Archive for November, 2005
Dumb and dumbing down
Quality is the key to The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age’s survival. Quality is their foundation - for readers and advertisers. Whatever new technology may bring, broadsheet newspapers will not last unless they are excellent.
Apologies
Sorry about the lack of activity. We’re back in action.
Meanwhile, in New Zealand …
Industrial action is under way at 13 Fairfax-owned newspapers in New Zealand.
About 75 journalists and circulation workers at community newspapers in Auckland and Wellington are taking the action after rejecting the company’s 3.5 per cent pay offer.
Herald sections threatened
Since the launch of The Guide, Good Living and Metro in the Herald in the early ’80s the success of sections has gone ahead in leaps and bounds.
Today there are 16 sections and, on average, at least one supplement a week, plus occasional specials such as The Shed, Scope and Eco. They drive circulation and revenue for the whole paper but this is threatened by the proposed redundancies.
Read the rest of this entry »
Management’s new agenda: cut and run
When in doubt, ditch the underlings and reshuffle the deckchairs on the Titanic. That’s one way of viewing Fred Hilmer’s management style during his seven years running Fairfax. And it’s cost your company dearly.
Newspaper quality is not linked to journalist numbers
Asked at the meeting how cutting staff would impact the quality of the papers, Mr Kirk replied: “We have 900 journalists across The Age and Sydney Morning Herald and I’m very proud and delighted that we can invest in that many high quality journalists.
“There is no question that we have the best journalists, the best editorial staff, in Australia and New Zealand. And that’s exactly the way we want to keep it.
“We have absolutely no intention of reducing the quality of our papers and I have no concerns that that is going to be the case.” (READ MORE)
Lights out for Fairfax
The lights went out at the Fairfax Annual General Meeting today.
Management continued to hold the meeting in almost complete darkness.
The symbolism was apt.
As management talked about the importance of the quality of the papers, they also said that staff cuts would not affect the quality of the papers.(READ MORE)
And as management continued to run the line that things were tough at the metro papers, they also argued that Fairfax has never performed better during the meeting.
Attend the Fairfax annual general meeting
The Fairfax annual general meeting is on Friday November 18
Supporters of quality editorial should meet at 9.30am for 10.30am start
The Sheraton on the Park Hotel
161 Elizabeth Street, opposite Hyde Park, between Market and Park streets.
Subs edited out
Losing subs means a drop in quality and revenue Fairfax editorial management is displaying a worrying attitude towards the production desks at The Sydney Morning Herald.
Sub-editors are asking editor-in-chief Mark Scott how many subs he wishes to lose in this round of redundancies and how he arrived at that number. More importantly how will these desks run after the cuts?
The subbing desks across the paper are already at breaking point.
Fairfax executive excess
The Fairfax annual report for 2005 contains no fewer than four pages devoted to the many reporting, writing and photographic awards earned during the year by Fairfax journalists.
The company loves to bask in the reflected glory of these awards - yet it is bent on cutting at least 65 positions from the workforce that achieved them in order to save money.
That goal is at odds with the litany of excessive payments to executives listed elsewhere in the same annual report.