[Valin]

From “The Bleat”
http://www.lileks.com/bleats/archive/07/0507/050707.html

“What makes a newpaper great”
Good question, isn’t it?

I’m not going to answer it yet, because it would make my announcement seem a little self-serving. Yes, friends, it’s finally happened! Synergy! Synthesis! Brand consolidation! In a move that was as welcome as it was unexpected, I’ve been moved – you could almost say promoted – over to the StarTribune online division.

I’ll be developing new content, both video and audio, as well as blogging throughout the day in a new, improved, evolving Bleat! History buffs will relish the new “Then and Now” feature; podcast fans who want something new to hear on the way into work may enjoy my new “Constant Comment” feature, in which I read the stories and offer small editorial asides (think the MST3K approach, applied to a newspaper, spoken aloud.) Since the production costs on the podcast are nil, we’ve lined up some unusual sponsors who otherwise might not be able to afford print ads. (Comic book stores, online merchants, start-up sites, and other niche clients.) The video stuff I can’t quite describe yet, but I know the objective: get the clips into YouTube and beyond, with the StarTribune logo embedded in the corner for all to see.

Diner? Yes. Weekly. And perhaps a Joe-Ohio type serialized online novel, set in Minneapolis, using the old Star newspapers from the 30s to drive the plot; it’ll be a way of promoting the new deep archive feature that makes the entire history of the paper, and hence the community, available as a searchable online resource.

In short, it’s everything I’ve been looking for. All these worlds are mine, except Europa! There are union rules about that, I gather.

Hah! Just kidding.

That didn’t happen.

As it happens, they’ve killed my column, and assigned me to write straight local news stories.

Really.

My column will end a week from this Friday. (There’s a series of pieces I can’t wait to write.) After that, it’s just-the-facts-ma’am - and I’ll no longer be telecommuting, either. This means I will start burning my share of hydrocarbons like a good American. Hell, I may leave the vehicle running all day outside the building just to make up for lost time. Maybe I will put a green roof on the car to balance things out. Some turf, some switchgrass. It’s murder on the paint but we all must do our part.

Would it matter if you contacted the paper? It very well might. Here’s the reader’s rep’s page.

If I can get my column back and / or a nice big Online gig, that would be a satisfactory conclusion. Reporting on internet start-ups as opposed to joining an internet start-up – eh, not so much.

And let that be the last time the phrase “not so much” is used here. It’s old. We’ve all had a jolly laugh, but I heard Jeff Foxworthy use it on an oil-change commercial, which is like the UN-approved international standard for something being over.

[Incorrigible]

OMG!

[johnny7]

Further proof of the national-socialist bent of the American left.

[aculeus]

What idiots.

[DManA]

More proof that the hard left is humorless.

[visualops]

It’s almost as if they heard his chat with HH and his various suggestions in the past and just said, “Nah, let’s shoot ourselves in the foot instead”.

[mplsconservative]

How much do you want to bet that Katherine Kersten’s op-ed column is the next to go?

The Red Star is so myopic, they just don’t understand why they’re losing readers. Give these folks a shovel and they just keep on digging.

Couldn’t happen to a nicer paper./s

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The only paper deader than the Strib is the PP. Don’t count on any recruiting calls from that side of the river...

[visualops]

I suggest anyone interested write/call/email. If we can't change their minds, perhaps we can annoy them alot ;^)
This is my letter

I read with great dismay this morning about the Star Tribune's decision to end James Lileks' column.
As a daily reader of Lileks' own blog, The Bleat, and a frequent reader of the Quirk, even though as you see I am not a Minnesotan, I was astonished to learn of this completely senseless choice by the Tribune.
Mr. Lileks is an absolute gem. With a knack for combining common-sense with a sharp wit and deft turn-of-phrase, Mr. Lileks is among a small group of must-read columnists; whether he's writing about personal foibles or the politics of the day.
What a shame the Star Tribune has decided to throw away an opportunity, to not only satisfy "the locals" but draw readership from literally all over the globe, by not following Mr. Lilek's own brilliant suggestions:

"Yes, friends, it’s finally happened! Synergy! Synthesis! Brand consolidation! In a move that was as welcome as it was unexpected, I’ve been moved – you could almost say promoted – over to the StarTribune online division.

I’ll be developing new content, both video and audio, as well as blogging throughout the day in a new, improved, evolving Bleat! History buffs will relish the new “Then and Now” feature; podcast fans who want something new to hear on the way into work may enjoy my new “Constant Comment” feature, in which I read the stories and offer small editorial asides (think the MST3K approach, applied to a newspaper, spoken aloud.) Since the production costs on the podcast are nil, we’ve lined up some unusual sponsors who otherwise might not be able to afford print ads. (Comic book stores, online merchants, start-up sites, and other niche clients.) The video stuff I can’t quite describe yet, but I know the objective: get the clips into YouTube and beyond, with the StarTribune logo embedded in the corner for all to see.

Diner? Yes. Weekly. And perhaps a Joe-Ohio type serialized online novel, set in Minneapolis, using the old Star newspapers from the 30s to drive the plot; it'll be a way of promoting the new deep archive feature that makes the entire history of the paper, and hence the community, available as a searchable online resource.

In short, it’s everything I’ve been looking for. All these worlds are mine, except Europa! There are union rules about that, I gather.

Hah! Just kidding.

That didn't happen.

As it happens, they've killed my column, and assigned me to write straight local news stories.

Really."


I urge the Star Tribune to rethink its strategy, and give Mr. Lileks broad powers to develop the online content your readership, and the rest of us, are clamoring for.


Sincerely,


name/address

[rod1]

Clearly part of the paper’s live or die (the latter being chosen) with Franken.

[Xenalyte]

Someone needs to let Hugh know it’s spelled “Aha!”, with one H.

[Bigoleelephant]

If I had the dough and was running for something, I would hire him as my speech writer so fast it would make his head spin.

[timsbella]

Scoundrels & fools. For shame. I am a long time Bleat fan, and when I need a laugh the Institute for Official Cheer is the link I follow. Gnat’s dad is A-1 and belongs above the fold, bold type.

[rhema]

Canceled my Strib subscription over a decade ago; hope to see a bunch of present subscribers bail out. Let's keep that subscription-hemorrhage rate on the rise.

[LibFreeOrDie]

Thanks for posting the news.

I fired off a terse email to the “Reader Rep.”

[dangerfield]

I never expected my amazement at the stupidity of the dino-media to last this long. I’m still not used to how dumb these people are.

[B-Chan]

James Lileks and I correspond occasionally, and although we’ve never met I can confidently say that he is one of the finest people I know. The Strib is going to regret this foolhardy decision.

[Dan Lacey]

[Constitution Day]

The Bleat
The Quirk

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