Ed Moss named publisher of San Diego U-T

SAN DIEGO – The new owners of The San Diego Union-Tribune announced Tuesday that veteran media executive Ed Moss will become the paper's president and publisher.

Moss, who starts work Monday, most recently worked as president and chief executive of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, which operates nine daily newspapers, including the Los Angeles Daily News.

Before that, he was president and publisher of the Akron Beacon Journal.

His appointment comes just over a week after the Beverly Hills investment firm Platinum Equity completed its acquisition of the Union-Tribune from longtime owner The Copley Press of La Jolla.

Moss said in an interview that he is optimistic about prospects for the paper and the newspaper industry, despite declines in circulation and advertising that have hit the sector in recent years.

He said his priority will be stabilizing the business financially and boosting revenue, in part by focusing on local advertisers who haven't done business with the paper in the past.

Click on the headline to read the full story on the San Diego Uniion-Tribune website.

BLOG NOTE: The Platinum Equity team includes David H. Black, whose company Black Press owns the Beacon Journal, Honolulu Star-Bulletin and dozens of community newspapers, mostly in western Canada. Black purchased the Honolulu Star-Bulletin in 2000 and the Beacon Journal in 2006.

Tribune gets OK to pay$13 million in bonuses

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — The Tribune Co. on Tuesday received authorization from a federal bankruptcy court judge to pay more than $13 million in bonuses to almost 700 employees for their work last year.

Judge Kevin Carey authorized the payments came after Tribune chief financial officer Chandler Bigelow III testified that the bonuses are critical to keeping key managers motivated as Tribune tries to adjust to a tough economic climate for media companies.

"We need to motivate and incentivize the key people who will implement change," Bigelow said. "These are really good people we're talking about. They're the best and the brightest of the company."

The judge was to hear arguments later Tuesday on Tribune's request to make $2.6 million in severance payments to 68 employees, all but two of whom were fired before Tribune filed for bankruptcy protection.

Bigelow noted that proposed bonus payments of $12.2 million to about 670 employees under the company's management incentive program, or MIP, do not include the top 10 executives and represent an average payment of only 38 percent of the target for 2008. He also said total proposed payments for last year are significantly lower than those in the two preceding years.

Tribune also received authorization to pay an additional $1.1 million in incentives to 23 individuals who do not participate in the MIP.

Urgent Request: Check your email

It is really difficult to keep our email address list updated, so please click on the E-Mail List link at left and check your email address to be certain it is correct. If you now have a different email address, please send it. Be sure to list your name and at least your city.

Recently we got bounces on mail sent to Todd Burkes, Mike Clary and Matt Detrich,

Send corrections of your email or others you might see to

hliggett@sbcglobal.net

Harry Liggett
the BJ Alums blog guy
544 N. Firestone Blvd.
Akron, OH 44301-2254
hliggett@sbcglobal.net
330.724.5808
330,724,5808

PD retiree dies in Worthington

Bob Snyder, a former Plain Dealer assistant manager editor, national editor, Washington and Columbus bureau chief, died at his Worthington, OH home on Saturday, May 10. His wife, Pat, found him infront of the TV, the golf channel on.Services are pending.
Source: {PD Alumni News blog)

Former BJ reporter hurt in cycle crash

Report from Jim Kavanagh
Former ABJ metro reporter Oren Dorell, now at USA Today, was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident last week. Please remember Oren in your prayers. His wife, former ABJ copy editor Ginny Knapp, posted this note on Facebook:

It's been a long few days, but I wanted to try to get out the basic information to anyone who has not yet heard:

Oren had a motorcycle accident on Wednesday afternoon on the way to work. He was almost there, and a woman pulled out in front of him to turn left and hit him.

He is at Inova Fairfax County Hospital in Falls Church, Va. He has 4 broken vertebrae in his back, but no spinal cord damage, so he is able to move his feet, legs and arms and has all his feeling. He has compound fractures of his right wrist and elbow, which he has had emergency surgery on to install a "fixator" that holds them in place.

He will have an additional surgery on his right elbow early next week and hopefully also begin physical therapy so he can walk around. Yesterday he was fitted for a back brace and neck collar, so he was able to sit up and eat this morning for the first time since Wednesday.

I'm sorry if I haven't had a chance to call or email all, but we're still dealing with the inital stages of the accident. There is going to be a long period of physical therapy and recuperation. I appreciate all your thoughts and well-wishes.

See you at Papa Joe's or maybe on facebook

Don't forget the Beacon Journal Retirees Lunch at 1 p.m. Wednesday at Papa Joe's Restaurant in the Valley (Portage Trail at Akron-Peninsula Road).

The lunch used to fill a full room at the restaurant, but lately a lone table can accommodate the group. It's as if they were trying to mirror some of the decimated newsrooms hit by staff cuts and layoffs.

Remember, you do not have to be a retiree, a buyout victim or castoff staff member to attend one of these lunches. We would love to see some of the still busy at work BJ types.

Maybe retirees will have to check out the story by Mary Beth Breckendige on Facebook so as not to feel they are completely out of the loop. You will find a few BJ types there --definitely many more than at Papa Joe'e

For our other viewers far and wide, if you need a primer on facebook, check out Mary Beth's story spread all over the front of the Premier section in Sunday's Beacon. Or look at it via Ohio.com. Click on the headline.

Catch you at lunch Wednesday or almost any second Wednesday at Papa Joe's/

Crutchfield to speak to Democrats

Former Beacon Journal pulisher Janes Crutchfield will speak to the Summit County Progressive Democrats PAC atr 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Akron-Summit County Public Library..

Crutchfield\, now a professor at Arizona State UOniversity, will speak about the future of news media. The public is invited. and parking is free in the attached parking deck after 6 p.m.

Tom Giffen's home extensively damaged

CUYAHOGA FALLS: A Cuyahoga Falls home suffered extensive damage after a fire started on a deck and spread into the house at 1870 Deepwood Drive.

There were no injuries. The home is owned by Tom Giffen, a former Beacon Journal sports editor.[who now operates the Roy Hobbs World Series}

Falls Fire Capt. Tim Lombardi said the cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The fire caused heavy damage to the rear of the house and sent heavy smoke inside, he said.

He estimated damage to the house at more than $80,000 and at least an equal amount to the contents.

Neighbors reported the fire about 1 p.m. and Falls firefighters, already working on another call, asked Akron firefighters to assist.

Editors of BJ, PD, Rep bullish on papers

BJ staff writer Bill Lilley’s entire story on the Akron Press Club is reprinted here. Also check out Abe Zaidan's comments on his blog Grumpy Abe.

By Bill Lilley
Beacon Journal staff writer
The Internet isn't going away. Nor are newspapers.

The bullish view of newspapers was shared by Beacon Journal Editor and Vice President Bruce Winges, Cleveland Plain Dealer Editor Susan Goldberg and Canton Repository Executive Editor Jeff Gauger at Wednesday's Akron Press Club meeting at the University of Akron. The topic was The State of Ohio Newspapers.

''They are changing, but they are never going to leave us,'' Goldberg said. ''Our paper and manufacturing costs are huge and we will see some communities without newspapers.

''But you've got 76 million baby boomers and they all have a very high comfort level holding their newspaper.''

Winges said the drop in advertising revenue has forced newspapers to be more efficient.

While the cuts have been painful, Winges said, he believes there is a path for renewed success.

''If you want to survive and be in a unique position, you have to focus on local news,'' he said.

Winges said an example of the industry's willingness to be creative is the Ohio News Organization, a collaboration of the eight largest newspapers in Ohio that shares stories and works on joint projects.

