OH SNAP
Mr. Clarey,
As daily publications fade, the opportunities for weeklies such YES! grow, but so do the responsibilities. I take it your publication wants to be taken seriously, despite the occasional overemphasis on boozing, broads, cheesy pictures and columnists like Chuck Norris.
However, any claims at seriousness are undercut by reporter assumptions and mistakes, sloppy editing, little if any newsroom discipline and letting writers, especially those with little training and experience, do whatever they please. As a regular reader, I see this all too frequently.
I’m annoyed too by columns like Mark Burger’s that regularly brown-nose the fi lm department at UNCSA and extol junky, exploitation fi lms being fi lmed by friends in the area. Then there’s his DVD Vault. If that column talked about new video releases, it might have some merit, even though Burger isn’t as good a critic as your last movie reviewer (who actually engaged with a fi lm instead of holding it at arm’s length) and not a very interesting or clever writer. Instead, Burger comes up with comments (some of which seem copied from video boxes and publicity material) of DVDs of little redeeming interest that have been out of years and sometimes (as in a case of a Criterion edition mentioned fairly recently) are already out print. But I digress. I sent these comments to Joe Murphy regarding his article on Washington Perk & Provisions: Mr. Murphy, Your article and picture on Washington Perk & Provisions contains at least four errors.
The most obvious was the cutline on the picture, which clearly shows John but identifi es him as Jayne. This was compounded by the various spellings of the couple’s name. In the third paragraph of the story, you spell it Johnston and then Johnson. Which is it? Not checking the facts, you assumed that Swaim’s Grocery next door sells a “stiffer drink” than wine and beer. This is NOT the case. They do not sell hard liquor or mixed drinks, only beer and some wine. Finally, you took Johnston’s (or Johnson’s) word for it that “the closest grocery stores are three miles away.”
This is not true. Less than a mile away at Parkway Shopping Center there’s a large Compare Grocery Store. Folks like Johnston (or Johnson) may not shop there, as the place caters mainly to Hispanics, but it’s a grocery store all the same. I was in the news business for 25 years as a reporter and editor. Reading YES! and other publications I bemoan seeing reporters blindly print whatever they are told and editors who seem too lazy to question or revise some terrible writing (like the second sentence of the second paragraph of this story) or question and correct errors like the cutline and the various spellings of this couple’s name. More troubling in today’s “reporters” insistence on injecting themselves into their stories. Readers want information, not half a page of what you and your buddies were doing on the way to one of the restaurants you’re writing about, the concert you went to, the press conference you covered, etc. Granted, there is a some leeway in a signed column, but it’s carried too far.
We called reporters who unquestioningly wrote everything they were told “Walking Pencils,” but now I guess you’re Walking Audio Recorders. I have used recorders at interviews, and they are useful to be sure you have quoted someone correctly. But the danger is you just transcribe the audio and insert a little color around it and call it journalism. It’s not. Journalism require thought and editing one’s thoughts. Too bad you and some of the others at YES! are not being taught this. Jim Shertzer, Triad
SBI SHOCKER
The revelations about the SBI’s crime lab are truly disgusting. Everyone involved in wrongdoing should be fi red and put in jail. Maybe our state should have two crime labs so that defense attorneys can have an equal chance. The idea of “innocent until proven guilty” should mean something in our state. Of course in our state suspects and defendants can have their DNA forcibly taken even though they haven’t been convicted of a crime. Apparently we North Carolinians are guilty until proven innocent. Chuck Mann, Greensboro
WYNDHAM FAN
Was there today in the rain with a group of friends. This is one fun, interesting, enjoyable and heartwarming place to go over this weekend. Supporting local economy, local non-profi ts, local everything. Go for the GGO! It was fun, even in the rain and weekend weather should be awesome. Go GGO! Judith Abraham, Greensboro
SUPERIORITY COMPLEX
You know Clarey, you also have been known to spread lies, quite a lot of them to propagate your personal beliefs [“10 best political lies]. The thing I would like to see you do is spend some time in a border town and we’ll see how long your candy-ass lasts! Maybe you should go back to bartending, then the only thing you’ll need to think about is what the next guy is ordering. And by the way, I can fi nd you a good recipe for crow, you’ll need it come this Nov. Signed Your superior Steve Ellington, Greensboro
Mr. Clarey,
As daily publications fade, the opportunities for weeklies such YES! grow, but so do the responsibilities. I take it your publication wants to be taken seriously, despite the occasional overemphasis on boozing, broads, cheesy pictures and columnists like Chuck Norris.
