TURNING THE CORNER . . . TO BANKRUPTCY
Would it be your proudest moment to declare . . . BANKRUPTCY.
Take this from Freeman Publisher Ira “Fussy” Fusfeld’s blog (www.freemanpublisher.blogspot.com in case anyone actually cares):
“. . . I spoke to the staff this morning. I'll fill in other employees tonight.
I sense relief and enthusiasm. The parent company has turned the corner. We're all looking forward to better days.
Now if only somebody could get the stock market pointed in the right direction ...” – Monday, February 23, 2009 blog entry of Freeman Publisher Ira Fusfeld.
Yup, good old Ira has said the Freeman’s parent company has “turned the corner”. To what you ask? TO BANKRUPTCY.
Then good old Ira blogs away that “if only somebody could get the stock market pointed in the right direction”. Which direction would that be Ira? The one the Freeman’s parent company just was pointed in – to the Bankruptcy Courts.
Knowing several Freeman employees, we haven’t heard from any that are “relieved” their parent company filed Bankruptcy. Would you be relieved if your boss came in and said “Hey folks, good news, we’re bankrupt”.
How can anyone take the Freeman seriously when they consider bankruptcy “turning the corner”. Bankruptcy tends to mean that your creditors get stuck taking less than you agreed to pay them and layoffs often follow. Sometimes it even means complete closure.
Ira’s spin that bankruptcy is turning the corner is absurd. What would Ira say if the Governor held a press conference saying “New York Turned the Corner – we’ve filed for bankruptcy”.
Does anyone take the Freeman seriously anymore?
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11 comments:
Despite their ignorance of what everyone else sees, Ira and Adamis are a significant reason the Freeman is in the toilet.
No. I've spent the last eight years ringing alarm bells about the direction the market was heading and every step of the way the Freeman was fighting for the wrong team. They got what they wanted. Ira must be very proud of himself.
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090226/MEDIA0203/90226049
Why can't they do stuff even close to this?
In answer to the question, nobody respects the Freeman.
Their editorial opinions I could take or leave - those aren't the problem. We all know the editorial opinions are the product of one or two disgruntled arrogant people so let's take them for what its worth.
The problem is the thin, flimsy coverage by an ever weakening paper. They need to do some investigative reporting and hammer some of the conflicts.
What about the MAJOR LAWSUIT in Albany County Supreme Court filed against the County. Kirshcner and Nina Postupack are invovled. The lawsuit is ticking time bomb AND WILL SELL PAPERS - report on it please.
OMG, today's Freeman writes a story about the ORANGE COUNTY hotel tax. DUh, Freeman, you are an Ulster County paper. Who the hell cares about a hotel tax in Orange County. Any Ulster County residents planning on staying in Orange County hotels.
This is a perfect example of the Freeman's reporting a "story" just to fill up space.
Can't you see the Editorial room at the Freeman. The pressman comes in and says "boss, we have 2 column inches left to fill" and the editor goes to www.midhudsonnews.com and says - hey throw that story in, our readers won't care that its about Orange County.
memo to Adamis and Fusfeld: WE CARE.
There are really two issues here. One is the newspaper biz itself, which is in fact hitting a wall all over the country as shown by the fact that the Rocky Mountain News, which was a cross between the good photos of the Daily News and the superb reporting of the NY Times, is closing.
The second is how we happen to like or dislike the Daily Freeman. I grew up here and to me it was marginal to start with and has gotten worse over time. It now has decided that it cannot report on all local news because it cannot upset elected officials who would be upset by such coverage, particularly crime. It's a shame and a crime but that's the way the ink bounces. It is the most timid and yet most arrogant(a witch's brew) group of people running a newspaper imaginable. Their idea of the first amendment is something tacked on to some piece of contemporary legislation. And for this, many of us wish that this news of the parent company filing for bankruptcy will mean the end of this approach for all time. While I may and do share such a sentiment, I doubt it is going to happen. Apparently the bankruptcy filing will allow the turning of a corner and will allow for the same old performance to continue unabated. Most subscribers don't care because they stopped really caring about the community and keep on caring about their own insulated political friends in their own little world and the rest of anyone else be damned. It's just that simple. Everything else is thrown out with yesterday's stale bread.
And let's think about one more thing, along the lines of the common phrase used to describe the usefulness of that paper. I personally don't consume fish every day so that had I subscribed, I wouldn't be able to really USE THE PAPER WELL ENOUGH to justify its expense!! Hah!!
Going back to Anonymous.
Ulster County Politics Blog is gone. Did anyone notice???
Sorry. friends. I ran out of gas ...
I can't believe I'm back here.
http://ulstercountylaugh-in.blogspot.com/
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