Ira Fusfeld, Publisher

From Obama to Posada to the Oscars

2012-01-25T11:10:00.003-05:00

*Listened to the State of the Union address driving back from New York City last night. Lots of applause. If you didn't know better, you'd have thought it was coming from the entire House chamber. The partisan divide wasn't evident unless you watched the highlights.

*Sure it was a campaign speech as much as a State of the Union address. All the incumbent presidents to it in the year they're seeking re-election. Whatever you want to call it, it was well-crafted and skillfully delivered. If Newt Gingrich does get the GOP nomination, President Obama ought to take him up on those seven three-hour debates. Obama will more than hold his own.

*Finally bit the bullet the other night after years of muttering under my breath and turned from NBC's Brian Williams to CBS' Scott Pelley for the evening news. Pelley quickly introduces stories and correspondents and gets out of the way. Williams takes too much timing setting up the stories as if he's getting paid by the word. I've been watching NBC News for decades. I'll now watch on weekends when the solid Lester Holt is in the anchor chair. I'll catch Brian Williams when he's on Letterman, where his story telling and sense of humor are better suited.

*Jorge Posada: solid player, good numbers, winning athlete. Hall of Famer? Not quite. Same with Bernie Williams and Andy Pettitte. (Going back a bit more, ditto Don Mattingly.) Not a knock on them to say the closest they'll get to Cooperstown is when they attend the induction ceremonies for Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. (By the way, Joe Torre will likely get in as a manager, but I'd have long ago elected him as a player.)

*New presidents often are judged by their success in the first 100 days. Following that measurement, it's worth pointing out that Kingston's new mayor, Shayne Gallo, is off to an impressive start in the first 25 days.

*As always, lots of deserving people didn't get Oscar nominations. Here are my Top 2:
Patton Oswalt of "Young Adult" (an oft-mentioned name) and Ann Morgan Guilbert in "Please Give". Who? She played the cranky, aging grandma in that film. But she's best known by people of a certain age as "Millie" in the old Dick Van Dyke Show. If you haven't seen "Please Give" (and I'm guessing that's most of you), seek it out. Other wonderful actors in the cast include Catherine Keener, Oliver Platt, Rebecca Hall and Amanda Peet. (Apologies if I'm off a year on this movie. If so, Ann Morgan Guilbert was snubbed last year!)

*By the way, if you haven't caught up to "Shameless" on Showtime, you're missing one of the most entertaining series currently in production. William H. Macy and Emmy Rossum head a fantastic ensemble cast. Macy's character is particularly despicable. It's a testament to his acting chops (and the writers' skills) that he comes off as lovable in a sick sort of way.

Tuesday topics

2012-01-17T15:45:00.005-05:00

*Didn't realize until last week on the "Today" program's 60th anniversary celebration that the great actress Estelle Parsons (an Ulster County resident, don't you know?) got her start on that show, both behind and in front of the cameras. They aired a fun clip of her interviewing Marilyn Monroe. (See accompanying NBC picture of Ms. Parsons on the set in 1952.)

*Political debates would be a lot more illuminating if audiences weren't allowed to hoot and holler at the questions and answers. What little I saw of last night's South Carolina affair was Newt Gingrich playing to a crowd that was decidedly hostile to panelist Juan Williams.

*I respect Bernard Goldberg's work much better on HBO's "Real Sports" than I do on Fox News' "O'Reilly Factor".

*Shortly after arriving home in Woodstock last night, I tweeted a quick warning about slick road conditions due to the just-started freezing rain. Within minutes, Woodstock-based @ColonyOfTheArts replied with word of an accident on Route 212, on which I'd just driven. The social media grapevine is quite something.

*I"ll admit I don't watch much football anymore. But from what little I caught of the Giants-Packers game, I could only conclude that they've changed the rules, thus allowing QB Eli Manning all the time he needed to throw the ball. Put another way, how did Green Bay win 15 games without a pass rush?

*I also tuned in just in time for the last two minutes of San Francisco-New Orleans. Pretty incredible, no? Nice of the coaches on both sides to let their defensive units go home early.