''We are looking toward the future and finding ways to survive, and this is one of the ways,'' Winges said. ''We're all about trying to get good stories to our readers.''

Goldberg said the days when the industry ''basically gave the paper away'' and let the advertisers carry the financial burden may be over.

''A greater and greater proportion of the revenue has shifted to subscriptions,'' she said. ''If you're willing to pay $3.50 for coffee at Starbucks, why wouldn't you pay $2 for a paper?

''We will end up with a smaller group of people, but they will be people who really want the paper and will be willing to pay for the content, which costs money to produce.''

There may be a need to produce stories quicker to compete with the various sources of news, but the editors all agreed that the careful, quality work of journalists at newspapers is irreplaceable.

''The last story we do will be an investigative story,'' Goldberg said. ''Nobody else will do the story the way we can do it with our expertise and resources.

''Google doesn't have reporters at city hall.''

Winges said the Beacon Journal also remains committed to investigative journalism.

''What's critical is that we maintain our independence as a newsroom,'' Gauger said, ''so that we are not beholden to anybody or anything.

''The changes in newspapers are a temporary adjustment to a temporary problem. The content and the size of the papers will continue to change. But I'm in my late 40s and I believe that we'll have newspapers throughout my entire career.''

Click the headline to view this story on Ohio.com

Ssn Diego Union-Tribune cuts 192 positions

SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Union-Tribune conducted a round of layoffs in all departments Thursday, the latest in a series of staff reductions the newspaper and its counterparts across the country have taken in recent years.

The move comes three days after Platinum Equity, a Beverly Hills private equity firm, completed its acquisition of the paper from its longtime owner, the Copley Press Inc.

A total of 192 positions will be eliminated, effective July 6, the company said in a statement. Senior managers told the affected employees Thursday in meetings organized by department. The company said employees will receive transition assistance and termination benefits.

The number of cuts in each department, including the newsroom, were not disclosed.

The 60-day notice is required under federal law for a company the size of the Union-Tribune when conducting more than 50 layoffs.

“These are tough times for the entire newspaper industry, and a time of transition for the Union-Tribune,” said Drew Schlosberg, the company's director of community and public relations. “Any decision to reduce staff is difficult.

“We will be working diligently to make the transition for those affected as easy as possible. ”

The company, which has had several rounds of buyouts and layoffs in recent years, will have about about 850 employees once the staff cuts become effective.

The Union-Tribune, like other large newspapers, has been hit by both declining print circulation as well as a decrease in advertising that has been accelerated by the recession.

Schlosberg said the paper has a late-week circulation (Thursday-Saturday) of just over 300,000 a day, with the daily paper estimated to reach more than 662,000 readers. Its Sunday circulation is 330,000, with a readership believed to be more than 890,000. The Union-Tribune's Web site, SignOnSanDiego, draws more than 3 million unique users each month.

The Union-Tribune won its fourth Pulitzer Prize this year, awarded to editorial cartoonist Steve Breen; and won the top award for general excellence for a large newspaper from the California Newspaper Publishers Association last year.

Post-Dispatch publisher loses $51.8 million

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) -- Lee Enterprises Inc., publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other newspapers, said Thursday that its fiscal second-quarter loss narrowed because of smaller write-downs on the value of its assets.
\
The Davenport-based company lost $51.8 million, or $1.16 per share, in the quarter that ended March 29, compared with a loss of $713 million, or $15.90 per share. Excluding one-time costs, its loss was 7 cents per share.

Revenue fell 20 percent to $198.8 million as advertising sales declined 24 percent. Like other newspaper publishers, Lee has faced wrenching ad declines because of the recession and the migration of advertisers to lower-cost alternatives on the Internet.

Retail ads, the company's biggest segment, fell 19 percent, while classified advertising tumbled 33 percent.

Even online advertising, where many publishers have been hanging their hopes as they shift toward delivering news on the Internet, fell 27 percent.

Lee said it will step up efforts to trim costs while it tries to wait out the recession. It now expects to cut cash expenses by 15 percent to 16 percent, or about $120 million from last year. In March, the company said it would cut costs by 12 percent to 13 percent.

Shares slid 11 cents, or 9.1 percent, to $1.10 in midday trading.

Roger Snell book debunks Babe Ruth myth

Regina Brett is not the only former BJ staffer to win the Bar Association’s Silver Gavel award.

Roger Snell, won a number of awards throughout his 18-year newspaper career,

Snell's investigations of ethical abuses on the Ohio Supreme Court won him the American Bar Association’s top national journalism award in 1992, the Silver Gavel.

The Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers named Snell the Ohio Reporter of the Year in 1992 and 1993, the only reporter ever to win in consecutive years.

Snell, 50, lives in Frankfort, Ky., with his wife Linda and daughters Rachel and Hannah and administers a marketing program called Kentucky Proud that helps farmers transition away from tobacco and find retail markets for alternative crops such as fruits, vegetables and more.

Snell's lifelong baseball passion is reflected in his book “Root for the Cubs: Charlie Root & the 1929 Cubs,”

Before Snell began doing research for his upcoming book “he believed the story.

You know, the one where Hall of Fame slugger Babe Ruth supposedly called what would become his final career home run during the 1932 World Series?

While it’s true that Middletown-born pitcher Charlie Root of the Cubs had served up the fateful home run, his family and many others argue that there wasn’t a called shot by the Sultan of Swat at all.

Snell said researching the book changed his opinion of the famous called shot.

“Anyone who has heard of Charlie Root, well, you just accepted that he was the answer to a trivia question as the pitcher who gave up Ruth’s called shot, but it’s simply not true,” Snell said.

Aside from the compelling look into the 1929 Cubs team and how it earned its trip to the World Series, the book gives personal accounts from Ruth, Cubs catcher Gabby Hartnett and Root dispelling the idea that the Mighty Bambino had called the home run three years later in the ’32 Series.

The fable has it that Ruth, with two strikes against him, pointed to the center field stands moments before hitting a solo home run off Root. Snell’s research suggests otherwise.
The book is published by Wind Publications, an independent small press located in Nicholasville, KY.

Regina Brett awarded Silver Gavel

The American Bar Association has awarded Plain Dealer columnist Regina Brett the organization's Silver Gavel award for her columns on open discovery.

Brett, who also was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for the past two years, will be one of five Silver Gavel winners and two honorable mentions at this year's ceremony.

It will be held a the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on July 1.

The awards are given to media professionals who help foster the public's understanding of the law and legal system.

Last year, Brett wrote numerous columns about how the restriction of open discovery rules, where prosecutors share police reports and records with defense attorneys, affected criminal cases in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.

In March, the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association presented a proposal to the Ohio Asspociation of Criminal Defense Lawyers to allow for open discovery in all counties across the state, and the two sides have since worked on a plan to allow open discovery.

Knight Journalism Fellows Named at Stanford

Twelve U.S. journalists have been awarded John S. Knight Fellowships to study at Stanford during the 2009-10 academic year.

This will be the first group of Knight Fellows selected based on the program's new focus on journalism innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership. During their stay at Stanford, the Knight Fellows pursue independent courses of study, participate in special seminars and work on individual journalism projects. The 2009-10 program marks the 44th year that Stanford has offered fellowships for professional journalists.

