Weekly column: Outsource This

My weekly column:

Outsource This: Bombay Is No Boistfort

June 26, 11:06 am

News item -- Several large metro newspapers in California and Florida are outsourcing their copy editing and page design work to India in a bid to save money. New Delhi-based Mindworks Global Media says it provides “high-quality editorial and design services to global media firms ... using top-end journalistic and design talent in India.” The Orange County Register says its local editors would still oversee the process.

 

What is a Chronicle assistant editor to make of such a story when both the publisher and a reporter mention it on the same day? I know my response: a clear, concise and relevant list of the top 10 reasons why my job should not be outsourced to India. (Publisher Dennis R. Waller, are you reading this?)

10. I know how to spell Newaukum, Olequa and Pe Ell without even THINKING about the need to look them up.

9. I’ve yet to mix up Toledo and Tenino in news copy.

8. I can easily explain to a concerned reader whether Mary McCrank’s or Mary’s Corner is the better option, depending on whether that person is hungry for a home-style meal or just wants to get from Matilda Jackson State Park to the beautiful community of Ethel by the fastest route.

7. Although I’ve never been through a tropical monsoon, I’ll never be able to forget the floods of 1990, 1996, 2006 and 2007.

6. In addition to my skills as a journalist, I can also buck hay. Stack it, too.

5. I don’t discriminate based on color. The Black River and the Clear Fork of the Cowlitz are all just water under the bridge to me.

4. I’ve met all three candidates for Lewis County Commissioner -- Bill Schulte, John Penberth and Lyle Hojem -- and I can assure you that what they lack in youth, they all make up for in experience.

3. In a few weeks, if the deer will just stay away from them for more than a few days in a row, I’ll be able to supply a pint of fresh raspberries to anyone in The Chronicle’s executive offices who needs bribing.

2. I may not know any Hindi, but I can speak a few words of Chinook Jargon. (Skookumchuck means “a rapid” or “strong water,” by the way. As someone who has capsized in a kayak on a Skookumchuck River rapid, I have no official comment.)

And the number one reason my job shouldn’t be sent overseas is ...

1. The travel costs would be outrageous for the publisher to check on whether my replacement had fallen asleep with his head on the keyboard.

...

All joking aside, The Chronicle won’t be outsourcing anything (as far as I know.) Still, these are hard times in the industry. In my last column I asked any and all readers to circle the actual words they read in a week’s worth of Chronicles and drop them by the front office. The exercise will help as we look at ways of telling the stories and presenting the important information of our community in ways that are easily accessible and relevant.

So far the first person to respond to my offer is Ira Graham of Randle, who sent me an A section with plenty of circles and even some commentary. Thanks Mr. Graham. I’m still awaiting papers from the rest of you.

...

Parade season has begun in earnest. Last week the Vikings took Rochester by storm, and this weekend marks Egg Days in Winlock. At 11 a.m. Saturday the annual Egg Day Parade will march past the proud chicken statues and the famous egg in Vern Zander Park.

We can expect plenty of people to throw candy from floats. Considering the theme, does anyone throw hard-boiled eggs?

...

For those who like their poultry in a more competitive form, this Sunday is the annual chicken race in Independence, the valley community south of Rochester. The race is open to hens only, although organizers of the race didn’t say why. One can only presume that roosters would be just a bit too competitive and combative, although it’s possible that the hens, after generations of being chased around the barnyard by the aforementioned roosters, are just plain faster.

...

Brian Mittge, assistant editor of The Chronicle, welcomes comments and news tips via bmittge@chronline.com or 360-807-8234.

Hot Enough to Fry an Egg?

I'm awaiting a fax from a member of the Egg Day organizing committee with a list of events for this weekend's big festivities in Winlock. We'll be running a calendar of events for all our big summer festivals this year -- expect to see them in Thursday's A&E section in most cases, although some, such as Egg Days, will run along with a special feature about the town or its festival.

The weather should be good for the 11 a.m. Saturday parade this year, perhaps with temperatures approaching the 90s, so keep your little hatchlings away from hot sidewalks.

News Tribune Editor Promises "Reset" in Wake of Cuts

David Zeeck, the widely respected executive editor of The News Tribune in Tacoma, posted an editorial Sunday discussing how the newsroom has reacted to last week's news of 8 percent cuts. It's a good read about how a strong newsroom is dealing with the shock of losing longtime colleagues due to changing market conditions.

As the week wore on, you could hear conversations begin about how the work will be different – how each of us who remains will have to shoulder a slightly bigger load to fill in the gaps left by the departures.

We’ve already done some of that work. Beginning in January we started a process we call “reset” (as in pushing the reset button on your computer) to rethink how we cover the news as the Web grows ever more important (it now accounts for more than 10 percent of our revenues with more than 857,000 unique visitors to our site in May) and as the staff shrinks slightly.

