Saturday 11 July 2009

News vs ads

An astute. but anonymous, Sun reader posted this comment today:

"Remember back in the days when ads were 'pulled' if they clashed with the news content?

"Toronto Sun editors did pull ads from time to time, either due to conflicts with news content or, (and get this), to make more space available for important news!

"For example: if the top story was a plane crash, the paper took it upon themselves to pull any airline ad; if the page had a story of a child's murder, a nearby ad with smiling children was pulled or moved; if a big story needed more space, the first several pages were cleared of all ads.

"That was back when papers cared more for their readers than for their bottom line.

"Remember when Lady Diana was killed, and the Calgary Sun's front page was a big photo of her smashed car ... along with a front page ad for a lawyer offering to sue for car crash victims;

"The Toronto Sun's feature about over-40 yr old women ... side-by-side with an ad for vaginal tightening;

"Sunshine Girl swimsuit feature ... with ad for breast enlargement;

"Story about the death of US marines ... ad for environmental group about the importance of marine life;

"Story about dogs killed (poisoned) in a Toronto park ... alongside a pet food ad offering to keep your pet full of life and showing a photo of a dog;

"Toronto Sun story about two teens killed in car crash ... alongside a car insurance ad.

"Who is asleep at the wheel? Do editors have their hands tied? Do advertisers have control? Does the ad dept overrule editorial? I assume proof readers no longer exist at any newspaper.

"Recall that meeting Quebecor had in Ottawa, just after it took over Sun Media. Charles Cavell, (then president and CEO of Quebecor, after Peledeau Sr. had died), gave the Ottawa Sun, and in fact all of Sun Media, its marching orders. He used his wallet to make his point.

'Nuff said? "

4 comments:

  1. This blog is simply a place to complain about stupid crap. It is what it is. Stop bitching about every last thing. We get it...we're in an odd and evolutionary period of print journalism.

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  2. The blog is a place to point out mistakes that get through because there is no staff left to catch things. Yes, there is bitching on here as well, but this blog serves a useful purpose to those of us lucky enough to still have jobs at this company. This blog lets us vent without fear of losing our jobs. And maybe you should think twice before posting since your post was bitching about stupid crap. :-)
    Have a great time here on this blog. I love coming here every day to see what the latest bit of stupidity is in this company.
    Whoever runs this blog deserves a thanks for putting it up

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  3. >> "This blog is simply a place to complain about stupid crap. It is what it is. Stop bitching about every last thing. We get it."

    Talk about apathy, Anonymous #1. Either that or you've fallen under the spell of PKP to the point wherein such low-quality standards are deemed acceptable.

    How do you sleep at night knowing that this once-fine organization is spiralled into crapdom?

    Kudos to the people on this blog who add a daily dose or two of reality checks. Apparently they care. Anonymous #1 certainly doesn't.

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  4. Tell me ... Why don't you all just get up from your desks, go home and call in sick? Do it all for one day ... Get a set of balls and do something real about our problem or stop whining. Frankly, this blog is sad.

    ReplyDelete