*How come nobody told me about Pad Thai until I had some at dinner last night? Excellent dish. (For the uninitiated, check it out here. I wouldn't ordinarily send you to Wikipedia, but I can vouch for this one.)

*Three of the top six "most viewed" videos among Journal Register Company newspaper websites large and small last week were from the Freeman. They included the top 2: the Kingston-Newburgh girls basketball scuffle and the local woman who objects to the new 9/11-themed movie. No. 6 was the Athlete of the Week from Ellenville, where they obviously must have been running it in a loop at the high school.

*Watching Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveil his Executive Budget for about an hour this afternoon, I couldn't help but remember the years when his father, Gov. Mario Cuomo (remember him?) would provide budget presentations from morning to night. If memory serves me, the first session was for the Albany press corps. The second was for legislators. Then, in the evening, he'd invite publishers and editors to the Executive Mansion. There'd be cocktails, the governor's budget with Q&A, in the relatively informal setting of a large parlor room, and then dinner. We didn't know it at the time, but in some respects, those were the good old days.

Cuomo's speech

2012-01-04T16:14:00.003-05:00

On the notepad while watching the livestream of the State of the State address:

- Gov. Cuomo's speech may have been the most ambitious State of the State I've heard as far as spending is concerned, and that's saying something. I believe he cited $25 billion worth of projects from one end of the state (Buffalo) to the other (a new convention center in New York City) and stops in between (a new Tappan Zee Bridge). And, as always, analysts from one end of the state to the other will offer the standard, but accurate, admonition, "the devil is in the details," meaning let's see how this all figures into the Executive Budget before we get too excited.

- I couldn't help but be struck by how Cuomo and a couple of the other state leaders who spoke before him made reference to New York government's "dysfunctional" past. For the sake of argument, let's agree the "dysfunction" is in the past. (Not sure I'm ready to go that far yet, but OK.) What's interesting to me is how they're willing to admit to "dysfunction" now. Our newspaper was among the first to use that label many years ago to describe the Legislature. As the cries of "dysfunctional Albany" expanded (and were essentially etched in stone by the landmark NYU Brennan Center report), the response from the Capitol was pretty much: "What 'dysfunction'? You guys don't know what you're talking about!" Today they're tripping over themselves to say they're no longer "dysfunctional." Apology accepted.

- Regarding casino gambling, the governor emphasized what many of us have have been pointing out for years: There's already casino gambling in New York (at Indian reservations and more recently at "racinos") and there's casino gambling in surrounding states. (Oh, and who doesn't think the state lottery games aren't "gambling"?) Billions of dollars in casino-spending have left New York. Why this state has had its head in the sand for so long is a mystery. You don't have to morally embrace casino gambling to recognize its fiscal importance. Maybe this Legislature will finally get the message.

- The Legislature likes its own. Biggest round of applause for the new county executives introduced by Lt. Gov. Duffy went to former Assemblyman Mark Molinaro of Red Hook, who's in his first week at Dutchess County executive.

- Several mayors were introduced, but not Kingston's new boss Shayne Gallo.

- The state's congressmen were not individually introduced. But camera-hog Rep. Eliot Engel of the Bronx did get some face time, just as he does when he positions himself on the handshake rail for the president's State of the Union.

- It hardly seemed like a State of the State without former Gov. Hugh Carey, who died in August at age 92.

- There's something efficient about Cuomo giving this address (and last year's, too) in the Empire State Plaza convention center, rather than in Assembly chambers, as had been tradition. The stage, lectern and PowerPoint presentation were business-like. Looked like a corporate event. A piece of me misses the ornate setting of the Capitol. But conducting the event in a more sterile environment than the Assembly hall is a good thing.

No resolutions here

2011-12-30T16:16:00.004-05:00

There will be no resolutions to start the new year. Never made them, never broken any.

Nothing about resolving to lose weight ... which may explain why I'm too heavy.

Nothing about exercising more ... which may explain why I'm out of shape.

Nothing about eating better ... which may explain why I need two arms to carry the takeout Chinese food, even though my wife only eats one small container of it.

Nothing about reducing stress ... not when you've been in the business I've been in for more than four decades.