The 12 U.S. Fellows will join eight from other countries who were announced in April. Financial support for the U.S. fellows comes primarily from an endowment provided by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Following are the 2009-10 U.S. Fellows and their principal areas of study:

• Veronica Anderson, editor in chief, Catalyst Chicago.
  Anderson plans to work towards a platform that leverages the principles of social entrepreneurship with the mechanics of search engines to deliver public school information more effectively to urban audiences.
• Krissy Clark, reporter, American Public Media, San Francisco.
  Clark will focus on geographically aware journalism, cataloging available technologies, studying potential new revenue streams, and creating models for merging geospatial technology with journalism.
• John Duncan, senior consultant and head of predesign, Garcia Interactive, Tampa, Florida.
  Duncan will focus on a working prototype of a browser and a mobile phone application version of an audio-newspaper.
• Maureen Fan, Beijing bureau chief, Washington Post.
  Fan will study the challenges facing journalism today and explore a searchable, interactive guide that will inform and support foreign journalism in the future.
• Andrew Finlayson, director of digital content and business development, Fox Television Stations, Chicago.
  Finlayson will study how to apply entrepreneurial evaluations and concepts to lead sustainable innovation in journalism.
• Teru Kuwayama, freelance photographer, New York.
  Kuwayama will focus on creating a South Asia reporting web site that incorporates social networking technology, to promote information sharing among journalists, policy makers, military personnel, aid workers, academic experts, and others.
• Christine Larson, freelance writer, Sacramento, California.
  Larson will focus on creating networks and other tools to help independent journalists navigate the media landscape.
• Peter Lewis, freelance editor and writer, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
  Lewis will seek to identify sustainable, scalable business models that can support quality journalism in the digital age.
• Geoffrey McGhee, multimedia editor, Le Monde Interactif, Paris, France.
  McGhee will research and develop data visualization tools for online journalists.
• Andrew Purvis, former Berlin bureau chief, Time Magazine.
  Purvis will develop a prototype for a web site that links editors and writers around the world to enhance foreign news coverage.
• Susanne Rust, reporter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  Rust will focus on the array of technologies available today to enhance journalistic data mining and investigative reporting.
• Gabriel Sama, senior consultant, Innovation International Media Consulting Group, San Antonio, Texas.
  Sama plans to explore digital journalism projects using multi-platform publication: the web, cell phones, billboards, videos and audio.

The program received 166 applications for the U.S. fellowships and 132 applications for the International fellowships.

Remembering May 4: They meet again

Beacon Journal photogratpher Paul Tople and staff writer Bill Lilley today. provided a great story on the May 4 anniversary of Kent State University shootings. The piece unfortunately got showed to the community section front because page 1 was devoted to the LeBron James MVP celebration.

The story:

Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer John Filo and his subject, Mary Vecchio, were reunited Tuesday at Kent State University.

The last time he saw her on the campus was through the lens of his camera as he took his historic picture on May 4, 1970, after the shootings on campus that left four dead and nine wounded.

Filo, then a senior photojournalism major, is now photography director for CBS in New York. Vecchio, then a 14-year-old runaway from Florida, is a respiratory therapist in Florida.

The two were the featured speakers at Monday afternoon's 39th commemoration of the May 4 shootings. The two-hour program on the Kent State Commons, the site of the student demonstrations, was organized by the May 4th Task Force.

Click on the headline to read the full story

A blog note plus links to May 4 arcxhives

Photographer Paul Topple was a senior at Kent State University in the spring of 1970. He was working part time for the Beacon Journal and was associate editor of the Kent State yearboojk. He helped cover the shootings on May 4.

See Collection of Paul Tople photos

See Chuck Ayers photos and cartoons

Chronology by KSU li brary

Listing of KSU collections on May 4

Free Press, WWJ to launch TV show

The Detroit Free Press has formed a unique partnership with CBS-owned WWJ-TV, Channel 62, to launch a 5-7 a.m. weekday program that will offer heavy doses of weather and traffic updates, as well as news gathered by Free Press journalists.

The new program will be called "First Forecast Mornings" and will include Free Press Express news segments.

"We're more than a newspaper, we're more than a Web site. We're an information provider on many different channels, and television is just a natural evolution for us," said Paul Anger, Free Press editor and publisher. He added that the partnership with WWJ "is considered unusual, if not unique anywhere."

Mike Brookbank, who will anchor the Free Press news reports, said the program will break the mold of traditional TV broadcasts by offering smaller bits of news with more frequent weather and traffic reports -- information he said early risers with little time want.

Brookbank, a Free Press employee, said he'll deliver a summary of top headlines about every 15 minutes and will note how viewers can find more information at freep.com or in that morning's newspaper. He'll highlight exclusive Free Press investigations, news, community highlights and behind-the-scenes reporting from top sporting events.

With the new broadcast, WWJ and the Free Press will be entering a market with long-running news programs and aiming to sway viewers to a new broadcast.

"It is a challenge to get people to change their habits," Brookbank said. "You know that you have to deliver a product that people are looking for."

Paul Prange, director of programming and community affairs for WWJ, said the program will be tailored to the kinds of content people want most in the morning, including constant updates on road conditions with traffic reporter Randy Bhirdo and weather forecasts by meteorologist Lori Pinson.

"It's weather and traffic without waiting," Prange said. "We're really just trying to deliver the base information people need."

During the news segments, Brookbank will shift live at times to the Free Press newsroom via a webcam and talk to freep.com editors about the morning's developments and what readers are saying on the site.

As well, Pinson said she and Bhirdo plan to keep each update fresh and different as weather and traffic changes.

"We're just really preparing you for your work day," she said.

13 seconds, 33 years ago: 4 dead, 9 wounded

This report can be found on Akron News Now. The boldface lines indicate links provided there. Click on the headline to go to the article.

It only took 13 seconds. Four dead. Nine wounded. 39 years ago today, a group of National Guardsmen stood near the Pagoda in front of Taylor Hall and fired dozens of shots into a crowd in the Prentice Hall parking lot.

Dr. Jerry M. Lewis had worked at KSU for about four years when the unforgettable moments of May 4, 1970 unfolded at 12:24 p.m. "Having been in the Army, I knew immediately that they were real bullets because you don't see smoke when they're firing blanks," he says. "I dove behind some bushes and took cover, which took me out of the line of fire."

After the gunfire settled, he says many students believed the Guard had fired blanks. That's when he moved up and pointed to Sandra Scheuer's body and said, "No, those are real bullets."

LISTEN to Lewis detail his memories of May 4

Lewis said that the gunfire came from less than half of the 70 Guardsmen who stood at the top of the hill. "Of those who did fire, half fired into the ground or into the air."

WATCH a 47-minute documentary on May 4 via FactualTV.com.

Lewis has one memory from that day that has really stuck in his mind. "I saw a gurney coming down with a body on it -- I think it was Allison Krause, one of the slain. I grabbed two female students and pulled them to my chest and said, 'You don't want to see this.' The gurney went by." Six months later one of the students thanked him for doing that.

Lewis and a colleague have written a book that highlights the events of May 4. "Kent State and May 4: A Social Science Perspective" will be printed in its third ediition in 2010. A chapter of that title is available online and provides a detailed timeline of May 4 and the days leading to the shooting.

LISTEN to Lewis describe the book

Allison Krause, William Schroeder, Jeffrey Miller and Sandra Scheuer were all killed that day. The incident sparked national attention and even a hit song.

WATCH a CNN video via YouTube that highlights the 30th anniversary back in 2000:

Beacon Journal staff wins 10 state awards

Beacon Journal staff report
The Akron Beacon Journal won 10 awards in the annual Associated Press Society of Ohio newspaper competition Sunday in Columbus, including first place for community service for its 2008 series, The American Dream.

