dennis FitzSimons

From: FitzSimons, Dennis
Sent: Tuesday, November 28, 2006 2:55 PM
Subject: Update

Dear Fellow Employee:

Today we issued the attached news release updating our strategic review process.

Given the many strong expressions of interest and the commitment of our independent directors to a thorough review process, it is now anticipated that a final recommendation on strategic alternatives will be made to Tribune's full board during the first quarter.

This is an important time for our company and your continued focus on our readers, viewers, listeners and advertisers is appreciated.

Sincerely,
Dennis

Editors Note: The attachment from Mr. FitzSimons will be added as soon as possible.

Take Back the Times: Since Judith Miller Case, Judicial Assault On Press Has Only Intensified

What's New at the LAT

Appears I misunderstood a conversation regarding the creation of a web page or blog to counter the union movement at the two Los Angeles Times pressrooms. During the last union campaign, the newspaper had a web page with information on unions, and why they are a bad idea for the pressrooms.

The Video blogger I mentioned yesterday is still going through the channels at the square, before being allowed to film at the Olympic Production Facility for publication on Native Intelligence.

The IT (Information Technology) Department suffered no layoffs last week, instead of having many IT Departments; they have been consolidated into one department.

I will be attending the Times 125th Anniversary Party on December 4th with camera in hand, all Times, TCN, CCN, and Recycler employees are invited.

Rumors of the sale of the Los Angeles Times are premature; nothing regarding a sale has been leaked to the media or bloggers yet. One fellow employee told me “I heard on the news the newspaper has been sold”, so I requested a little information, like where did he hear this news? He could not recall, so I figure this was an attempt to start a rumor and nothing more.

Tuesday Morning Shorts

Tribune Co. Rejects Consortium Inquiry About Baltimore Sun
Ted Venetoulis, a businessman and former local politician, is leading a consortium of prominent Baltimoreans who want to buy the Sun, if Tribune decides to break up the company and sell it piece by piece.

Training tomorrow's reporters isn't easy in L.A.
As I read Mariel Garza's column last week (11/12/2006) in the Daily News of Los Angeles it echoed some of my own experiences in trying to connect my journalism students with the Los Angeles Police Department. Like Garza, I teach a journalism course at California State University Northridge, and wanted the students in my class to view a daily crime log as one of their 10 out-of-class reporting assignments for the semester.

Curbside Tagspapers
Photo-Op of newsracks.

Extended Warranty "Useless" -- Consumer Reports
You are buying a brand-new product. But the salesperson is telling you it could break down. And unless you pay for the warranty, you'll have expensive repairs. Well, is that true? Is an extended warranty worth the money?

Near-Riot @ Topanga Sony Style Store For PS3 Launch...
In January, when I observed that the search for an Xbox 360 was going to be "...a mere dress rehersal for the Playstation 3's release later this year," I didn't anticipate that last weekend would involve violence.

LA cops file suit over ticket quotas
A group of Los Angeles police officers in the north San Fernando Valley has filed a class- action grievance alleging that they have been improperly pressured by the command staff to meet quotas in writing traffic tickets.

Advertisers to push Times on rates
Whenever there's blood in the water, you can be certain that advertisers will be looking for a discount off the rate card. The Business Journal reports that Macy's and several unnamed local auto dealers say they will be expecting better deals next year, based on the paper's circulation drop (15 percent since the last ad rates were set).

Newspapers’ Civil Wars

By Gary Goldhammer
Below the Fold

Newspapers in Los Angeles, like newspapers in most other large U.S. cities, once measured themselves against their competition. Getting a “scoop” was the journalistic equivalent of a knockout in boxing. And news – at least within the newsroom – was sport as much as anything else. Being first mattered as much as being right, and if you couldn’t be sure of the latter then the former would almost always suffice.

Newspapers were at war with each other. They fought with massive presses and ink barrels. They enlisted young recruits hungry for battle and invested time and resources to get to the top and then stay there.

Today, for the most part, the competition wars are over. Cities like Los Angeles are now one-newspaper towns. Today newspapers fight not for supremacy, but for survival. They are still at war – but this time, the fighting is internal.

Continue reading

Yahoo Hires LAT Baseball Writer

Sent: Friday, November 24, 2006 12:17 PM
Subject: staff message from Randy Harvey

Staff,

We received word this morning that Tim Brown is leaving the paper for Yahoo Sports.