Thing is, it will be three years in April since I was diagnosed with a treatable form of leukemia. (I know, "treatable" and "leukemia" don't seem like they belong in the same sentence.) I'm in remission and they tell me I'm likely to die from something else. Given my weight, my diet, my stress and assorted minor (so far) medical issues, that sounds like a good bet.

Oh, and did I mention my family history? My mother died at 50, my father at 60. Cancer. I'm 63. Whoever holds the record for longevity needn't feel threatened by me, you think?

I'm not fatalistic as much as I'm realistic. For now, I'm feeling pretty good. I'm working harder than ever, too hard, you might say, for someone nearer the end of a career than the beginning. (This is the newspaper business, after all.)

But family life is good (40 years of marriage to the same woman and we haven't had a disagreement since yesterday; two successful married sons; two wonderful daughters-in-law; a cute-as-a-button granddaughter; and one grand-dog).

I'm fortunate to be living comfortably, if not ostentatiously. And I can afford that takeout food for which I referred.

In other words, I can't complain (although my wife will tell you I do plenty of it).

So we step lively into 2012. Make the most of each day. Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year!

Holiday leftovers

2011-12-27T14:57:00.002-05:00

*The usual routine on Christmas Day is movie and Chinese food. That was the plan again this year, too. But our two Chinese restaurants of choice were closed Sunday. Amazing. We wound up in - of all places - Ruby Tuesday (no, not Ruby Foo) and it was just fine.

*This year's movie, by the way, was "Young Adult" with Charlize Theron and Patton Oswalt. As has been noted elsewhere, Theron's character may be the most unlikeable comedic heroine in Hollywood history. But don't let that scare you. Good movie, excellent performances.

*Another front-line National Hockey League player suffered a concussion this week (Sean Weber of Nashville). The league should be and is concerned about this rash of concussions, starting with the one still impacting the game's No. 1 draw, Sidney Crosby of Pittsburgh. Lots of smart minds trying to figure out what to do. No easy answers, but I'd start by widening the rink. Players are too big for today's ice surface and that means less skating and more collisions. It probably won't happen though, because widening the ice will mean eliminating a couple of rows of prime seats, thus cutting revenue.

*If you have children and grandchildren who live far from home and you're still not "visiting" them on Skype, do yourself a favor and make the connection. (Oh, it does help if you have a computer.)

*This is the last week of the year, unless you're bookkeeping as we do at Journal Register Company and other businesses, in which case it's the first week of the first period (not month) of 2012. It's known as 4-4-5 accounting, which creates 13 weeks in each quarter.

*We'll get our share of snow this winter, no doubt. But for those of us who don't care for snow, look at it this way: It's nearly the end of the December and we haven't had any yet (save for that freak storm in October). Each day without snow is another day closer to spring.

I was going to tell you ...

2011-12-20T15:16:00.005-05:00

Yes, yes, it's been too long since the last blog. I'm violating perhaps the most important rule of Blogging 101: blog regularly.

Has it been since Nov. 4? I can list all I've been doing to distract me from my blogging duties, but that would come across pretty much like "the dog at my homework," so I won't try.

All these little items I've jotted down as pearls of wisdom seem so trivial now.

I was going to tell you about why one Kingston mayoral candidate wasn't invited to the newspaper's livestream debate way back before Election Day. (So that the primary candidates - those with the best chance at actually becoming mayor - would have more time to talk.)

I was going to tell you about the newspaper's budgeting process for 2012 and how a publisher better have quality numbers people on his team or else it won't get done accurately and on time. (I do and it was.)

I was going to tell you how our parent company's budget review has been transformed from a tedious audit marathon in the old days to the current productive day-long planning session, involving corporate executives and the key people from our four New York newspapers, all in the same room (in Kingston, by the way), exchanging ideas and setting realistic goals, particularly for our Digital First environment. (How did the business world survive before PowerPoint?)

I was going to tell you how little I've missed pro basketball and how much I disapprove of football players who prance in celebration after scoring a touchdown, even though their teams are hopelessly behind on the scoreboard. (By the way, sadly, I fear the great broadcaster Marv Albert's voice finally is showing its age.)