Other first-place awards went to Rick Steinhauser, best graphics artist; Ed Suba Jr., best feature photo; and former Beacon Journal staffer David Giffels, best news writer.

Other Beacon Journal award winners were Rick Armon, second place in explanatory reporting for his work on evictions and third place in the business writer category; Mike Rasor, third place for blogging; Mark J. Price, third place for headline writing; Betty Lin-Fisher, honorable mention for business writer; and Marla Ridenour, third place for sports feature writing.

Sixty-six daily newspapers submitted 2,908 entries in the contest, which judged news and sports stories, features, editorials, columns, graphics and photos from 2008.

General Excellence awards for 2008 went to the Columbus Dispatch, the Canton Repository, the Sandusky Register, the Marietta Times and the Wapakoneta Daily News.

The Cincinnati Enquirer won the First Amendment Award for outstanding accomplishment in pursuing freedom of information with its campaign to show how society could be affected by restricted access to public information.

Books for Africa to feature Dawidziak, Shoman

The Largely Literary Theater Company will present a program of Animal Tales at the Books for Africa Library Project’s annual fundraising dinner. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 16, in the St. Bernard Church Social Hall.

The church is located in downtown Akron, at the intersection of Broadway and State Streets. Parking is available at the University of Akron lot opposite the church.

The Books for Africa Library Project is a non-profit organization that helps communities set up libraries in rural Africa. The project has established libraries in Ghana and Liberia.

Largely Literary co-founders Sara Showman and Mark Dawidziak will perform a two-part program of animal fables and humorous sketches for all ages. The first half features Showman in the guise of Sara the Storyteller, relating animal stories and legends from different cultures, continents and centuries. She then turns the stage over to Mark Twain (Dawidziak), whose selections will include “The Long, Low Dog,” “The Story of the Old Ram” and “The Higher Animals.”

The May 16 dinner and play are free, but donations will be collected. This is the second consecutive year the Largely Literary Theater Company has appeared at the annual Books for Africa Library Project dinner at the landmark downtown Akron church.

They know how to draw--crowds even

Click on headline to go to album of photos

By TOM MOORE
Four former Beacon Journal artists really know how to draw a crowd.

And not just with a pen.

Friday night at the Upstairs Gallery off High Street, the rooms were wall-to-wall with their works and wall-to-wall with people.

Chuck Ayers, Dennis Balogh, Derf and Art Krummel official opened their exhibition with a bang.

And it brought back memories to this old codger (course that’s what old codgers do).

As former BJ folks mingled in the crowd talking with old friends and admiring the masterpieces displayed, Chuck remarked that it was great to see so many old friends turn out and it wasn’t even a funeral this time.

These guys have every right to be proud of their works. They were the backbone of a great family…carefully handing even the mundane task that came their way…like touching up a photo to remove a blemish (of course this was before “the truth in photos law was established in the world of political correct).

On an occasion or two things might have gotten out of hand. One artist, and I don’t remember who, noticed a smug on the forehead of a page one picture. (at that time, photos always went to the art department to size and look over before going to the engravers)

Anyway, the artist used his talent to give the guy a clean face. Unfortunately the photo was illustrating Ash Wednesday.

We went through a period of trying to find a funny to make out reads laugh. And it had to have an accompanying cartoon.

That lasted until somebody complained about a figure in one of the drawings not being politically correct and just might be offensive to somebody.

But if you had a problem such as no photos for a story, they’d come up with a great illustration…and one that clearly told the story.

Many times, when laying out the News and Views section at vacation time, I’d have no idea for an illustration. But these artists solved the problem, taking the story, reading it, and coming up with just the right solution.

So this galleRy is well worth a visit to relive some of the old times and see the “works of art” they’ve created over the years.

Hours for the exhibit are 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. on Saturday.

Opening night of Four guys

Kathy Hagedorn Kortvejesi of the BJ art department has put up a nice album on a visit to the 4 Guys show featuring works of Chuck Ayers, Dennis Balogh, John “derf” Backerf and Art Krummel.

More photos are coming from Tom Moore.

Click on the album to view it.

See our earlier posts on the show

NY Times expected to hike price to $2

The New York Times is expected to announce a newsstand price increase for its flagship newspaper early next week as it races to shore up liquidity amid industry-wide falls in advertising revenues and circulation.

The announcement comes as the New York Times is pushing for cost cuts from the struggling Boston Globe, which the New York Times purchased in 1993 for $1.1bn.

The New York Times set the unions at the Globe a deadline, due to expire last night, to start talks about $20 million in cuts. It has threatened to closes the Globe, which is expected to lose $85 million this year, if it were to fail to implement the cost cuts.

Wholesalers expect the New York Times to increase its price from $1.50 to $2.00 for Monday to Saturday editions and from $5 to $6 on Sundays. A spokeswoman declined to comment.

National Archives recalls 1918 flu pandemic

With concerns of a new flu pandemic, the National Archifes takes a look back at an old one

Washington, DC. . . The following is a document alert -- part of a program sponsored by the National Archives to notify the media of documents and images in the National Archives holdings that are relevant to national holidays, anniversaries or current events. This program, which is based on original records from the National Archives, its 12 Presidential libraries and 13 regional archives, is designed to offer the media an historical perspective on events that occur periodically and to highlight historical antecedents to current political or diplomatic initiatives.

This alert is based on a National Archives online exhibit titled "Deadly Virus, the Influenza Epidemic of 1918," at http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/influenza-epidemic/records-list.html.

This site offers high-res downloads of documents and images from that time.

The influenza epidemic of 1918 killed more people than died in World War I.

Hard as it is to believe, the answer is true.

World War I claimed an estimated 16 million lives. The influenza epidemic that swept the world in 1918 killed an estimated 50 million people. One fifth of the world's population was attacked by this deadly virus. Within months, it had killed more people than any other illness in recorded history.

The plague emerged in two phases. In late spring of 1918, the first phase, known as the "three-day fever," appeared without warning. Few deaths were reported. Victims recovered after a few days. When the disease resurfaced that fall, it was far more severe. Scientists, doctors, and health officials could not identify this disease which was striking so fast and so viciously, eluding treatment and defying control. Some victims died within hours of their first symptoms.
Others succumbed after a few days; their lungs filled with fluid and they suffocated to death.

The plague did not discriminate. It was rampant in urban and rural areas, from the densely populated East coast to the remotest parts of Alaska. Young adults, usually unaffected by these types of infectious diseases, were among the hardest hit groups along with the elderly and young children. The flu afflicted over 25 percent of the U.S. population. In one year, the average life expectancy in the United States dropped by 12 years.

It is an oddity of history that the influenza epidemic of 1918 has been overlooked in the teaching of American history. Documentation of the disease is ample, as shown in the records selected from the holdings of the National Archives regional archives.

Internet readers spend 53 minutes on news

Internet users report a large increase in time reading online newspapers, according to the eighth annual Surveying the Digital Future projected conducted by USC Annenberg's Center for the Digital Future.

In questions about reading online and print newspapers — key elements of the eighth annual comprehensive study of the impact of online technology on America — the Digital Future Project found that Internet users read online newspapers for 53 minutes per week, the highest level thus far in the Digital Future studies.

In contrast, Internet users in 2007 reported 41 minutes per week reading online newspapers.

The project also found that 22 percent of users said they stopped their subscription to a printed newspaper or magazine because they could access the same content while online.

