The Toronto Sun marked its 36th anniversary today with a "thank you readers" column by veteran staffer Lorrie Goldstein, who has always held the tabloid close to his heart.
Lorrie, while not a Day Oner, knows what the once feisty, unpredictable newspaper used to be and what it could be again if given the staff and freedom to do so.
Since Nov. 1, 1971, there have been more journalistic thrills and spills at the Sun than at your average broadsheet newspaper, and as Day Oners have told TSF, it has been quite the ride.
(TSF doesn't have all of the e-mail addresses for surviving Day Oners, so if you didn't get an invite to share your thoughts about putting out that first edition, please e-mail us.)
There is more optimism about the future of the Toronto Sun today than 365 days ago, when most of the in-house news had to do with cutbacks, firings, layoffs, buyouts and resignations.
It quickly became a dark and gloomy Sun as Quebecor savaged 333 King Street East. Armchair pundits were suddenly talking about the Toronto Sun likely to be the first of the four major Toronto dailies to bite the dust.
But feedback from the newsroom in recent weeks has been more optimistic, with good feelings about Lou Clancy returning as editor-in-chief and the appointment of Michael Sifton, former Osprey chief, as Sun Media's CEO.
Several reporters are being hired; there has been a call from Sifton for more local news; unsigned editorials have returned to speak to readers as a unified voice; the quality of writing by most of the columnists who hang out in the newsroom has been stellar.
Other ideas to rejuvenate the Sun:
Lure Max Haines out of retirement (or hire a clone) for that much-missed Sunday Sun crime fare; return Page 6 to an offbeat news and gossip hound; revive the rewrite desk and staff it with journalists who know 40-plus word leads are not tab fare.
In a nutshell, provide readers with stories and columns that are not common Internet fare. Make them want to buy the Sun for its original, well-researched stories and columns and exclusive photographs.
So Happy 36th from TSF. We hope to see you out and about for years to come.
Lorrie, while not a Day Oner, knows what the once feisty, unpredictable newspaper used to be and what it could be again if given the staff and freedom to do so.
Since Nov. 1, 1971, there have been more journalistic thrills and spills at the Sun than at your average broadsheet newspaper, and as Day Oners have told TSF, it has been quite the ride.
(TSF doesn't have all of the e-mail addresses for surviving Day Oners, so if you didn't get an invite to share your thoughts about putting out that first edition, please e-mail us.)
There is more optimism about the future of the Toronto Sun today than 365 days ago, when most of the in-house news had to do with cutbacks, firings, layoffs, buyouts and resignations.
It quickly became a dark and gloomy Sun as Quebecor savaged 333 King Street East. Armchair pundits were suddenly talking about the Toronto Sun likely to be the first of the four major Toronto dailies to bite the dust.
But feedback from the newsroom in recent weeks has been more optimistic, with good feelings about Lou Clancy returning as editor-in-chief and the appointment of Michael Sifton, former Osprey chief, as Sun Media's CEO.
Several reporters are being hired; there has been a call from Sifton for more local news; unsigned editorials have returned to speak to readers as a unified voice; the quality of writing by most of the columnists who hang out in the newsroom has been stellar.
Other ideas to rejuvenate the Sun:
Lure Max Haines out of retirement (or hire a clone) for that much-missed Sunday Sun crime fare; return Page 6 to an offbeat news and gossip hound; revive the rewrite desk and staff it with journalists who know 40-plus word leads are not tab fare.
In a nutshell, provide readers with stories and columns that are not common Internet fare. Make them want to buy the Sun for its original, well-researched stories and columns and exclusive photographs.
So Happy 36th from TSF. We hope to see you out and about for years to come.
I certainly miss the Max Haines crime stories. I enjoyed them so much, and now it is just not the same. I would love it if they would begin that again or get him back!
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