While this is good news for our friend Dave Morgan, it is very bad news for us. Tim is a born baseball writer, one of the very best in the business, but the fact is that there isn't a writing job in our section that Tim couldn't do with equal style.

He certainly proved that with his exceptional coverage of the Shaq and Kobe Lakers. That was a high point for our department.

We will miss him personally and professionally. We wish him well.

Randy

Source: LAObserved

Here We Go Again!

The following memo was sent by Los Angeles Times management.

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

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

As you all know by now, the Union has filed its seventh petition seeking to represent pressroom employees. We believe that it filed the petition now in the hopes that the Company would find it hard to campaign at this time of year and that you would be distracted by the holidays and other year-end activities.

If that was the Union’s strategy it miscalculated. We intend to continue to provide you with the FACTS and are confident that each of you understands that this election is something of vital importance to you and your families.

We know that the Union doesn’t want you listening to the Company and that it tells you the Company is not stating the true facts. But look at what has happened during EVERY PREVIOUS CAMPAIGN.

When the Company has told you what can happen in negotiations, the Company has regularly given you examples of SPECIFIC NLRB DECISIONS supporting what the Company says.

The Company has given you specific examples of what has happened in REAL CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS and had the indisputable facts or the contracts to prove it.

The Company has given you specific TRUTHFUL AND VERIFIABLE facts as to the Union’s history in negotiations, including its strike history.

If the things that the Company was saying were untrue, wouldn’t you expect the union to have shown you chapter and verse exactly what Company statements were untrue? But the fact is that the Union never has. Instead it has hidden behind vague and general accusations such as:

“[The Company] deliberately failed to mention the great GCIU contracts at hundreds of other newspapers. They also didn’t mention the 1,100 other GCIU contracts.”

Well ask them to tell you which of these 1,100 contracts provide newspaper pressroom employees wages and benefits even closely comparable to those you have here. Ask them how many they have negotiated in California. Ask them to tell you the TRUTH.

In the upcoming weeks we will continue to tell you the real facts. Consider them and then ask yourself: who is really telling me the TRUTH?

DON’T GAMBLE! – VOTE “NO”

Media shares tumble with broader market

Tribune Co. (TRB), said to be in talks with several private and public companies about the sale of some of its assets, was down marginally at $31.94.

Thirty-Two Percent of Workers Called in Sick With Fake Excuses

CHICAGO, Nov 27, 2006 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Are employees getting away with playing hooky from the office? According to CareerBuilder.com's annual survey on absenteeism, 32 percent of workers said they called in sick when they felt well at least once in the last year. One-in-ten admitted to doing so three times or more. And while some employers said they typically don't question excuses given, others were more skeptical. Twenty-seven percent of hiring managers reported they have fired a worker for calling in sick without a legitimate reason. The survey, "Out of the Office," was completed in September 2006 and included 1,650 workers and 1,150 hiring managers nationwide.

Examples:

1) Employee was poisoned by his mother-in-law.
2) A buffalo escaped from the game reserve and kept charging the employee every time she tried to go to her car from her house.
3) Employee was feeling all the symptoms of his expecting wife.
4) Employee called from his cell phone, said he was accidentally locked in a restroom stall and no one was around to let him out.
5) Employee broke his leg snowboarding off his roof while drunk.
6) Employee's wife said he couldn't come into work because he had a lot of chores to do around the house.
7) One of the walls in the employee's home fell off the night before.
8) Employee's mother was in jail.
9) A skunk got into the employee's house and sprayed all of his uniforms.
10) Employee had bad hiccups.
11) Employee blew his nose so hard, his back went out.
12) Employee's horses got loose and were running down the highway.
13) Employee was hit by a bus while walking.
14) Employee's dog swallowed her bus pass.
15) Employee was sad.

Source: CareerBuilder.com

Continue reading

Editors Comment: No one at the Los Angeles Times would even consider using their sick days, especially with the new policy of use them or lose them.

Take Back the Times: In Timely Article, LAT's Matt Welch Questions What McCain Candidacy Means

Video Blogger May Visit Oly

Video Blogger, Jason Soboroff, may be visiting the Los Angeles Times Olympic Facility in the near future. You can see Jason's work at Native Intellegence and his coverage of the protest by the Engineers and Architects Association at LAX yesterday.