“The most significant trend about how Americans are changing their news reading habits may be found in comparing the use of online media by light users vs. heavy users,” Center for the Digital Future director and communication professor Jeffrey I. Cole (said. “Heavy Internet users spent 65 more minutes per week reading online newspapers than do light users. This raises the question: how will the media habits of the current generation of light users change as online content continues to expand? What ramifications will these changes have for the newspapers of America?

In spite of grim prospects, significant bright spots remain for newspapers, Cole said, including “the greatest opportunities in their existence.”

“For the first time in 60 years, newspapers are back in the breaking news business,” Cole said, “except now their delivery method is electronic and not paper. Since the beginning of radio, newspapers have not been able to compete with broadcasting for delivery of immediate news. But in a digital world, newspapers can compete at least as effectively for breaking news delivery with broadcast media. On the Web, newspapers are live, and they can supplement their coverage with audio, video, and the invaluable resources of their vast archives. And, they already have talented teams of reporters and editors who can deliver the news.

“The key to newspapers’ success,” he said, “will be making bold moves entirely into the digital realm, and building business models that allow them to thrive online.”

In addition, print newspapers still have strong brand identities and reader loyalty.

Click on the headline to read the full story..

Don't miss 4 Guys and other great stuff

Just a reminder on the Four Guys show:


In addition to their own work, we are told there will be original work hanging that was done by Paton Edwards, By Fairbanks, Joe Grace, Bud Morris, Walt Neal and Ned Fhite. There also will be a couple of tearsheets showing Web Brown's work. There is a drawing oxf Joe Louis done by Fairbanks which is great.

That’s all in addition to he work of the Four Guys. Gallery Opening


FOUR GUYS. . . Who used to Work at the Beacon Journal But Don't Anymore
Featuring the work of Ayers, Balogh, Derf & Krummel

OPENING RECEPTION (open to the public): Friday, May 1, 7 pm to 10 pm
Wine, beer & nibbles.
Free parking in the Main Library parking deck on High St., two blocks from the gallery


Upstairs Gallery, in the Musica Complex
Front entrance: 20 N. High Street
Rear entrance: 17-19 Maiden Lane
Akron, OH 44308
ph: 330.252.0988
hours: M-F 7:30 am - 6 pm, Sat 9 am - close


Contact: karyn ludlam @ the gallery
ph: 330.252.0988
wegallery@live.com

NY Times, Guild agree to 5 percent pay cut

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The New York Times Co reached a tentative agreement with the Newspaper Guild of New York on Tuesday to cut union worker pay at its namesake newspaper by 5 percent to save $4.5 million, according to a memo obtained by Reuters.

Under the agreement, which union members still must ratify for it to take effect, workers would get reduced pay through the end of the year.

Non-union employees at the Times newspaper and other New York Times Co properties had their pay cut earlier this month.

The Times's management rebuffed a Guild proposal to guarantee that there would be no layoffs during the period that the pay cut was in effect.

"Our agreement achieves most of the safeguards we wanted," New York Guild President Bill O'Meara said in a statement. "But it will not erase the possibility of job cuts ... even though management tried to sell us their proposal as a way of avoiding layoffs."

The Times announced the cost cuts in March, along with 100 layoffs, as part of an effort to save money as it faces declining advertising revenue and hundreds of millions of dollars in debt. At the time, executives said the pay cuts would help avert as many as 80 job cuts.

A Times spokeswoman was not available for comment.

Click on the headline to read the full story,.

PD retiree Ray Hart dies

Ray Hart seemed to have spies everywhere.

"He had a scoop every day," said Bill Hickey, Hart's longtime partner in covering TV and radio for The Plain Dealer. "He drove the Press nuts."

Hart died April 14 at Fisher Titus Medical Cen ter, near his home in Nor walk. He was 80.
Hart spent about 32 years at The Plain Dealer, starting as a school sports reporter and winding up as a features copy editor. But the big, quiet, cheerful man was best known for a long stint in between with TV and radio.

He was born in North Canton and graduated from Hoover High School there. He spent a few years living in Canal Fulton and working for his father's meat and meat locker business.

"Ray hated every minute of it," his wife, the former Joan Dimpsey, recalled Tuesday.
Hart briefly studied undertaking in Indiana, then came home and found his life's work. He covered the region's acclaimed school sports for six years with the Canton Repository and several with The Plain Dealer.

Then he covered TV and radio with equal enthusiasm. He hit it off with touchy stars such as Dorothy Fuldheim and went fishing with a few of them.

In a sometimes slovenly profession, he favored a tie and jacket. He also smoked a pipe for many years. The doctor finally told him to cut down. Hart quit cold turkey.

He broke another longtime habit last year. He missed his first Ohio basketball championship in 56 years."He thought 55 was a good place to stop," said his widow.

Hart retired from The Plain Dealer in 1993 and edited stories for the Sun Newspapers.
In 1997, the couple moved to Norwalk to be near their daughter, Karen. There he wrote and announced for WLKR FM/95.3 and edited the bulletin of First Presbyterian Church.

Great followup on the layoffs

On the day it laid off dozens of journalists at its Chicago paper, Tribune asked a bankruptcy court to approve $13 million in bonuses to nearly 700 managers, directors and others. It also asked permission to resume severance payments to individuals who left Tribune before its Chapter 11 filing in December. : "These motions are likely to get media attention."

Here’s the lead on followup story.

Chicago Tribune parent Tribune Co. today filed motions in Delaware seeking U.S. Bankruptcy Court authorization to resume severance payments to individuals who left the media company before its Chapter 11 filing in December, as well as to pay discretionary incentive bonuses for 2008 to nearly 700 managers, directors and others.

Tribune Co.’s top 10 executives would not be part of the managerial pool that would split a little more than $13 million in bonus money, which the company considers part of the would-be recipients’ annual compensation as part of the normal course of business.

The median award would be $9,500 and the average award a little more than $18,000, with 84 percent of the recipients receiving payments of less than $30,000 and 70 percent getting less than $20,000.

Earlier Wednesday, before the motion was filed in anticipation of a May 12 court hearing, the Tribune Co. flagship paper Chicago Tribune reduced its newsroom staff by 53 in response to economic conditions and industry changes.

Click on the headline to read all the story.

When a friend wins a Pulitzer

This bit stolen from the blog of former BJ type Dave Wilson who writes about a friend winning a Pulitzer this week:

Old friend pulls down a Pulitzer

Jim Schaefer was one of those guys you knew way back when, in high school or college, that you just knew was going places. Smart, funny, talented, all-around good guy.

Yesterday Jim was recognized as all that and a little more: Pulitzer Prize winner.

I knew Schaef back in the day at the Lantern, our little college newspaper at Ohio State, or as then-President Ed Jennings liked to say, THE Ohio State University.

Another Lantern alumnus, cartoonist Nick Anderson, won the Pulitzer a couple (five, maybe?) years ago. The Lantern was unusually blessed with talent then: Terri Farell, Melissa McCoy, Bob Payne, Ken Torisky, Dennis Willard, Kevin Kellems, Doral Chenowith, Beth Castrodale, Justice Hill, Mitch Wilkinson, Kirk Buckley. I could name two dozen more, I’m sure.

Jim was well-liked and respected then, and that much has not changed in 20-some years since. He has a few gray hairs (don’t we all, those who still have full heads of hair?), and that Pulitzer sure will look good on his resume.

A lot has happened in between. There was that ugly strike at the Detroit newspapers in the 1990s that threatened Jim’s career (and a lot of others’ careers as well) just as he was really establishing himself. My employer, The Sun News, sent a “scab” writer to sister Knight Ridder paper the Free Press to cover pop music. Those hard times were followed by a roller coaster ride for the industry. A few years later Knight Ridder sold The Freep, then Knight Ridder sold out altogether.

