Fresno Famous

world news

here is a a talk on just how much wrold news there is;

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/alisa_miller_shares_the_news_about_th...
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welcome to the future

John Markoff: "Why newspapers still matter"

found this on TED, thought I'd share;

TED
Talks John Markoff: Why newspapers still matter (and why tech news belongs on the front page)

At the EG conference, John Markoff talks about why newspapers still matter -- even in the days of RSS. He gives an inside look at editorial process at the New York Times, and talks about some of his tech stories that should have been front-page news.

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/john_markoff_on_newspapers.html
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welcome to the future

here's an idea from TED about newspaper redesigns

here's an idea from TED about newspaper redesigns helping papers in Eastern Europe increase circulation by 29% (Russia) to 100% (Bulgaria)

Jacek Utko is an extraordinary Polish newspaper designer whose redesigns for papers in Eastern Europe not only win awards, but increase circulation by up to 100%. Can good design save the newspaper? It just might.

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/jacek_utko_asks_can_design_save_the_n...

TED: Ideas worth spreading

Inspired talks by the world's leading thinkers and doers

TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader.

http://www.ted.com
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welcome to the future

I agree with more local news coverage & op-ed/L2E

in-depth analyst of local problems; like homelessness, Fulton Mall
or local interest series, like the Sierra plane crashes (which need 2 follow-up stories; Steve Fossett's & when they find the bodies of the last airmen, Gamber & Mortensen)

The Sierra is a graveyard for aviators who misjudged its dangers — or simply ran out of luck. The Bee and fresnobee.com is exploring the stories and mysteries of lost flights over California's signature mountain range. Follow the series here, and send questions to reporters Mark Grossi and Cyndee Fontana on the Lost Flights blog.

http://www.fresnobee.com/956/index.html
check about 1/3 down the page for all the crash sites on google map, dang, it looks like every Sierra mountain has taken a life
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welcome to the future

Local News is Important - But Expensive

I had an email discussion with one of the Bee staff members. Unbeknownst to me, she said that local news was very expensive and that's part of the dilemma: how to provide local news in a cost effective manner. Like anything else this takes thought. My recommendation was to rely on "cub reporters" and volunteers, for example this blog. I also recommend to layout the reports by the voting districts in the city and county. For example there are seven council districts, and there are so many county supervisor districts. The idea is to assign reporters to each district as their "beat" and report on news for that area. I think this would be very effective.

black and white comics page

going back to a black and white comics page is almost like going back from a large HDTV to a small black and white TV.

I agree with you. The newest

I agree with you. The newest version of the Bee sucks. Not near enough local stories.

nyt /wsj

it's easier than ever to get national news online, through the new york times, wall street journal, etc. it's the local news that i'd rather read in newsprint.
more op/ed and letters, not less.

Smaller Bee is good

After two days with the smaller paper I have to say I like it. Cramming all that stuff onto less pages looks like they have cut out everything except the very best they have to offer. Better quality writing, sharper focus.
Less Letters to the editor, that's ok. Less number of Op Ed writers, that's ok, too.

Yes and no

Typically, when they pull stories from AP and other wire services, it's done by a wire editor (that's probably not the offical title, just one I'm using), and that person probably wears several hats, but they would be responsible for pulling the story, editing it, making sure its appropriate content, etc. In some cases if the story is large enough or has a strong enough local tie, they would assign someone to cover it, pay for travel or whatnot.

Now, this is just from my general knowledge of how newspapers work, not from any specific knowledge of how The Bee works. It would be a good question for the editors I say.

question

famous,
as a newspaperman, can you tell me, does the bee actually employ people that work on national stories or are they just picking up stories from ap & other newswires?

They need to focus more on

They need to focus more on local news. The local news section has gotten smaller and smaller.
Less national and world news and more local.

I am not happy with the changes to the paper either. When my subscription ends I will not be renewing it. The Bee brought this on themselves, by not focusing on what matters.
We want to know what is happening in Fresno/Clovis.

Instead of ending local writer columns get rid of national ones. Keep the local writer writing about local things and happenings.