The station discovered this blog and didn't like it.
That means I don't have to go in and train the new traffic anchor any more. (My temporary on-air stint ended last week. I had been asked to stay and help train the permanent hire.)
While glad not to have to wake at 3:24 a.m., I'm disappointed that someone would find what I write here offensive. That's not my aim. I'm just telling stories; that's what I do. I even withheld some of the better ones to protect the innocent and the only person I have deliberately poked fun at on this blog is its author.
And he's not that bad a guy, other than his occasional penchant for referring to himself in the third person.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
Wow.
I'm willing to bet they have NO written policy about such communications.
I'm willing to bet they NEVER asked about any websites you ran or maintained.
I'm willing to bet they NEVER did a cursory Google search of your name prior to bringing you in to freelance.
I'm also willing to bet they can do whatever they want, because you are not on contract.
Which is still completely beside the point.
Their failure to realize that you have a site where you share and even promote the freelance work that you do is enormous.
And it speaks volumes about why traditional news outlets are being rapidly disintermediated by the internet.
When the flood comes, you can keep your head dry by sticking it in the sand, but only for so long...
The station needs to worry more about what's on its air than what's on some guy's blog.
The worst thing you said was that the new girl needs a lot of training. Does ch. 10 think no one else has noticed that after seeing her on TV?
You were being gentle.
I went to a new media workshop where it was suggested being upfront about these things with bosses. Also, don't have bosses as Facebook friends. Indeed, your embedding of their news feed actually allowed me to view their program since my TV can't pick up their signal. So, they can continue with their 20th Century ways with the result their relevance will continue to diminish.
Funny, my rabbit ears don't get WTSP out here in Riverview, either! If ever inclined to watch its news, I have to do it online too.
While I didn't go out of my way to trumpet my blog, it wasn't because I had something to hide; it was because I didn't think anyone cared.
The blog has never been a secret. I write under my own name. Its background is full of pictures of me. I mention JohnMcQuiston.com at any opportunity. (Click here to see it now!)
Ike is correct that no one at the station ever asked about its existence. And I had been writing about my experiences doing the traffic at there since my first appearance as a fill-in -- almost three years ago.
The irony is that this is the station that puts the prefix "multimedia" before every job title in its newsroom. A news photog is not a news photog. He is a "multimedia photojournalist."
Its reporters are expected to report on the air and online with the material for the website meant to be more than a warmed over rehash of what they put on TV.
But they better not blog!
I sleep well knowing this: I did the best I could for them every single day I was there, including the last three when I did whatever I could to help Danielle.
I wonder .. if you had left a Personal Journal on your desk and someone from work stopped to read it ... would you have been let go?
Is it worth talking to an attorney?
Hi Willo,
First of all, thanks for visiting. I have dropped by Willo's Web from time to time.
The difference between a personal journal and my blog is that the blog entries are written the knowledge that anyone can read them.
No, my separation from the station is not worth legal action. First, I was actually employed by a company that provides the traffic service to the station. My bosses there told me I'm still in good standing with them.
Second, the job at WTSP had nearly concluded anyway. The substitute work I would have done filling in for the new girl would have constituted only 10-15 days a year.
We're not talking about a big financial hit here. Mostly I'll miss seeing the people I worked with and, as mentioned, disappointed that anyone would mistake what I write for malice.
I usually write with tongue firmly embedded in cheek. It will help if people read the results in the same spirit.
Post a Comment