Schaefer’s prize, shared with M.L. Elrick at the Free Press, was for uncovering the scandal surrounding former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who got caught last year in a lie about, um, some extracurricular activity with his aide and a few other unsavory things. It’s a high-profile example of text messages being somebody’s undoing.

Sometimes, good guys do finish first.

Chicago Tribune cuts 53 -- less than reported

The Chicago Tribune today reduced its newsroom staff, a response to the economic downturn and changes in the media business model.

The exit of 53 editorial employees is part of a paper-wide cost-cutting effort. Tribune Editor Gerould Kern said in a letter to staff that cuts are part of a newsroom reorganization that “will focus us more clearly on our core mission” going forward with a newsgathering team of around 430.

“With today’s actions, we are making the leap to a newsroom structure that we believe is sustainable barring further significant declines in advertising revenue,” Kern wrote. “While some are leaving now, others will join the newsroom over time as we invest in new skills necessary to grow in the future.”

The Chicago Sun-Times and Crain’s Chicago Business last week reported that the Tribune cuts would be far more severe.

These reductions are just the latest at the Chicago Tribune, which was said to have around 670 newsroom positions 3½ years ago. That’s about the time the newspaper industry’s revenue peaked according to statistics from the Newspaper Association of America.

Click on the headline to read the full story in the Chicago Tribune

A new role for Akron in communications

ConnectAkron.org is a site you might want to keep an eye on.

After two years of planning, the City of Akron in partnership with OneCommunity and the Knight Center of Digital Excellence are beginning the build out of a wireless network that will serve between 80,000 and 90,000 Akron residents and over 30,000 downtown workers. The coverage area will include the University of Akron, museums, all three downtown hospitals and neighborhoods in North Hill, East Akron and Highland Square and may require the purchase of a wireless router/signal booster to achieve maximum signal strength.

Connect Akron links the wireless corridor to the rest of the digital world.

Wi-Fi has the ability to transform the everyday lives of businesses, hospitals, educators, visitors, students, and residents. Imagine transforming Akron through the endless possibilities of universal access.

Connect Akron focuses on closing digital divide and finding the opportunities and applications to shape Akron's future positioning Akron as a role model for communities around the world. The wireless corridor is an integral part in connecting Akron to the global economies of today as well as enhancing healthcare and education services and improving public safety. Although the Connect Akron wireless network is not up and running yet you can keep updated on the progress of the project by subscribing to the ConnectAkron blog.

Now they are calling us a leaky tub

We need to sue. (but there's no chance of collecting)

Knight Ridder is now being called a “leaky tub.”

Knight Ridder did not create the mess that caused 31 to loose theisr jobs at the News & Observer. See this note from the filed of Jim Romenesko at Poynter Online:

A mock front page created for the 31 Raleigh News & Observer staffers who are leaving the paper today explains that the RMS McClatchy -- one of the largest newspaper steamships in the world -- "was welded together from the hulls of several old steamships, including a leaky tub called the RMS Knight Ridder." Eventually, the steamship hit an iceberg and began to take on water. "Capt. Gary asked for volunteers who would like to go for a swim and then extended the plank."

You can click to get a PDF copy of the mock page from our online storage site.

Also you might want to see a NewsObserver blog.

Retired Columbus Dispatch photographer dies

Don S. Mathews, age 88, passed away Monday, April 20, 2009 in Newark, Ohio.

He was born October 7, 1920 in Hopedale, Ohio to the late Reuben and Dora Clemmer Mathews. He was employed by the Newark Advocate for eight years and the Columbus Dispatch for 25 years. He was a member of the Elks, Southern Ohio Arts Council, Ohio News Photographers Association, Inland Daily Press Association and a World War II Army Veteran. He was the first newspaper journalist in Ohio to be granted permission to take pictures during court trails. He also received two honorable mentions by the Look Magazine National Sports Photography contest.

He is survived by his identical twin brother, David Mathews of Newark, Ohio; brothers, John Mathews of Tiffin, Ohio and Robert Mathews of Cleveland, Ohio; also surviving are several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, James Mathews and Franklin Mathews.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 25, 2008 at the Eisnaugle-Lewis Funeral Home with burial to follow in the Fairmount Cemetery with military graveside services being conducted by the Disabled American Veterans chapter 45. Friends may call Friday, April 24, 2009 from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. at the funeral home. Condolences maybe emailed to www.e-k-lewisfuneral.com.
[Beacon Journal, Akron, OH, Tuesday, April 21, 2009, page B7, col. 1]

Bloggers have become the Fifth Estate

This is just for our BJ retiree bloggers:

There are more bloggers than bartenders in America today, an article in the Wall Street Journal today reports.

In America today, there are almost as many people making their living as bloggers as there are lawyers. Already more Americans are making their primary income from posting their opinions than Americans working as computer programmers, firefighters or even bartenders.

Paid bloggers fit just about every definition of a microtrend: Their ranks have grown dramatically over the years, blogging is an important social and cultural movement that people care passionately about, and the number of people doing it for at least some income is approaching 1% of American adults.

The best studies we can find say we are a nation of over 20 million bloggers, with 1.7 million profiting from the work ,and 452,000 of those using blogging as their primary source of income. That's almost 2 million Americans getting paid by the word, the post, or the click -- whether on their site or someone else's. And that's nearly half a million of whom it can be said, as Bob Dylan did of Hurricane Carter: "It's my work he'd say, I do it for pay."

Forget about huge, sweeping megaforces. The biggest trends today are micro: small, under-the-radar patterns of behavior which take on real power when propelled by modern communications and an increasingly independent-minded population. In the U.S., one percent of the nation, or three million people, can create new markets for a business, spark a social movement, or produce political change. This column is about identifying these important new niches, and acting on that knowledge.

This could make us the most noisily opinionated nation on earth. The Information Age has spawned many new professions, but blogging could well be the one with the most profound effect on our culture. If journalists were the Fourth Estate, bloggers are becoming the Fifth Estate.

Lawyers 555,770
Bloggers 452,000
Bartenders 398,090
Computer Programmers 394,710
CEOs 299,160
Firefighters 289,710
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Click on the headline to read the full story

Geewax: Bargains Aren't Luring Skittish Shoppers,

Bargains are out there, but shoppers don't care. reports Marilyn Geewax in a weekend business report on National Public Radio.

Geewax, who has covered the national economy from the Cox Newspapers Washington bureau, joined National Public Radio’s national desk in December, 2008 as the new senior business editor.

Geewax reports that two government reports on consumer prices and retail sales showed shppoers are skittishk.

“The Labor Department, which keeps track of prices, said the Consumer Price Index dropped 0.4 percent over the past year. That was the first time since 1955 that the government recorded a 12-month price decline.

“Some of the bargains included gasoline, airfares, hotel rooms and houses. Grocery prices were especially attractive. Last spring, eggs, milk, corn, tomatoes and lots of other foods were going up in price, almost by the day. It's a very different story now. In March, the cost of food eaten at home fell by 0.4 percent. Some of the price drops were dramatic. For example, in March 2008, a dozen Grade A eggs cost $2.20. This March, the price was down to $1.69.

“A separate Labor Department report showed wholesale prices fell 1.2 percent last month, suggesting that retail prices likely will continue to decline this spring.