He compares the dismay to radioactive half-life — each day the pain was only half as strong, but likely to never be the same.

Zeeck ends with a quote from Mark Twain (a former newsman) about the ongoing need for journalism, no matter how bad the economy might get:

“I figure even the people in the north of hell will be curious about what the people in South Hell have been up to.”

Touring the World's Front Pages

One of my favorite sites on the Wide World of the Web is the collection of the day's front pages at Newseum (note that some international papers print pinup-type photos you might not want your kids to see; viewer discretion is advised.) It's fascinating to see how papers around the USA and the planet play the same news events. Most exercise similar news judgement (although some, like The Chronicle, usually go all local on the front page). 

Some papers are trying to shake up the moribund newspaper industry by trying out wild new front page designs. Check out a few:

• The Virginia-Pilot
• The Bakersfield Californian
• The Orlando Sentinel
• The Wyoming Tribune Eagle
• The Excelsior

That list comes courtesy of legendary newspaper designer Tim Harrower, who spoke at a small journalism convention in Seattle this week. Chronicle Executive Editor Michael Wagar and I attended. Read more about what we learned in my column today. 

Longtime Chronicle Columnist Jim Shouse Passes

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of interviewing Jim Shouse and his wife, Naomi, at their elegant Chehalis home. The idea was that I would put together a story about how Jim was facing his final days, after learning that he had an incurable combination of lung and heart problems.

Unfortunately, daily duties as editor intervened and I wasn't able to finish my reporting and write the story. I learned a few hours ago that Jim's condition had rapidly worsened over the weekend. He died Monday morning.

Jim, who started at The Chronicle two years after I was born, left his mark on the newspaper and the community. He was known as a cordial southern gentleman, and even when I tangled with him as his editor over the past nine months, he was unfailingly friendly the next time I called him. 

Shouse was perhaps best known in the community for his weekly column, Sidebars, which was known for its conversational style. He enjoyed mentioning by name the people he met during the week, and he liked to end with a joke he called his "column closer."

With that in mind, I can't forget the last thing he said to me after he walked me to the door following my interview with him. He had asked if anyone had missed his column since his illness forced him to stop writing a few months ago. I told him I had gotten a few calls. 

This longtime newsman, who was facing a certain death sentence, flashed me a big smile and said in his gentle southern drawl, "They'll have to continue missing it."

The Royal Candidates Keep Coming

One day after I wrote my weekly column about a charming raffle ticket saleswoman at Fuller’s, I’ve just met my second royal contender of the week.

This is a rare Friday when I’m home with my family (it’s a sick day). As my kids were taking a nap a few minutes ago, my wife and I heard a sharp knock at the door of our rural Napavine home. I opened it to see a smiling teenaged girl offering raffle tickets in her attempt to be named Princess Napawinah.

“Did you drive yourself?” I ask, and peer down the porch. Well, she came under her own power, at least -- via mountain bike.

We dug out a dollar and purchased a button from young Miss Courtney Lawler. She climbed back on her bike and pedaled down the road to sell more tickets. 

I’m impressed with the kind of industriousness I see in these queen and princess candidates. My congratulations to the parents of these fine young women, and my best wishes to the girls themselves. I hope they can achieve their royal hopes. Even if they fall short in the button sales, I know that people who are willing to work hard enough to pursue this kind of dream will find success in the years to come in whatever endeavors they pursue.

 

And for me, I already know my next endeavor: finding a place on my lapel for all the buttons I’ll be buying over the next few weeks as our summer lineup of festivals comes closer.

Coming Soon to Your Chronicle ... Mark Twain!

Today I had the pleasure of visiting the Edison District home of a true Lewis County original -- Bill Moeller, who will make his debut on The Chronicle's editorial page Wednesday as our new columnist. Moeller's resume is as unexpectedly diverse as it is impressive.

The 79-year-old is a youngster of the Depression era. He was a paratrooper during the Korean War era, a radio station owner in Wenatchee, a Curtis Hill farm owner outside Adna, a Mark Twain impersonator, a longtime Twin Cities radio newsman, a Centralia mayor and city councilman, a bookstore owner, a pilot and boatbuilder, and now a newspaper columnist.

Moeller has bright eyes and a deep affection for our local community. He's a writer, actor, director, book lover (his e-mail moniker is "bookmaven"), wedding officiant and musician. Today, at my request, he performed "Ain't She Sweet" for me on his ukulele and "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" on his chromatic harmonica.

In short, Moeller has a lot to say after a full life that has included some of Centralia and Lewis County's more memorable moments. He's excited to begin his time as a columnist, but not nearly as excited as we are to have him. After all, what newspaper editor wouldn't want Mark Twain writing for him?

Got thoughts on columnist Bill Moeller? Drop me an e-mail at bmittge@chronline.com.