VBlog is a new word for myself, and refers to Video Blogger's, something rather new to blogs.

Burkle's latest plans

LA Biz Observed posted an interesting link to Forbes article on Ron Burkle, possible buyer of the Tribune Company. Its a long story of rags to riches, but worth the read.

Peninsula Press Club: Journalists should take Wolf case seriously

Sunday Morning Linkage

Jim Rainey's Long Story About Tribune Co.-L.A. Times Rifts Fell Short
Rubalcava said that when he told Hiller he does not like the new positioning of the L.A. Times editorial pages at the back of Section A, rather than the California section, Hiller had told him he was unaware such a change had been made.

Tribune Co.’s new solution: baseball?
It is no secret that the Tribune Co. is feeling the pains of dropping circulation rates and constant staff changes. The company which has investments in major media and entertainment venues across the US seems to be moving forward with raising the value of their assets, or at least one of their assets: The Chicago Cubs Baseball Team.

Tribune company math
Tribune plans to ignore the warnings of its last two publishers and cut 10% of the staff while offering less content.

Tribune Co. Looks Like a Turkey at Thanksgiving
Tribune owns the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times, two venerable newspapers that are in disarray because the parent company can’t seem to generate big enough profits to satisfy its investors on Wall Street. Life at the L.A. Times is so chaotic that the paper’s editor and publisher both quit recently, rather than submit to Tribune Co.’s seemingly endless cost-cutting.

Billionaires Burkle And Broad Bid On Tribune Company...
As per recent swirling rumors, the LA Times reports that billionaires Eli Broad and Ron Burkle have put in a bid to buy the embattled Tribune Company.

Another New Bidder For Tribune Company - And Los Angeles Times!
Last week, two Los Angeles billionaires, Eli Broad and Ronald W. Burkle, made a surprise bid for all of the Tribune Company, whose assets include 11 newspapers, two dozen television stations and the Chicago Cubs baseball team.

Chicago Tribune Company Needs to Be Stopped Now
More than once, I’ve written about the goings-on at the Los Angeles Times, but as you may have noticed, those posts have never seen the light of day. Why?

The Giant Wants To Grow
Gannett, the nation's biggest newspaper chain, is reportedly interested in making a bid for pieces of Tribune Co., the nation's second-largest publisher.

It's All In Your Attitude
As mentioned the other day, The Source leaked a few rumors about the Cubs. One that was not discussed on this page is something that has to be considered as a reasonable possibility. That is: Tribune Company will sell off all their non-Chicago assets and leave a core company consisting of the Chicago Tribune Newspaper, WGN TV, and WGN Radio.

Peninsula Press Club: Judge may halt plans of Singleton, Hearst

CITGO Makes Name Change

CITGO Beginning Change of Name To PETRO EXPRESS

VERY IMPORTANT

I am forwarding this, because Chavez is starting to feel the loss of revenue from his holdings. He substantially OWNS CITGO.

This is a very important move that everyone should be aware.

ANNOUNCED JUST RECENTLY, CITGO, BEING AWARE THAT SALES ARE DOWN DUE TO U.S. (CUSTOMERS NOT WANTING TO BUY FROM "CHAVEZ"), HAVE STARTED TO CHANGE THE NAME OF SOME OF THEIR LOCATIONS, TO: "PETRO EXPRESS"

DO NOT BUY FROM "PETRO EXPRESS" "PETRO EXPRESS" IS ALSO 100% OWNED BY CHAVEZ" .

PLEASE KEEP THIS MEMO GOING SO EVERYONE KNOWS WHAT IS HAPPENING.
Scott Doster
shdoster@earthlink.net

Also of interest: Chavez vows to beat the "devil"

LAFD News & Information: The Invisible Danger You Carry To the Gas Station#links

Outsourcing hits a new class of workers: Journalists

The long arm of 'offshoring' reaches into the news industry

By Doreen Carvajal / International Herald Tribune

PARIS: The rush of job recruiting ads on MonsterIndia.com tells the story of the latest class of workers to watch their trade start migrating to another continent.

