Belleville Intelligencer managing editor Bill Glisky is trying to encourage his editors and reporters to get more involved with online work.
Last year, we had a tough year at the newspaper. Essentially, half our staff - gone.
I could go into the gory details, but I'd like to keep my job.
From 1991-2009, yours truly was a wire editor for The Intelligencer. Essentially, a wire editor did 90% of the page layout (putting the newspaper together) including pages such as National, World, Business, Entertainment, etc...
By the end of 2009, a great deal of centralization took place in our business. Our newspaper's owner Quebecor, rightly or wrongly, has decided pages like National, World, Entertainment, Business and what-not can be handled by a central office.
Thus all the Sun Media daily newspapers have the same National, World, Lifestyles, Opinion, Entertainment and Business (Money) pages ... and papers like us are responsible for the local content.
Because of these drastic changes, my responsibilities at the paper have changed somewhat.
My current role is "News Editor". Essentially, I man the night shift, beginning at 3:30 p.m. I am responsible for finishing off the local work of the day, begun by Glisky and city editor Chris Malette.
I oversee the design of pages 1-4 which are done at our central page design office in Brockville. I edit the copy and make sure the headlines are correct (I am not batting 1.000 on any of those jobs - we all have the odd error). I also have to make sure that outsourced work on our other pages goes smoothly.
I am also responsible for a lot of our online work, like posting stories and photos to our website (www.intelligencer.ca), our parent company's website (for other newspapers in the chain to use) and to Facebook.
My blog is part of the job, designed to bring more readers to www.intelligencer.ca.
This blog is a combination of personal and work.
I am not trying to cure cancer with this blog and don't expect to bring down Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Watergate fashion here.
At times, you'll read a blog post and ask "What the heck does a videogame or this doofus' love for Tears For Fears have to do with the newspaper?"
Essentially - they don't.
Other times, you will read a blog post here and ask "Why didn't that guy get Eric's last name for the blog post?" Again, it's a blog. I hope readers enjoy the blog and come back, but a blog is not intended to be serious journalism.
unless ...
I am reprinting a newspaper story or the blog post is not a post, but a real story with photos (hopefully).
Sixty words a minute on the keyboard made this post longer than it probably should have been. If you made it this far, thanks.
If you have suggestions/criticisms, a story idea (for the newspaper or blog) or want to recommend some cool music, games or DVDs/Blu-Rays e-mail me: daveintell@hotmail.com.