I was going to tell you about the nice awards party our newsroom had to honor our Ivan Lajara, Patricia Doxsey and Tania Barricklo on their recent statewide honors. (Winning awards isn't what journalists think about as they go through their daily grind. But it sure is nice when others recognize your good work.)

Yes, I was going to tell you all about that stuff and more since my last blog on Nov. 4. I was also going to tell you I'll be more faithful to and current with this blog going forward.

Get that dog away from my homework!

Letter mania

2011-11-04T16:00:00.002-04:00

No sure thing? Not so.

Here's one:

Every year in the days before an election, we'll by flooded with letters endorsing one candidate or another. Most times, it's clear the letters are part of an organized campaign from a central political location. And, naturally, when their letters aren't published, we'll be buried by phone callers complaining about us favoring the other side.

Let's start from the top (and we're talking about the print edition here; we'll get to digital later):

1. We always receive many, many more letters than we have room to publish in the newspaper - notj ust during political season, by the way, but all year round. We estimate the publication at about 35 percent. So lots of people are going to be disappointed, because they believe their letters are the most important, interesting and best written of the bunch.

2. If the letters are long - as are too many - they almost always go to the bottom of the stack, never to see the light of day. We do print the occasional long letter, but it has to be compelling, in the editor's view. Long letters about candidates that essentially say they're nice guys don't have a chance (nor, to be truthful, do short letters saying the same thing).

3. The goal is to print a representative number of letters. That is, if we receive 50 letters on a subject and/or candidate, say 40 on one side and 10 on the other, you won't see all 50 in print. But you're likely to see five, four on one side and one on the other.

4. How can otherwise intelligent people think that if they send in letters in the last days of a political campaign, there's still time for them to be published? All newspapers establish cut-off dates. In our case, we've historically marked the last day for publication of campaign letters as the Sunday before Election Day. How much you want to bet more letters will arrive Monday or even Tuesday? Happens every year. And even those that show up a week before Election Day aren't likely to get in. Why? Because there are literally scores of them already in line. The exception could be a lucky tardy letter writer whose missive just happens to fit into last-minute hole on a page.

This year, three campaigns have generated the most heat: Ulster County district attorney, Saugerties and Rosendale town boards. The latter has been particularly active the last several days, one party chair admitting her side is in the middle of a last-minute letter-writing blitz and demanding to know why more letters aren't being printed. Please see above.

Remember, we're talking about the print publication here and we're describing an age-old problem. Which is yet another reason why newspapers are making the leap into digital.

Have something to say on our web page? Go at it. No space limitations, no time constraints and very little moderating on the newspaper's part. Pick a story at www.dailyfreeman.com, and comment away. You have to register with your real first and last names. If you're not brave enough to attach your opinion to your name for the public's edification, come up with a screen name and your anonymity will be protected. All we ask if for you to keep it clean and tasteful (admittedly a subjective determination). And, of course, no libel. Absent any transgressions, your posts will be approved in due time. They're reviewed periodically on weekdays, less frequently nights and weekends, so have a little patience. (Another sure thing: Some hot head will complain that his/her posts have been blocked because we don't agree with them. Let it be repeated for the umpteenth time that if the only posts the editors approved who those with which we agreed, there would be far fewer on the site. Catch our drift?)

Now, about that wager: How much you want to bet that we'll have to repeat this explanatory blog this time next year?

After the storm

2011-09-13T11:41:00.004-04:00

Too many stories around our region are far more serious than mine in the wake of Hurricane Irene and the remnants of Hurricane Lee.

Two trees on our roof, a couple of inches of water in our basement and four days without electrical power - as hard as they were to endure - don't measure up to the suffering from flooding and other more significant storm damage.

That said, our front lawn looks like the surface of the moon these days, because we decided to remove 11 of the remaining trees threatening the house, temporarily leaving stumps and tire tracks and a general sense of disarray (as well as no "shelter" from the street). It may be my imagination, but I notice passing cars slowing down, its inhabitants probably saying, "There goes the neighborhood."

Ah, but landscapers are on the agenda, as soon as we finish with the insurance company and the roofers. (Fortunately, a tarp has halted the rain that was coming into the garage.)

No punch line here. Just another anecdote to a natural disaster that we'll not soon forget.