"Urgent requirement for business writers," reads one ad looking for journalists to locate in Mumbai. "Should be willing to work in night shifts (UK shift)."

Another casts for English-speaking journalists in Bangalore with "experience in editing and writing for US/International Media."

Remote-control journalism is the scornful term that unions use for the shift of newspaper jobs to low-cost countries like India or Singapore with fiber-optic connections transmitting information all around the world.

But the momentum for "offshoring" to other countries or outsourcing locally is accelerating as newspapers small and large seek ways to reduce costs in the face of severe stresses, from sagging circulation and advertising revenue to shareholder pressure.

"Outsourcing plays a major part in the newspaper industry of today," the World Association of Newspapers concluded in a study released in July.

Continue reading

Paris Has Issues

By Richard Abowitz
The Movable Buffet

How can I forget the night Buffet photographer Sarah Gerke and I saw Paris Hilton walk into a wall at Jet going the wrong way on her way to the bathroom? Oh, Paris Hilton and her precious bodily fluids. The latest is that Joshua Radin reported on his MySpace seeing Paris puke onstage at Tao after a night of imbibing. She apparently was going to pretend to sing one of her songs while the DJ played it and she acted like anyone else forced to hear her sing. How perfect. Tao is also the club where Paris was rumored to have left another bodily fluid inside a plant pot rather than stand in a long bathroom line. Tao is also the club that her then-underage, then-boyfriend was photographed having what looked to be champagne. So, is it any wonder Britney Spears (pantless!) has gone to Paris Hilton to replace whatever void Kevin's presence has left in her life?

LAFD News & Information: Join Firefighters at the LADWP Holiday Light Festival

Armed Man Enters Miami Herald Building

By JENNIFER KAY (Associated Press Writer)
From Associated Press
November 24, 2006 1:36 PM EST

MIAMI - A gun-wielding cartoonist dressed in camouflage entered The Miami Herald's building and demanded to speak with an editor Friday, prompting an evacuation of employees, police said.

No injuries were immediately reported, and police spokesman Delrish Moss said authorities believed the man was isolated on the newspaper's sixth floor, which houses the Herald's Spanish-language publication, El Nuevo Herald. Officers set up a perimeter around the downtown building.

The man came through the front door with what appeared to be a machine gun, Moss said.

It wasn't clear whether employees from other floors were being evacuated, but about 60 people were gathered outside the building.

Continue reading

Black Friday at WalMart

No I wasn't awake shopping this morning as
many others were in Los Angeles

.

I will be taking alternate freeways to Los Angeles later this afternoon, especially avoiding malls next to the freeway.

The photo was borrowed from MetroBlogging LA.

I'm with Adbusters, and will not make any purchases today.

L.A. union plans strike

The picketing Sunday is the first of a series of actions planned by engineers and architects. Their August walkout failed to win better pay.

By Joe Mathews, Times Staff Writer
November 24, 2006

Three months after a two-day strike failed to win better pay for its members, the union representing engineers, architects and other professionals who work for the city of Los Angeles is trying again, beginning with a walkout Sunday at Los Angeles International Airport.

The Engineers and Architects Assn., which represents more than 7,500 city employees, said this week that it is planning small, targeted strikes at different city departments on different days in the weeks ahead.

Sunday's planned one-day strike by about 200 members at LAX appears designed to gain maximum publicity while costing the union little. The strike may involve many office employees who are not scheduled to work Sunday. The most essential EAA workers at LAX, including 41 operational personnel who work on runways and 37 people who are involved in information technology, are barred by a court order from walking off their posts.

But EAA officials are planning picketing at the airport that could affect travelers. Members have been told to gather at a crosswalk near the entrance to Terminal 1. Their presence could slow traffic into and out of the airport on one of the busiest travel days of the year, union officials said.

Robert Aquino, EAA's executive director, declined to disclose dates or locations of future walkouts, but said similar one-day strikes would follow unless the city agreed to improve the pay of EAA workers.

Continue reading

Take Back the Times: Chicago Cub Transaction Shows Tribune Co. 'Axis of Stupidity' At Work

Comments from the Union

Ed, As the first comment stated, you once supported the union and you were forced by management to take down your "Pro-Union" website, and you did. I respect your change of opinion but wonder if you changed it willingly, or the Company changed it for you. Are your comments for your peers to read...or management?

