If I would have said this in Ithaca, the Ithaca blog-0-sphere would have cracked in half. There would be no safety in the hills of the outer county or in the deepest alternative stronghold on the Commons.
Here it is: I don't hate the Ithaca Journal. In fact, I would defend it.
Some of you veteran readers (Do we have any?) might remember my first blog and how I used to make fun of IJ articles in it. Not so much the copy or style, but the sheer insanity of somethings in TC like the Sundae Wars. Well, I would hope that the new blog (i.e. this one) shows a bit more maturity and understanding that others can read these posts. Not that I refuse to speak my mind, but I have given up on angry rants.
Maybe it was because I began writing for a local paper, but I gained a bit of respect for the IJ in mid 2008.
The paper gets hammered from all sides. Part of this is simple americana. Everyone thinks that the girls from their home town are the hottest or that their city has the craziest drivers. If your local sports team is doing well then, of course, they are the super ultimate best! And if they suck, then the community chorus becomes a sort of gallows humor. There are people in New York City that complain about the New York Times and even this greenest of green reporters understands that newsrooms often serve as a simple receiver for whatever rants the community can create.
In Ithaca, the IJ gets blasted for being too conservative by the Ithaca intelligista and too liberal by the surrounding countryside. Either the paper is right-leaning or left-leaning. As a Gannett-owned paper it is part of overall corporate media and hence another rag in the right's war on information! But as a corporate owned mainstream media publication it is also a part of the left wing media domination! How can both of these possibly be? Pick one! As a former consumer of the IJ, I feel it reports what its key demographics want, but remains limited by all the other burdens on a small newspaper.
Ithaca and Tompkins County support three county wide newspapers. That is incredible and serves as a testament that the entire area wants to be engaged and informed about what is going on. I have no idea about the internal works of the IJ, but being at the bottom of the Gannet food chain makes me feel that they have limited resources. Their beat reporters in outlying towns focus exclusively on the lame social scene out there. I mean, it wonderful that the Slaterville Springs volunteer fire department is having a chicken BBQ, but didn't anything else happen out there? Is it Pleasantville? Then again, these are small towns and regardless of what you think of Ithaca, it is the county seat and the economic/social engine of the county. It deserves adequate coverage. I would not want to be the editor of the IJ and try to turn what is a simple city paper into a regional gazette.
The paper, like all other newspapers, could use more money. However, therein lies the Catch-22. The IJ needs more readers to make more money. But to get more money it needs to feature the better content that attracts more readers. That content costs money that comes from readers. But no readers means no money for content! No readers means no ads and advertising is the cornerstone of any paper's operations.
How do you fix the IJ? I don't know and really couldn't say. From living in Ithaca for six years I can certainly understand why folks can get frustrated about it. I remember an autumn food piece back in 2006 that was about the apple harvest. The piece came from the Gannett wire and originated from an Arizona paper. A wire piece about apples in a CNY paper coming from an Arizona paper is a true WTF moment when you consider that NY is the second largest apple producer in the country. They really couldn't find someone local to do that?
Of course, the paper is available for free online and the Story Chat function has injected a new perspective on the local scene. Whether you love or hate the IJ discussion boards, the paper would be truly inept to take them down.
Obviously, there is bias in this post. When I worked as a reporter in Ithaca/Tompkins County, I never considered the IJ competition. All the papers in TC have their own cadence and demographics and we are all relatively small. Silly to turn the local journalism scene into a Hearst or Murdoch style duel of one-uping. Even though my reporting was brief and fledgling, the position showed me that many readers harbor deep misunderstandings about what a paper is supposed to do or how a journalist must act. So I did gain respect for the IJ reporter that covered my beat and everyone else in Ithaca trying to find a strong voice between left and right extremes. I guess that is not good journalism ethics, but these posts are not journalism. I mean, my most popular pieces are those where I Photoshop the animals in silly hats. Riveting.
So, yeah, I respect the Ithaca Journal.
Peace!
Maybe it was because I began writing for a local paper, but I gained a bit of respect for the IJ in mid 2008.
The paper gets hammered from all sides. Part of this is simple americana. Everyone thinks that the girls from their home town are the hottest or that their city has the craziest drivers. If your local sports team is doing well then, of course, they are the super ultimate best! And if they suck, then the community chorus becomes a sort of gallows humor. There are people in New York City that complain about the New York Times and even this greenest of green reporters understands that newsrooms often serve as a simple receiver for whatever rants the community can create.
In Ithaca, the IJ gets blasted for being too conservative by the Ithaca intelligista and too liberal by the surrounding countryside. Either the paper is right-leaning or left-leaning. As a Gannett-owned paper it is part of overall corporate media and hence another rag in the right's war on information! But as a corporate owned mainstream media publication it is also a part of the left wing media domination! How can both of these possibly be? Pick one! As a former consumer of the IJ, I feel it reports what its key demographics want, but remains limited by all the other burdens on a small newspaper.
Ithaca and Tompkins County support three county wide newspapers. That is incredible and serves as a testament that the entire area wants to be engaged and informed about what is going on. I have no idea about the internal works of the IJ, but being at the bottom of the Gannet food chain makes me feel that they have limited resources. Their beat reporters in outlying towns focus exclusively on the lame social scene out there. I mean, it wonderful that the Slaterville Springs volunteer fire department is having a chicken BBQ, but didn't anything else happen out there? Is it Pleasantville? Then again, these are small towns and regardless of what you think of Ithaca, it is the county seat and the economic/social engine of the county. It deserves adequate coverage. I would not want to be the editor of the IJ and try to turn what is a simple city paper into a regional gazette.
The paper, like all other newspapers, could use more money. However, therein lies the Catch-22. The IJ needs more readers to make more money. But to get more money it needs to feature the better content that attracts more readers. That content costs money that comes from readers. But no readers means no money for content! No readers means no ads and advertising is the cornerstone of any paper's operations.
How do you fix the IJ? I don't know and really couldn't say. From living in Ithaca for six years I can certainly understand why folks can get frustrated about it. I remember an autumn food piece back in 2006 that was about the apple harvest. The piece came from the Gannett wire and originated from an Arizona paper. A wire piece about apples in a CNY paper coming from an Arizona paper is a true WTF moment when you consider that NY is the second largest apple producer in the country. They really couldn't find someone local to do that?
Of course, the paper is available for free online and the Story Chat function has injected a new perspective on the local scene. Whether you love or hate the IJ discussion boards, the paper would be truly inept to take them down.
Obviously, there is bias in this post. When I worked as a reporter in Ithaca/Tompkins County, I never considered the IJ competition. All the papers in TC have their own cadence and demographics and we are all relatively small. Silly to turn the local journalism scene into a Hearst or Murdoch style duel of one-uping. Even though my reporting was brief and fledgling, the position showed me that many readers harbor deep misunderstandings about what a paper is supposed to do or how a journalist must act. So I did gain respect for the IJ reporter that covered my beat and everyone else in Ithaca trying to find a strong voice between left and right extremes. I guess that is not good journalism ethics, but these posts are not journalism. I mean, my most popular pieces are those where I Photoshop the animals in silly hats. Riveting.
So, yeah, I respect the Ithaca Journal.
Peace!
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