Laughing at the idea your average poster knows an editor in real life 
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I guess that means I’m above average. Old boss used to be an editor. Miserable person. I will not hug.
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Graham is a glorified blogger. And hey, that’s not necessarily a slander as I’m one too (or at least was for a while), and there’s a place for that. But the reason I call Graham a blogger is that the Agusta Free Press is basically just a “digital newspaper” he founded himself, got it just legit-looking enough that he got a press pass, and as soon as he got the press pass he got to apply the “journalist” label to himself. And I get that’s what he is now technically speaking; I claim to be no such gatekeeper of who gets the journalistic blue check. But at his heart he’s still just a blogger, mostly sharing opinions, rumors, and click-baiting moreso than offering any real new facts or scoops.
Ratcliffe just needs to retire. He’s had a couple of instances over the last couple of years where he’s doubled down on some really bad takes or inaccurate scoops, maybe most notably putting his credibility on the line insisting Dex was a done deal, which revealed he wasn’t anywhere near as connected as he thinks he is or claims to be, and then got ridiculously stubborn about refusing to apologize or acknowledge his mistake. Even going so far as to mass-block Twitter accounts who had the audacity to call him out on his bad takes.
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I think it is social media that has created impossible economics for traditional journalism. In the frenzy of shared, “free” content, people don’t stop to think whether a story is well-sourced and accurate. They just want information fast and free. How can journalists compete with that? It has broken down the traditional journalism model, especially at the local media level. I still pay for the online version of my local newspaper, but it’s not nearly what it used to be.
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Think everyone here is basically nailing this one. I really appreciate @newjerseyhoo perspective coming from the traditional media side as well as @StLouHoo coming from the “new/kinda old now” media side.
I came of age at a time when the market was making it’s current shift, and in some ways can say I contributed to it. There was a time when I thought journalism school and earning a weekly column was the epitome of making it. I saw the Wilbon’s of the world and thought that was it. Then quite frankly I realized how hard it was to break into and work your way to that level, and it seemed like a fruitless labor as budgets were being slashed and the first round of media buyouts were taking place. Meanwhile, ESPN had launched PTI and Around the Horn and journalist were exploring new streams of income.
I went to the internet and became a blogger. Thinking that would be a way to build a portfolio and a just get to work. Then I realized you needed clicks/readers etc. (this is before social media). So I linked up with some friends and started one of the first blog networks. We thought we were the Robin Hoods of journalism giving voice to the people allowing young aspiring writers a way to hone their craft gain an audience and build something.
Then came Twitter and the social media age, and what was 200-300 word pieces became 250 character pieces, and the most damning trend began, breaking news. The combination of click earning and news breaking destroyed the ecosystem.
Some guys survive and change, at the low end, we see Graham. At the other end we have the ESPN guys, Woj, and Schefter are nothing more than that at this point and I’d say Schefter has lost buckets of integrity over the last 5 years in an effort to be first.
The other end are the oldheads trying to hang on some way. Ratcliffe falls into this world. I have no doubt he enjoys writing and covering sports esp. UVa athletics. But in his quest to remain relevant he has to employ a technique he’s simply not adept at.
Given the recent changes to social media and the emergence of chatGP and other similar AI technologies I expect we are in for another round of shaking up, add in declining revenues and cost cutting at the major networks, combined with record rights deals. There’s another change coming.
I’m glad to be out of the game and here where I can say/do whatever I want without worry. Although I still enjoy schilling for likes on occasion. Now heart this post, subscribe and leave a comment bellow.
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I’ve been a freelance editor off and on for 20 years. My HS sophomore daughter is now a competition writer and I assists her with editing. 
p.s. - She’s earned about $1500 cash and $4500 in future scholarships so far … Hoo knew? Definitely not me.
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Imagine if we had used decent lineups.
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I’ve got nothing of substance to add to any of the active threads and realize that I rarely post anything of substance, but apparently today is my cake day, and I want to see the little slice of cake next to my name, so I’ll respond to Fresh’s post with an expression of my gratitude for the amazing decade we’ve just experienced. I never thought I would see anything like it in my Wahoo-revenue-sport fandom! Go Hoos! And thanks to all of you guys for making this such a great place to share my love of Wahoo basketball.
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Back at you GMoney. Happy cake day my man. We have the best coach in the country. Enjoy that part
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Thanks, Fresh. So it looks like my cake day might have been a couple days ago but I just got the notification today. So I wasted everybody’s time and missed my cake slice. But I’m still damn happy to be here.
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Only one solution:
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On it as soon as I find my flux capacitor.
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I passed a delorean on the NJ pike on sunday. it was broken down on the side of the road. so, relative to me, it was going back in time.
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When I started at the T-D in 1999 (just when online classifieds were starting to cut out one of the legs of a newspaper’s income stream — retail advertising, classified advertising and circulation), Sunday circulation was ~250,000 and daily was in the 190K range. It had the highest penetration rate for any mid-sized city newspaper in the country. And because of the high penetration, they could charge more than most mid-sized papers for quarter-page, half-page and full-page ads from department stores and others that barely exist now because of Amazon.
The newsroom had more than 150 warm bodies, and the sports desk had Lindquist (UVa), ‘Saps, O’Connor (R-Braves and UofR), Utley (golf), Hallman (racing), Winegar (outdoors), Finnegan, Thornton, and so many more. They also had beat reporters for the Skins and Gobblers.
Today, Sunday circ is south of 50K, there are no business writers. Sports desk is down to four or five. Total newsroom is in the 25 range.
The model, at least for morning papers, is dead. There has been some chatter about bringing back the afternoon (2 pm) blue-streak edition of the News Leader downtown M-F. But it’s not likely. Daily (non-Sunday) print publication will probably cease to exist in the next 2-3 years, if not before.
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Heh.
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Mr Lindquist asked some good questions. He could get you talking in an interview
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He didn’t trust Holland after he felt misled by coach.
Holland had missed Operation ACC presumably for a “family issue.” As it turned out, it had to do with Polynice. And Jerry never forgave him, not realizing that Holland considered his players family, too.
Or something.
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Man that’s beautiful and sad all at the same time. It hurts me to see these local publications reduced to nothing. There’s really nothing that can be done, between most of them being consolidated under one roof, and a changed landscape, they will soon be a memory of the past.
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Reading the sports page in the T-D in high school with breakfast every morning was a top priority back then.
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