However, any claims at seriousness are undercut by reporter assumptions and mistakes, sloppy editing, little if any newsroom discipline and letting writers, especially those with little training and experience, do whatever they please. As a regular reader, I see this all too frequently.
I’m annoyed too by columns like Mark Burger’s that regularly brown-nose the fi lm department at UNCSA and extol junky, exploitation fi lms being fi lmed by friends in the area. Then there’s his DVD Vault. If that column talked about new video releases, it might have some merit, even though Burger isn’t as good a critic as your last movie reviewer (who actually engaged with a fi lm instead of holding it at arm’s length) and not a very interesting or clever writer. Instead, Burger comes up with comments (some of which seem copied from video boxes and publicity material) of DVDs of little redeeming interest that have been out of years and sometimes (as in a case of a Criterion edition mentioned fairly recently) are already out print. But I digress. I sent these comments to Joe Murphy regarding his article on Washington Perk & Provisions: Mr. Murphy, Your article and picture on Washington Perk & Provisions contains at least four errors.
The most obvious was the cutline on the picture, which clearly shows John but identifi es him as Jayne. This was compounded by the various spellings of the couple’s name. In the third paragraph of the story, you spell it Johnston and then Johnson. Which is it? Not checking the facts, you assumed that Swaim’s Grocery next door sells a “stiffer drink” than wine and beer. This is NOT the case. They do not sell hard liquor or mixed drinks, only beer and some wine. Finally, you took Johnston’s (or Johnson’s) word for it that “the closest grocery stores are three miles away.”
This is not true. Less than a mile away at Parkway Shopping Center there’s a large Compare Grocery Store. Folks like Johnston (or Johnson) may not shop there, as the place caters mainly to Hispanics, but it’s a grocery store all the same. I was in the news business for 25 years as a reporter and editor. Reading YES! and other publications I bemoan seeing reporters blindly print whatever they are told and editors who seem too lazy to question or revise some terrible writing (like the second sentence of the second paragraph of this story) or question and correct errors like the cutline and the various spellings of this couple’s name. More troubling in today’s “reporters” insistence on injecting themselves into their stories. Readers want information, not half a page of what you and your buddies were doing on the way to one of the restaurants you’re writing about, the concert you went to, the press conference you covered, etc. Granted, there is a some leeway in a signed column, but it’s carried too far.
We called reporters who unquestioningly wrote everything they were told “Walking Pencils,” but now I guess you’re Walking Audio Recorders. I have used recorders at interviews, and they are useful to be sure you have quoted someone correctly. But the danger is you just transcribe the audio and insert a little color around it and call it journalism. It’s not. Journalism require thought and editing one’s thoughts. Too bad you and some of the others at YES! are not being taught this. Jim Shertzer, Triad
SBI SHOCKER
The revelations about the SBI’s crime lab are truly disgusting. Everyone involved in wrongdoing should be fi red and put in jail. Maybe our state should have two crime labs so that defense attorneys can have an equal chance. The idea of “innocent until proven guilty” should mean something in our state. Of course in our state suspects and defendants can have their DNA forcibly taken even though they haven’t been convicted of a crime. Apparently we North Carolinians are guilty until proven innocent. Chuck Mann, Greensboro
WYNDHAM FAN
Was there today in the rain with a group of friends. This is one fun, interesting, enjoyable and heartwarming place to go over this weekend. Supporting local economy, local non-profi ts, local everything. Go for the GGO! It was fun, even in the rain and weekend weather should be awesome. Go GGO! Judith Abraham, Greensboro
SUPERIORITY COMPLEX
You know Clarey, you also have been known to spread lies, quite a lot of them to propagate your personal beliefs [“10 best political lies]. The thing I would like to see you do is spend some time in a border town and we’ll see how long your candy-ass lasts! Maybe you should go back to bartending, then the only thing you’ll need to think about is what the next guy is ordering. And by the way, I can fi nd you a good recipe for crow, you’ll need it come this Nov. Signed Your superior Steve Ellington, Greensboro
