Monthly Archives: February 2008

A thimble-full

Posted on February 27, 2008 by admin

A couple decades ago, an editor at the Detroit Free Press was sent to a seminar on ethics in journalism. When he returned, someone remarked approvingly on the cause of his absence, journalistic ethics being a sacrosanct concept heavy on … Continue reading →

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A PAPER paper? How nuts is that?

Posted on February 24, 2008 by admin

Everybody knows newspapers are dead. Conventional wisdom says if the paper newspaper isn’t dead yet, it will be a goner soon, lying supine in the ultimate newspaper morgue. Who would deny it? Why, it’s well-known that newspaper circulation is down, … Continue reading →

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Joel’s water taxi

Posted on February 21, 2008 by admin

I’m so embarrassed. I can’t believe I did this. I should go hide somewhere. But instead, blogger that I am, I feel compelled to confess. Publicly, digitally, electronically. The deed I perpetrated cannot be undone. Here it is in a … Continue reading →

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Free Press recycling plan

Posted on February 19, 2008 by admin

I know what they say about imitation being the sincerest form of battery. I meant “flattery.” I felt mildly battered — I mean “flattered” — Sunday, Feb. 17, when my wife told me the Detroit Free Press had run its … Continue reading →

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The Future of Newspapers, 2.0

Posted on February 16, 2008 by admin

Here is the speech I gave on Saturday, Feb. 16 at the Oakwood Common Senior Residence in Dearborn on “The Future of Newspapers”: There are three themes to my talk this afternoon. First, although I’ve made my living as a … Continue reading →

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Pantaloney

Posted on February 12, 2008 by admin

Bloggers get a bad rap. They get that bad rap from journalists who, it seems, claim some kind of official credential because they call themselves, well, journalists. Most of the journalists I know cash a paycheck cut by some official, … Continue reading →

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Free Press cover-up?

Posted on February 9, 2008 by admin

If there is indeed a Detroit Free Press cover-up (as the mayor claims) in Detroit’s everlasting text message scandal, it is one Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick won’t enjoy hearing about. He’ll probably scream it’s illegal. Since when, as the mayor claims, … Continue reading →

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What’s good for the goose,…

Posted on February 9, 2008 by admin

Ain’t so hot for the gander. Friday was Christine Beatty’s last day as Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick’s chief of staff. She resigned following the furor kicked up in the so-called text message scandal. Beatty had an affair with hizzoner and … Continue reading →

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An investigation you’re not likely to see

Posted on February 9, 2008 by admin

There was a time when it was not cool for one company to monopolize an industry. If a business gets too big and controls too much of its market, it may get some unwanted attention from the feds. We have … Continue reading →

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Speaking of betrayal

Posted on February 8, 2008 by admin

Who’s signing Sharon McPhail’s pay check? City of Detroit? Who’s she working for? Kwame, right? She is Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick’s general counsel, according to the newspapers I read. Why should city taxpayers foot the bill to represent him? This whole … Continue reading →

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