Digitally speaking

2011-08-10T14:10:00.002-04:00

I don't mean to boast, but have you been following some of the exciting things happening at the Freeman?

I'll dispense with self-congratulations by emphasizing from the get-go that my role has been little more than to give the OK, duck, and get out of the talented and innovative staff's way.

That said, consider (not necessarily in order of importance):

- Our livestreams, such as Tuesday night's first "Freeman Sessions with Stella May" ... a concert and a fundraiser. Then there are the Kingston mayoral debates coming up Thursday and Friday at 11 a.m. (And you get to ask the questions!) We've also livestreamed public meetings at City Hall and the Ulster County Legislature, among other venues. We're talking events as they unfold on our newspaper's website.

- Twitter reporting, such as the "play-by-play" of high-profile proceedings in Ulster County Court, or scholastic track and field competitions.

- News videos. They're all over the website. No longer are we reporting merely with words and still pictures.

- Advertising videos. Pre-rolls, they're called, appearing right before the news videos. And there are other advertising features like "pencil streamers" and "wallpaper" and "blackouts" and Facebook availablities, among a host of others. We're currently boasting over 300,000 unique visitors to our site each month. If you're not getting your advertising message out in front of this crowd, you're missing the boat.

- Reader comments. Our forums are the talk of the town. It's not unusual for our stories to attract upwards of 100 comments a day. If letters to the editor are among the most popular features in print - and they are - look at all the mini-letters on the web, many back-and-forth between the writers, most appearing within a short period of time after they were submitted. Keep it clean, don't libel anyone and sign up with your real name and you're in. I promise you people (including public officials) will read what you have to say.

- Breaking news. How could I forget? No longer do you have to wait for tomorrow's paper to get today's news. We're constantly updating our site with breaking and developing news. And even before the major local news is posted to the site, it's likely to have been texted, Tweeted and Facebooked. If you're not a part of our social network, you should be.

- Blogs. Check them out here. There's quite a variety and we're adding more all the time.

Get the point? It's a digital world and the Freeman is in the middle of it.
And it's only the beginning. Heck, even an old dude like me is excited.

Still here, but try there

2011-07-27T12:12:00.006-04:00

A follower of this blog - yes, they're out there - reminds me I haven't posted for a while.

Quite correct and sorry about that. Lots of distractions. Administrative stuff, as we like to say.

I'll continue filing blog items from time to time.

Meanwhile, if you're not following me on Twitter, give it a try. I'm @IraFusfeld, where I typically tweet and retweet on a daily basis. See you there.

Off the cuff

2011-05-25T14:39:00.003-04:00

*Mets' owner Fred Wilpon has taken a lot of grief over his comments in the current issue of The New Yorker. But here's what you need to know: The lengthy profile by Jeffrey Toobin is primarily about Wilpon the businessman and his dealings with Bernie Madoff; and Wilpon's widely quoted words about David Wright, Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes make up only a tiny section of article. Oh, by the way, Wilpon needn't apologize to his players for telling the truth.

*We received several phone calls of complaint when the size of the Freeman's crossword puzzle was tightened, but none since we re-enlarged it. Funny how that works out.

*Those reaction shots of Oprah during that two-part televised farewell celebration reminded me of the "candid" images of a jaw-dropping, tearful Jerry Lewis after a telethon toteboard update.

*Would the network news coverage of the tornado tragedies been less complete had the anchors stayed at their desks in New York and, well, anchored?

*Leave it to comic-writer-actor Albert Brooks to set us straight: In China, he says, "Chinese food" is just "food". Why didn't I think of that?

The blotter

2011-05-19T11:36:00.003-04:00

The arrest of Congressman Hinchey's wife, Allison Lee (who's also a noted Albany lobbyist), on a DWI charge has predictably generated lots of comments to our newspaper's website. Most are partisan shots at the congressman, but some are critical of the newspaper.

Consider this excerpt:

"The real issue here is the Freeman and what they consider newsworthy. Unlike other publications, the Freeman makes a sport out of mudslinging and printing the names of people charged with misdemeanors (felonies are a different matter). It even goes so far as to print court updates of pleas, etc. Then, if an offender is someone of any note around town, the person gets an entire article - and in this case, a photo too. This is just wrong.