Ronnie, I did more than support GCIU local 10-N I was the recording secretary for our local, I was involved with house calling, three conventions, attended the AFL-CIO classes on organizing, and many other activities attempting to promote the union at the newspaper. After resigning from local 10-N I brought down my union web site, but this was caused by someone in the union forging my signature on a document, while I was out of the country, not management.

There is a majority of supporters who have the courage to stand up for our Trade and our future and they deserve the security and stability that ONLY a "Collective Bargaining Agreement" will provide!

So what your saying is anyone that has a different view, or plans on voting no, has no courage? The pro-union members themselves have lost more votes, attempting to belittle their co-workers in subtle ways as this, some pro-union members have even poked fun at others because they worked in the cafeteria before transferring into the pressroom. How do you think these individual's will vote?

The Newsday contract that we provided contained the "Successors and Assigns clause under section 29 to PROVE that the contract is "Legally Binding" no matter who takes control of the company.

You must win an election first, then see if the company will agree to the contract, you have a very long way to go before you reach your goal. Time will tell how the new owners of Newsday will treat the pressmen's contract, just pray Dean Singleton doesn't buy Newsday. What if Newsday signs a contract with transcontinental, they will build a new printing plant and burn the contract, as everyone in operations at Newsday will be terminated. And legally binding means nothing, the corporations in America tell our government what to do, no one's watching your back or mine, so I do appreciate your efforts on my behalf.

In closing, I hope the union defeat isn't as lopsided as it has been in prior elections.

Eddie

Thanksgiving at the Los Angeles Times

As many of you are aware, the pressrooms at Olympic and Orange County will be churning out the largest daily newspaper of the year for the Times, to be published tomorrow. This means the men and women of the Operations Departments will be at the newspaper, and not with their families, but we are compensated well for missing the holiday. Nonetheless, we would rather be home with our families.

Six or seven years ago at the Olympic Facility we were treated to the worst Thanksgiving meal I have ever experienced at the Times, cold pressed turkey that tasted terrible. When Mark Kurtich was made aware of the situation at Oly, everyone was treated to two special meals at our facility; he even brought in a special chef to prepare the meal.

Without a doubt, today’s meal will be tasty, as it has been over the last six or seven years.

Thank you Mark.

Iraq Thanksgiving

U.S. soldiers serve food to fellow soldiers as they celebrate Thanksgiving Day at a U.S. military camp in the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Thursday Nov. 23, 2006. (AP Photo/Mohammed Ameen, Pool)

Things to be Thankful For.

1) My children and grandchildren.

2) Living in Southern California.

3) Good health.

4) Continued employment at the newspaper.

5) Did I mention living in Southern California?

What are you thankful for?

Blogger Protections Granted by California Courts.

The California Supreme Court has made a ruling yesterday that protects bloggers.

Internet users and providers cannot be held liable for posting defamatory material written by someone else, the California Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday.

“The prospect of blanket immunity for those who intentionally redistribute defamatory statements on the Internet has disturbing implications,” Justice Carol Corrigan wrote for the court. But, she added, immunity “serves to protect online freedom of expression and to encourage self-regulation.”

Monday’s decision was consistent with holdings by many federal appeals courts and one other state high court. “The courts are now uniform,” said Ann Brick, who represented the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California in the case.

Los Angeles Times Article: Ruling limits Internet liability

Vote No

Mark Kurtich is like us, he answers to his boss, as we do, so redirect your anger to the publisher, or better yet, the CEO of Tribune. The Internet is the real culprit here, taking subscribers away in droves, and advertisers as well.

Advertising revenue was down another one percent for the Tribune Company last month, so if the company does nothing, it could end up as many companies have, in bankruptcy court. With the creditors dividing all the assets of the company to satisfy the negative cash flow.

I cannot see the point in having another union election at the Times, what can the union do for us?

Ask the printers at the New York Times how the union saved their jobs, or better yet, the printers at the San Francisco Chronicle, and the printers that once produced the Daily Breeze.

We all know what happens when Dean Singleton buys a newspaper, everyone is handed a pink slip in one hand, and a job application in the other. And most of the newspapers he has purchased are union papers.

The union supporters have said they want a contract that will guarantee certain criteria the new owners of the Los Angeles Times will be forced to honor, do you really think the company would agree to such demands?

