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memos

Silence is Sacred at Uptight Writing Space

Paragraph NY is a Manhattan "work space for writers." It's nicer and quieter than your apartment, and don't worry: "Publication is not required for a membership; only serious intent and a strong drive to write." (Required: the desire to pony up $1,400 a year.) However: there will be rules, a recently leaked memo tells us! For example, "If you're wearing heavy or hard-soled shoes, please bring slippers to wear in the writing space." Um, will do. With all these rules, it's like an super-uptight library that you pay out the snout for:
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3:05 PM on Tue Jul 1 2008
By Sheila
5,228 views, 85 comments

Latest by HK_Guy: @benmaimon: also: "You'll get lots of peace and quiet in the grave." - my Aunt Sheila (since deceased) more »

memos

Mediabistro Recruits Freaks To Liven Circus

Freelancer-helping website MediaBistro's upcoming conference, the unfortunately-named MediaBistro Circus, may not be coming along so well: boa-wearing propriestress Laurel Touby recently emailed, like, literally every single person she knows, begging them to register for "two days of inspired programming designed to bring very senior-level media people up to speed on what's happening in digital media." Another bad sign? Hiring circus freaks via Craigslist—on the cheap. More »

1:44 PM on Thu May 15 2008
By Sheila
1,110 views, 19 comments

ruh roh

Whoops! Publishers Lunch Email Gets Personal

Have you ever written a "note to self" about your current job situation? Ever accidentally mailed it to a huge publishing e-mail list? Some people were slightly confused when they received their newsletter from Publishers Lunch this morning. There's a personal message on top! Looks like interview notes, due to the shortcuts and abbreviations. In any case, someone named "Barbara" has been "advising me on an unofficial cpacity as i was looking t play out these two opportunities."

2:37 PM on Wed May 14 2008
By Sheila
4,003 views, 8 comments

Latest by Obviously Not Omniscient: Confidential to htotheomo (wherever you are): this sounds WAY worse than what happened to you. more »

memos

Foo Fighters Will "Call Out a Catering Jihad" if Tour Rider Is Ignored

Being on tour is hard work, and cheapo promoters screwing you out of hotel rooms and serving crappy food at every turn doesn't help bring the rock to the kids. There must be standards! In a document procured by the Smoking Gun, rock band the Foo Fighters' tour rider asks for normal stuff, like a "selection of cereals—unopened. Do not recycle from last night's Dio show." Then, in the following excerpt, we learn how to "think outside the box as we consider the CHICKEN BREAST." More »

1:43 PM on Tue May 13 2008
By Sheila
8,039 views, 94 comments

Latest by Cthulhah Bankhead: This has made me love the Foo Fighters. "The genus of the tater tot" more »

media

How Shaky Is ALM?

Earlier this month, American Lawyer Media laid off 42 staffers across the board. The company is also "scaling back" plans to expand the scope of one magazine, and moving another to an all-digital format, according to an internal memo. One insider says all of the laid off people are gone, but a sense of nervousness still pervades the office. What, lawyers can't afford to buy magazines any more? Cheap bastards. The full memo from ALM CEO Bill Pollak is below. More »

12:17 PM on Wed Apr 30 2008
By Hamilton Nolan
1,344 views, 7 comments

Latest by n/a: I used to work for ALM. It's the WORST company I've ever worked for in my life! One of their line items is "core values," which is just a term to cover up their ineptitude. They absorb good companies and with their more »

newsday

Sam Zell Keeps Up Pretense Of Straight Talk

What's there to say about Newsday? I don't know, I'm not from Long Island. People from Long Island are quite happy with all that beach access. But even with the ocean, writers from Newsday aren't so happy and have been hoping for a takeover, mostly because Sam Zell is an asshole, though occasionally a charming one. Anyway, because Sam Zell is so real , he finally admitted that he's trying to unload the paper. Memo from Newsday publisher Tim Knight via The Observer, after the jump.
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10:48 AM on Fri Apr 18 2008
By rebecca
384 views, 7 comments

Latest by mimigoliath: I'm also from Long Island, so I've worked in Melville (home of Newsday) and it is what hell looks like. And also as an anal-retentive proofreading junkie, it has sooooooo many typos. more »

memos

Gawker Sells Three Sites

Gawker Media Publisher (and acting Gawker Managing Editor) Nick Denton just sent word around that he's sold three sites. April Fool's! Except for real this time! Maura Johnston's Idolator, the music industry gossip and news site, goes to Buzznet—the "music-focused web and social
network" that recently bought Stereogum. Gridskipper, the urban travel site, goes to Lockhart Steele's Curbed network. And Wonkette, Ken Layne's political news site, is now Ken Layne's alone. If you're looking for official comment from us, we think all three sites will be better off under ownership by people who actually care about their respective topics (even though no one should ever buy blogs). Denton's internal email is below, because he's off this morning and why not beat the Observer to running it? More »