"People make mistakes and when they get into trouble, they want more than ever just to be left alone to deal with it. It is sad that the Freeman enables its readers to revel in the misery of their neighbors."

I'm afraid I don't have the energy to explain to someone why this story is news. Or why the news is more significant if it involves "someone of any note." History says such explanations would fall on deaf ears.

I will say, however, that community newspapers typically report lesser offenses than larger newspapers. Why? Because newspapers that serve a larger market often can't devote the space to the many more misdemeanors they'd have to report. Moreover, a major felony in our community is likely to be reported on the front page. The same kind of felony in New York City might attract a brief story inside a newspaper (or maybe even go unreported), because those crimes are more commonplace in big cities.

Point is, there is a procedure and standards for reporting police news. All newspapers have them. And the bottom line is that newspapers try to inform their readers as best they can with the limited resources at their disposal ... even if the news is uncomfortable for some people to read.

Apropos of nothing

2011-05-17T15:44:00.001-04:00

• Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the International Monetary Fund chief who’s facing sexual abuse allegations in New York City, looks a lot like the villain in the James Bond movie “Thunderball”, no?
• Arnold cheated on Maria. Show of hands: Anyone surprised? I didn’t think so.
• Those of a certain age remember when an aging Yankees’ star shortstop Phil Rizzuto was released at mid-season. Think Jorge Posada's career in pinstripes isn’t in jeopardy, particularly after the stunt he pulled the other night?
• Who looks sillier: the Donald Trump we’ve seen the last couple of months in his never-to-be-taken-seriously presidential foray, or those members of the media who took him seriously with an excess of air time and print space, thus propping up his non-candidacy?
• Maybe it’s because I’m indoors from early morning to early evening, but I enjoy looking at the rain outside my office window.
• If you write with a complaint to the “fact check” feature on our website, it would be helpful if you gave us a name and return address so somebody here can get back to you. That said, sorry if pop-up ads are annoying, but they’re helping to underwrite the journalism on the site. No pay wall here. Free reader access, 24/7.
• What to make of people who claim they never read our paper anymore, then proceed to tell you everything they didn’t like about that day’s edition?

Still here

2011-05-16T14:41:00.002-04:00

It's been far too long since my last entry. I'll try to be more faithful to the blog. For now, a few things:

*Yes, the print edition of the Freeman looks a bit different since we've narrowed the width of the pages. No sense, sugar-coating it: In a bad newspaper economy, we're always looking for expense efficiencies. The little bit of newsprint we cut from our pages represents a rather sizable savings over the cost of a year.

*We've tried to minimize the negative impact on content. But we have heard from loyal crossword puzzle readers who can't deal with the slightly smaller boxes. So we're returning the puzzle to full size next week.

*Another major step in our Digital First! climate is texting news bulletins even before we've tweeted them or posted the breaking news on our website. To sign up, text DFNews to 22700. (If you're a texter, you'll understand what that means.) As they say in the commercials, standard text message rates apply.

*If you've been visiting our website and not checked out the wide selection of videos, both locally produced and those from our sister papers in which our editors believe you'll have particular interest, do us and yourself a favor and give them a try. Remember, our newspaper is truly a multi-media company.

*There are plenty of excellent reasons for your business to be advertising on our site, too. Our people are in the field making their pitches (backed up with excellent demographic and readership data). But don't wait for their phone call. Contact Digital Sales Manager Soren Schamberg and you're on your way.

No fooling

2011-04-01T15:22:00.002-04:00

I hate it when newspapers publish phony stories on April Fool's Day. Call me Scrooge - sorry for the calendar-challenged analogy - but newspapers can have fun in print without purposely running stuff that isn't true. Ultimately, the joke - such as it is - is bound to be on the newspaper.

Check out this story from The Associated Press, as Exhibit A:

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Talk about a snow job.

Some residents of a Chicago suburb who remember all too well having to dig out from February’s historic blizzard apparently forgot the date Friday when they reacted angrily to a newspaper report that the city plans to charge for snow removal.