I will be voting no when the union election arrives, as I hope you will.

N.Y. Times rebuffs offer for Boston Globe

Jack Welch and others seen seeking exclusive negotiating rights for paper

By John Spence, MarketWatch
Last Update: 12:37 PM ET Nov 22, 2006

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- New York Times Co. has declined a proposal from a group of Boston businessmen, including former General Electric Co. Chief Executive Jack Welch and advertising executive Jack Connors, to buy the Boston Globe, the Globe reported Wednesday.

Continue Reading

When Comedy is not Funny

The incident at the Laugh Factory last Saturday has been on my mind the last few days, so I thought it time to chime in.

For those of you that read my blog daily, and friends and family that know me well, I frequent many comedy clubs on a weekly basis. So naturally I have seen my fill of hecklers in the crowd, they are usually young men, with many drinks of alcohol under their belts.

The manner each comic keeps the hecklers in line vary widely, some comic’s walk off stage, others have brought the hecklers on stage, and some just ignore the hecklers all together.

At the Pasadena Ice House, security steps in to quiet the heckler, if prompted by the comic or if the loud mouth is disrupting the show.

This brings to mind the night I brought my daughter Kristine to the Ice House; we were seated in the front row, which means you will be picked on by many of the comic’s. On this particular night the headliner stepped out onto the stage and looked at my daughter and myself, then back at the crowd. He then stated to me “You must take a lot of Viagra to handle such a young girlfriend”.

Needless to say, the crowd was on the floor laughing, but Kristine turned a bright shade of red from being in the spotlight, and yelled out to the audience “He’s my father”.

Jeff Garcia sometimes goes to extremes when it comes to heckling the crowds, my suggestion for the shy types, sit as far away from the stage as you can when being entertained by Jeff.

My dates and myself have been poked fun at many times in several comedy clubs, which I happen to enjoy. But the jokes about myself could be considered racial to some, and unacceptable in a daily newspaper. I date women of color.

Michael Richards’ verbal barrage at two hecklers at his show was completely uncalled for. As a standup comic, he has endured many a heckler, and should have the experience to handle the situation much differently than he did last Saturday.

But don’t take my word for it, view the video and form your own opinions.

Walter Moore has a great cartoon I would suggest viewing regarding the Saturday night rampage by standup comic Michael Richards'.

Over at Native Intelligence, Bob Baker adds a different spin to an apology.

Let’s hope other comics learn a valuable lesson from Michael Richards’.

Blog Update

I have made some minor changes to the blog this morning, two links have been removed and several new blogs have been added. The font size of the links were increased, to make selection easier.

The Matt Welch link will bring you to his personal blog, and Opinion L.A. takes the reader to the Los Angeles Times blog.

Take Back the Times: Story Conference At The L.A. Times (A Satire)

LA Times Anti-Union Blog

During the last union campaign at the Los Angeles Times, management created a web page with facts as they see it, for the pressmen and presswomen to view. I have been told a blog will be created very soon stating the facts once again.

Here's what Mark Lacter (LA Biz Observed) said about the facts: "Considering that no one knows who will be owning the paper in six months, it's hard to imagine any of those "facts" will be very meaningful."

When the anti-union blog is created, I will add it as a link here.

While we wait for the launch, visit Save Our Trade Blog, and Save Our Trade Web Site.

2006 City Nerd Awards

Greetings Fellow Bloggers, Readers, and Friends -

To ring in the new year, the crew at LA City Nerd (me) is looking to award some nifty awards and prizes. I thought of doing this on my own and just putting out my favorites, but I wanted to broaden the scope and ask others in and around the blog-LA-sphere (hat tip to Mike of Franklin Avenue.blogspot.com) for nominations, too. So check out the post (link is below) for the criteria, and nominate people/sites/projects for one (or all) the of categories. I'll sift through the replies, and put up a few online polls to get final input...

http://lacitynerd.blogspot.com/2006/11/2006-city-nerd-awards.html

I'm hoping to have all nominations in by December 15th, which is creeping up on us rather quickly. I'm also going to be working on getting some awesome prize packs for the winners in addition to their displayable award (and maybe even some prizes for the runner-up). I'll post about that as we get closer.

Thanks for your input and suggestions.<