“But even with all of the price breaks, shoppers are too frightened to spend money. A Commerce Department report showed retail sales unexpectedly dropped in March for the first time in three months. Purchases fell 1.1 percent, with declines affecting almost every sector, including car dealers, electronics stores and restaurants.

Retailers have been trying to drum up business by offering various incentives and promotions. But customers are hanging back because of their fear of rising unemployment and their reduced ability to get credit.’

Click on the headline to read her report.

Dennis Haas retired in St, Petersburg

The Nevada-Krummels took a cruise in April and stopped by en route to visit with BJ alum / retiree Dennis Haas and his wife, Lois. Haas and Krummel worked together in the art department for about 20 years before Haas took his tech skills to the Knight-Ridder Washington bureau. After about five years there, he headed south where he landed on the IT support staff of the St. Petersburg Times. As it turned out, the visit was a double celebration. It was Haas' last day at the Times. This time he vows to really stay retired!

Art Krummel and Denny Haas

PD, Honolulu Advertiser win Dart awards

The Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, a project of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, today announced the selection of The Honolulu Advertiser, the Clevelant Plain Dealer and National Public Radio International's "The World" as winners of the 2009 Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma.

The Honolulu Advertiser received the Dart Award for "Crossing the Line: Abuse in Hawai'i Homes" (Rob Perez and Kevin Dayton, reporters; Jeffrey Widener, photographer; Russell McCrory, features designer).

This exceptional seven-part investigative series tells the stories of native Hawai’ian women whose lives were forever changed by domestic violence. It charts the failures of law-enforcement, gaps in the safety net for victims, and the far-reaching consequences to victims, their families and the broader community. Through the intimate diary of Daysha Aiona-Aka, a 21-year-old mother who was murdered at the hands of her estranged boyfriend, the series offers a rare glimpse of the dynamics of abuse, as that abuse unfolds.

The Plain Dealer received the Dart Award for the second time in a row for "Beyond Rape: A Survivor’s Journey" (Joanna Connors, reporter; Lisa DeJong, photographer). This brave and brutally honest first-person inquiry tells the story of the author’s rape in 1984 and its aftermath. "Beyond Rape" delves into Connor's past by examining the incident itself, the difficult trial and the subsequent years of coping and denial. It then charts Connors’s spiritual and reportorial search to find the man who committed this crime against her.

Judges described "Beyond Rape: A Survivor's Journey" as bold, groundbreaking, and courageous. They called it a remarkable piece of journalism with language that soared. They commended Connors' ability to turn her reportorial skills on her own sexual assault, and called this special report a major contribution to public understanding of trauma.

Public Radio International's "The World" received the Dart Award for "Rape as a Weapon of War" (Jeb Sharp, reporter; Jennifer Goren, editor), a startling five-part investigative series that examines the brutality of sexual violence in conflict zones and the medical, humanitarian, legal, and political response to it.

Judges called "Rape as a Weapon of War" a powerful, compelling portrayal of human beings who have been violated in the most horrifying ways. They praised Sharp for her clear, focused storytelling and ability to convey the traumatic environments that lead to such dehumanizing acts. They also commended her for the great respect and compassion used in reporting, and for giving the survivors a sense of agency and power by telling of their stories.

Each winning team will receive a $5,000 cash prize. This year the judges made no award in the category of breaking news. The winners will be recognized at a public ceremony on April 28 at the Journalism School.

Other finalists in newspaper and online reporting include:
Atlanta Journal-Constitution – "Chaplain Turner's War"
Boston Globe – "A Girl’s Life"
Christian Science Monitor -- "Forgive, Not Forget: Reconciliation After War"
Dallas Observer – "Terrain of Grief"
Frederick News-Post – "Domestic Violence"
Salon.com – "Friendly Fire in Iraq – and a Cover Up"
Westword (Denver) – "The Good Soldier"

Other finalists in radio reporting included:
CBC, Dispatches – "The 'New' War Zone"
NPR, Day to Day – "Nuns Forgive, But Can't Forget Violent Parishioner"
NPR, All Things Considered – "Detroit's Firefighters Battle Dangerous Ghosts"
National Radio Project, Making Contact – "Gina’s Story"

The Dart Awards are administered by the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, based at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Established in 1995, the Dart Awards recognize outstanding reporting that portrays traumatic events with accuracy, insight and sensitivity while illustrating the effects of trauma on victims' lives and the process of recovery from emotional trauma.

Unions seek freelance journalists

Self-described unemployed dad and freelance writer Aaron Crowe points out an interesting trend: as newspaper guild membership vanishes, some are opening up their ranks to allow in freelancers. One such union is forming in San Francisco's Bay Area, where the California Media Workers Guild could see hundreds of new members.

The proposed changes haven't gotten off the ground yet, but the guild's had one open meeting to discuss the ramifications of such a move. The union's first task will be to negotiate a group healthcare plan, Sara Steffens, an organizer, tells Crowe.

If you're in the Bay Area and want to know more, here's the info for the next meeting:

FREELANCERS UNITE!
By choice or circumstance, more and more Bay Area journalists and writers are going into business for themselves. But leaving your media organization doesn't have to mean losing the protections and benefits of your union. A new unit of the California Media Workers Guild is forming to support independent writers, editors and journalists of every type. From credentials to benefits, working together can help us create better working conditions and a more vibrant marketplace. Please join our next meeting:

Noon, Friday April 24
Third-floor conference room
California Media Workers
433 Natoma Street, San Francisco.

To RSVP, or to be added to our mailing list, e-mail Sara Steffens: modernsara@gmail.com
This group will be run and governed by members, under the auspices of The Newspaper Guild and Communications Workers of America.

Hersheys visit Bandy in Bradenton

Bill and Marcia Hershey with Don Bandy on a visit with Bandy in Bradenton, FL, on Easter Sunday, April 12, 2009. They are standing outside of Bandy's condo

Four Guys art show opens on May 1

GALLERY OPENING!

FOUR GUYS. . Who used to Work at the Beacon Journal But Don't Anymore

Featuring the work of Ayers, Balogh, Derf and Krummel

Open to all.


Upstairs Gallery @ MochaMaiden
Front entrance: 20 N. High Street
Rear entrance: 17-19 Maiden Lane
Akron, OH 44308
ph: 330.252.0988
hours: M-F 7:30 am - 6 pm, Sat 9 am - close

OPENING RECEPTION (open to the public): Friday, May 1, 7 pm to 10 pm

Free parking in the Main Library parking deck on High St., two blocks from the gallery

Contact: karyn ludlam @ the gallery
ph: 330.252.0988
wegallery@live.com

FOUR GUYS. . . Who used to Work at the Beacon Journal But Don't Anymore
Chuck Ayers, Dennis Balogh, Derf and Art Krummel. If you're a longtime reader of newspapers, you'll instantly recognize the distinctive art of these four artists. They couldn't differ more stylistically, but they share a common history: all were members of the Beacon Journal's award-winning art staff.

From May 1 to May 28, Four Guys. . . will be featured in a show at the Upstairs Gallery, 20 N. High St, in the Mocha Maiden and Musica building in downtown Akron. The Four Guys. . . will deliver a wide-ranging collection of current work from the syndicated comic strips and books of Chuck Ayers, the dynamic watercolor illustrations of Dennis Balogh, Art Krummel's eclectic oil paintings, to the offbeat cartoons and graphic novels of Derf.

Early last year, the four artists spawned the idea for a show while enjoying a few beers at a local tavern while they reminisced about the tight-knit, talented staff they were part of through the 80s, 90s, and into the 21st century.