10:46 AM on Mon Apr 14 2008
By Pareene
7,740 views, 86 comments

Latest by Gstein: my real question is, how is the database deintegration going to be handled? i've never visited those sites, but is the gawker user db part of the deal? more »

memos

Sam Zell Can Laugh At Self, State of Journalism

Tribune Co. owner and noted asshole Sam Zell's most charming feature might be his sense of humor. Forget about all the cutbacks at the L.A. Times and how he's trying to drop Newsday: He enjoyed the video a Chicago Tribune intern did for the rival Chicago Sun-Times mocking Zell for selling the naming rights to Wrigley Field. That's leadership! Memo after the jump via L.A. Observed.
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10:46 AM on Tue Mar 25 2008
By rebecca
720 views, 4 comments

new york times

Take Your Offspring To Work Day Is Back At The 'Times'

Last year, the Times canceled take your daughter (or son, both genders enjoy a day off from school) to work day. But they had an excuse: Children are annoying. Just kidding, the company was moving. This year, the Times is once again pretending that children are the future. Full memo from one of the first beneficiaries of the program, Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., after the jump. More »

1:10 PM on Wed Mar 19 2008
By rebecca
1,338 views, 28 comments

new york times

'Times' Commuters Forced To Walk Block

Things are so F'ed at the Times. First the buyouts and now they're cutting their late night shuttle van service from the office to Penn Station and Grand Central. The Times says increased safety around Times Square made the cut possible. But gentrification can't hide the truth: The internet age has made shuttle buses irrelevant. Telecommute home! Full memo after the jump. [via Media Mob]
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12:08 PM on Fri Mar 14 2008
By rebecca
1,221 views, 6 comments

evil corporations in action

Departing HR Chief At MTV Networks Had "Great People Touch"

Is this what it takes to sate an angry mob of permalancers? JoAnne Griffith, the HR exec who delivered to the cable network's freelancers the news before the holidays that their benefits were being cut, is out. MTV, which was forced to reverse the cuts after a walkout by non-salaried workers, came out with the usual boilerplate on Griffith's departure. (Really, why do they even bother?) "She's been a phenomenal leader and great champion for MTV Networks,""This is a large, complex company, and with JoAnne’s great human touch and innovative approach to HR, we continue to set a high bar and strive for the best for you," an internal email sent this morning to MTV employees reads. Irreplaceable? No. Replacement Catherine Houser, "has the people skills, innovative ideas, and passion for our company and its employees that we need in an HR leader." Phew. Email and official release after the jump. More »

1:03 PM on Thu Jan 10 2008
By Maggie
1,475 views, 11 comments

Latest by Sargasm: @In Other News...: You column whore! more »

memos

Memo: In Sweeping Policy Change, AP Alerts Staff Britney Is Now 'A Big Deal'

In an internal email issued this afternoon, Los Angeles Associated Press assistant bureau chief Frank Baker notified his staff of a major policy change."Now and for the foreseeable future," he wrote, "virtually everything involving Britney is a big deal." OMG, did you hear? Britney is a BIG DEAL, y'all! Nervous breakdowns are totes the most efficient way to achieve household name status. Memo after the jump. More »

2:20 PM on Tue Jan 8 2008
By Maggie
27,917 views, 52 comments

evil nonprofits

Freelancers Union Is 'Inconvenient Mess Of An Organization' Says One Member

The Freelancers Union is telling its irate members today that enrollment forms for new health plans were sent to their new provider on Monday and that all of its members should have ID numbers by tomorrow. Or maybe not! According to one freelancer, Empire's customer service says that FU "had sent over 'only a handful' of enrollment forms, and that it could be weeks before everything is processed." Another union member tells us just the opposite: Blue Cross will backdate applications so that FU enrollees can visit health practitioners today, should they need to. Confusion! Mixed messages! "Needless to say, the Union fucked up completely," said the same member. Did the Freelancers Union learn nothing after helping organize striking Viacom permalancers last month? Cost-cutting happens everywhere and always will. But the way bad news is delivered is, in large part, how people will remember you as an organization. Quit screwing it up! More »