The show will include recent work, original art and tearsheets from the Four Guys' Beacon careers, as well as an historical overview and artwork from Beacon artists of previous eras.

Click on graphic to enlarge for better view

Oral history info on Akron sought

John Tully, an Australian professor.who recently complete a manuscript on the social history of rubber which he hopes will be published soon, has now begun .another project -- a social history of Akron itself.

He returned to Akron last year and spent some weeks in the Beacon Journal archives (He said Norma Hill was very helpful) and also returned to the University archives and the Summit County library.

He has amassed a considerable amount of newspaper and archival material but plans to return to Ohio and is interested in collecting oral history material.

If you can provide any help, please contact him via emal at John.Tully@vu.edu.au

He is:
Dr John Tully
Lecturer in Politics and International Studies
School of Social Sciences
Victoria University
Melbourne,, Australia

Worked at BJ once? Join us!

The Papa Joe's lunch bunch literally is dying off. Regulars no longer are alive. The best attendance I can find going back to January 2006 was 23, and that was for the Sandy Levenson-Bob Pell memorial lunch. We don't want to boost attendance that way.

There are no speeches. We just gather, recall humorous BJ moments, display first-person medical knowledge, lament the latest deaths. It's a lot more enjoyable than that sounds. There's far more laughing than anything else.

If you worked at the BJ and now you don't, join us at 1 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month. You'll be a welcome addition. Even if you work for the PD, join us (heck, most of the PD staff seem to be former BJ people anyway).

And it's not limited to newsroom and printers. Anyone who worked at the BJ, join us.

Anyone is welcome, at 1 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month at Papa Joe's on Akron-Peninsula Road at Portage Trail Extension. Join us before we run out of bodies.

The attendance numbers that I found on the BJ Alums blog:

April 8, 2009 …………………… 5

January 14, 2009 …………… 3

December 10, 2008 …………… 8

November 12, 2008 …………… 6

October 8, 2008 ……………… 8

August 13, 2008 ……………… 9

July 9, 2008 …………………… 23
(Sandy Levenson, Bob Pell memorial)

June 12, 2008 ………………… 8

May 14, 2008 ………………… 12

Feb. 13, 2008 ………………… 11

Dec. 12, 2007 ………………… 8

Sept. 12, 2007 ………………… 16

August 8, 2007 ……………… 7

June 13, 2007 ………………… 12

May 9, 2007 …………………… 14

April 11, 2007 ………………… 15

March 15, 2007 ……………… ??
(no story & photos no longer available)

January 10, 2007 …………… 14

December 13, 2006 ………… 18

November 8, 2006 …………… 13

October 12, 2006 …………… 11

September 13, 2006 ………… 12

August 13, 2006 …………… 15

July 12, 2006 ………………… 10

June 15, 2006 ……………… 12

May 11, 2006 ………………… 11

April 12, 2006 ……………… 11

March 8, 2006 ……………… 13

February 8, 2006 …………… 11

January 11, 2006 …………… 13

The Retirees Lunch Bunch at Papa Joe's

Here are Beacon Journal retirees at the the monthly luncheon on Wednesday at Papa Joe's in the Valley From left (clockwise) are John Olesky, Tom Moore, Dave Boerner, Al Hunsicker and Gene McClellan.

To all BJ-type bloggers

[Cartoon provided to blog by Charles Buffum]

Robert T. Cull, father of Mike, dies at 90

[He is the father of former Beacon Journal staffer Mike Cull.]

Robert T. Cull

CULL Robert T. Cull, age 90, April 4, 2009. Graduate of Rosary High School, The Ohio State University and the University of Purdue. Veteran WW II, US Army Air Corp, awarded 2 Bronze Stars and the Purple Heart. 1997 Catholic Man of the Year and Knight of St. Gregory. Member of Immaculate Conception Church, Knights of The Holy Sepulchre, Bentz Foundation for Foreign Missions, American Legion, Serra Club and St. Vincent De Paul Society. Retired from Northwestern Mutual Insurance Co. Preceded in death by his wife Margaret "Peggy" Cull, daughter Kathleen Cavello, sisters Ruth Cull and Mary Waddell and brothers Edward and Charles Cull. Survived by children, Michael B., Robert E. (Mary), Stephen J., Kevin D. (Rosalie), Margaret M. and Sean D. (Mary Jo) Cull; son-in-law, Dominic Cavello; 12 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild; sister-in-law, Irene Cull; nieces and nephews, Martha, Mary, James and Thomas; other relatives and friends. Friends may call Monday 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. at the EGAN-RYAN FUNERAL HOME, 403 E. Broad St. Mass of Christian Burial Tuesday 10:15 a.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 414 E. North Broadway. Burial St. Joseph Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, friends who wish may contribute in his memory to Immaculate Conception Church.
[Published in The Columbus Dispatch, Columbus, OH Sunday, April 5, 2009]

Ex-BJ photog Detrich wins honors

Former Beacon Journal photographer Matt Detrich, now at the Indianapolis Star, won his fifth Regional Photographer of the Year award.

The win was announced on the Press Photographers blog by Bob DeMay who reported on the results of the National Press Photographers Region 4 Decmber clip contest.

Detrich had three wins in the final month, but really didn't need the points, as he finished 342 points ahead of second place finisher David Stephenson of the Lexington (KY) Herald Leader. Ryan Garza from The Flint (MI) Journal placed third.

The lone Ohio photographers to crack the top ten were Marshall Gorby and Barbara Perenic from the Springfield News-Sun. Gorby placed 4th and Perenic placed 8th.

See DeMay’s report

And here's a story of Ott and Greenfield

After reading Ott Gangl's recollections of him, former Beacon Magazine editor Lary Bloom tells this story:

One day Julius Greenfield came into the Sunday Department in a state of frenzy. "What's the matter, Greenie, I asked?" (We all called the chief photographer Greenie though his close friends called him Lefty). He said, "I can't believe it." I said, "You can't believe what?" He said, "I can't believe what Ott Gangl did to me." I said, "What did Ott Gangl do to you?" He said, "I'll tell you what he did to me. He went skiing and broke his leg."

Lary

Lary Bloom, alive in Connecticut

Here's a reply from Lary Bloom and photo from his website. Please visit his website to learn more.

Hi Harry. I think I'm alive. Although the pictures might prove otherwise. Doing swell, thanks.

Have been living in Connecticut for 30 years, and for the last 10 or so have been working on books, and freelancing (now for NY Times and Connecticut magazine. -- website larybloom.net -- shows me alive, I think.). Still consider days of Beacon mag to be among the most exciting -- loved working with Bierman (alas), Doug Balz, Jim Ricci, Chuck Ayers, etc.

Vintage photos: Lary Bloom

Please note well that this is not "the late" Lary Bloom but only an exaggeration. Read the comments below. He has been sent an email which he will hopefully answer to increase our embarassment


Vintage photos from February 1978 of the late Lary Bloom,
Sunday Beacon Magazine editor

Photos provided by Charles Buffum. Click on photos to enlarge for better view.

BJ art staff circa 2000

This is a poster of the Beacon art staff, circa 2000. The poster was made as a goodbye gift for Terence Oliver.

Top row L to R: John Backderf, Kathy Hagedorn, Art Krummel

Middle row: Rick Steinhauser, Rickey Brinson, Dennis Balogh

Bottom: Phil White, Deb Kauffman, Brian Shellito.

Not pictured: Dennis Earlenbaugh.

The only ones left are Kathy, Steinhauser and Deb. Brian is a sports layout guy.

[Thanks tp derf who sent the poster]