1:40 PM on Wed Jan 2 2008
By Maggie
1,135 views, 16 comments

Latest by StyleSwag: Okay, they have problems but let me tell you these health insurances are labeled under Organized Crime in my book! I'm a nurse and my husband is a doctor and we can't afford the very healthcare that we provide patients. How's more »

work is 'elle'

Elle Castigates Their Lazy Interns

You might think interning under a coal-hearted Elle editor would be totally fun—long days discussing the Hills really loudly in the office and verbally abusing "freelancer Caragh"! But you'd be so so wrong. Three weeks ago interns received an acerbic 5-point 710-word missive, sent from a BlackBerry! Look guys, Elle's Accessories editor Nina Sterghiou is a "big fan of rewarding people for good work, and giving them more responsibility + interesting tasks, but so far no one has proven themselves capable of handling the basics." And also, Merry Christmas, bitches! More »

3:25 PM on Fri Dec 21 2007
By Joshua Stein
11,158 views, 66 comments

Latest by Pubeinmysoup: @Pope John Peeps II: Wait...we are allowed to poo in fashion? And yes, this is way too nice for a reprimand. Ima be one of them editor bitches that interns/assistants write books about. I'd just bust in on the Hills more »

mixed metaphors

Email: "Let's Go For Greatness," Sam Zell Tells Investors

"It's a great day," newly-minted CEO Sam Zell says in an email to his "fellow investor" on his first day heading up Tribune Company. Mixing his metaphors and going for grandiose, Zell anounces an era in which the Tribune saves not just your soul but our nation's as well. "We will take intelligent risks and reward innovation," he says. "We will tear down bureaucracy and reward entrepreneurial spirit. We will compete fiercely but with integrity." We will use anaphora! We will! We will! We will! Email after the jump. More »

4:00 PM on Thu Dec 20 2007
By Maggie
935 views, 34 comments

Latest by SheWalkedWithAZombie: @Furious_George: @Pope John Peeps II: I wish I could take umbrage at this and chastise you two for being sexist. But unfortunately I cannot. Let it be said that the payoff is that women professors are shown to go easier on more »

Tribune Company CEO Dennis FitzSimons has announced he's stepping down at the end of the year. "I will miss working with you to help achieve the many great things that are ahead for Tribune," he says. New owner Sam Zell, the wildman billionaire who bought the company in April, will replace him as chairman of the board. "It was Sam's creativity, personal commitment and investment which made this transaction possible." Well, yes, his creativity, but mostly his $8.2 billion. [Romenesko]

16 comments

safety first

Bike Racks For All At 'NYTimes' Building—But Are The Stairs Up To Code?

Now that New York Times staffers are all settled in their fancy new building with the indoor arboretum and the finicky windowpanes, we wondered what the company might be doing to impress upon employees that their comforts and convenience remain priorities. As it turns out, the Times HR department wants everyone to know they're still listening. "We recently implemented some changes to better suit the needs of our employees," reads today's in-houseTimes newsletter [PDF link]. For instance! Bike racks are promised! Name plate holders for the copy desk too! Also, in the interest of convenience, staircases are now numbered "on the inside railing on each staircase—now when walking between floors you can easily know your location." Pardon us for saying so, but aren't well-marked means of egress, you know, prerequisites to passing city building and fire codes? We decided to poke around in the code to find out, and hey, how about that! They totally are. More »

3:00 PM on Tue Dec 18 2007
By Maggie
1,366 views, 28 comments

Latest by n/a: Building codes are the new julia allison. more »

explosion!

Chemical Explosion At News Corp. Building; HazMat Teams En Route

New York Post staffers just got word via panic-inducing NYPD email of a "chemical explosion" on the 45th floor of their News Corp. office building. The explosion was "POSSIBLY CAUSED BY OXIDIZERS REACTING WITH ACID," reads the memo. "HAZMAT TEAMS ARE RESPONDING," and several surrounding floors have been evacuated. One person has been injured, according to a story on the Post's website, which identifies the explosion as occurring at 1211 Sixth Avenue, "on the 45th floor of a midtown highrise." This might be one of those times where self-referentialism is acceptable, guys. You'll be pleased and much reassured to know that the fire department "HAS BEEN TOLD NOT TO ENTER THE 45TH FLOOR." Memo after the jump.
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11:58 AM on Mon Dec 17 2007
By Maggie
6,972 views, 21 comments

Latest by veeelchop: isn't HOWARD in that building? that would explain a lot. more »

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