WBBM-AM says the Evanston RoundTable article provoked some irate calls to City Hall, whose staff explained that residents would not be required to pay $2.25 a day for snow removal and pointed out that Friday is April 1. April Fool’s Day.

In a posting on its website, the city announced the article was a spoof and said it was considering forwarding all 311 calls to the RoundTable.

Chicago experienced its third worst winter storm on record Feb. 3, with 20.2 inches of snow.

Sticky notes

2011-03-09T12:02:00.002-05:00

Notes from the yellow pad on my desk:

* Those who don't like the advertising on our website need to remember how much it's costing them to view the news, videos and other information we produce. The answer is, zero. We don't believe paywalls are the way to go; they typically discourage reader traffic. We prefer having readers come to our site early and often at no cost. The more visitors, the more attractive the site becomes to paid advertisers. And with well over 200,000 unique visitors a month, we have an excellent story to tell our advertising clients.

* The Charlie Sheen saga is legitimate entertainment and financial story. But we're uncomfortable with all the rambling interviews and Internet clips the networks have been airing. Sheen is either the greatest actor since Olivier, or he's an extremely sick man who ought to be institutionalized. Most experts say it's the latter. Why feed into his irrational behavior by providing him a national soapbox? It's not too late for Sheen to take a route to recovery, a la Robert Downey Jr. But it will be if he doesn't get help soon.

* Hope you've been following the Freeman's series of live videostreams from local press conferences, hearings and the like. You also ought to sign up as Twitter followers of our reporters; they are breaking stories nearly every day via their tweets. Had you been a follower of Patricia Doxsey, for example, you would have received periodic on-the-spot updates last night from the public hearing on Golden Hill. Excellent stuff in the Digital First age.

* Speaking of Digital First, keep an eye out for the announcement of major national recognition for our new media guru Life Editor Ivan Lajara.

* By the way, renovations to the Freeman's Community Media Lab are just about complete. Hope to have some more events before long.

* Personal aside to blog reader Ellen Slansky (who reminded me I haven't been posting lately): The change occurred on I-95, shortly after leaving Greenwich, Conn. She'll know what I mean.

* I'm back on the Media Project this week on WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Typically I'm on every other week, but schedule conflicts and a week in California have kept me away for much of 2011. Hopefully we can stick to the regular routine for a while. Recording with me Thursday morning will be Alan Chartock and Rosemary Armao. Listen in at 6 p.m. Sunday or 3 p.m. Monday.

* There was a time when I wouldn't miss a word of newspaper coverage from baseball spring training. Now, I hardly read any of it. Does that say more about me or spring training?

* Actress Lorraine Bracco was sitting across the aisle on our flight from JFK to LAX. Most remember her as Tony Soprano's therapist. I said hello to her, but didn't feel the urge to burden her with my problems. Probably a good move.

Record numbers

2011-02-01T16:53:00.004-05:00

Our Internet guru Ivan Lajara passes along the following:

In January, the Freeman website attracted 249,345 unique visitors, compared to 183,880 in December and 132,522 last January.

That's 249,345 different people who logged on to our site one or more times during January, by far beating our previous high-water mark of 196,384 in November.

More numbers:

Our page views in January registered 2,199,539 vs. 1,506,053 in December and 1,155,955 last January. Again, November was the previous best month at 1,552,388.

The numbers were tallied by the independent, respected Omniture service.

Advertisers, what more do you need to know?

Progress report

2011-01-26T15:34:00.004-05:00

Back to the blog after weeks of assorted business, some of it the putting-out-fires variety.

Here's another report on our recent production shifts:

Home delivery has been spotty to some (not most, I'm happy to say) subscribers. We know about it. We're upset about it. And we're working closely with our new distributor to fix it ASAP. We're seeing improvements. But it won't be good enough until everyone gets our newspaper on time, as promised. Best way to contact us is by e-mail at circulation@freemanonline.com. Include your name, address and phone number and tell us what's up (or what isn't).

Production in Troy has gone quite well, thank you very much. But there was that period of several days earlier this month when the Troy press suffered a major mechanical failure, which had us scrambling first to the press in Albany, then to New Haven. Stuff happens. But we're back in Troy and all systems are go.

We pushed back our deadline an hour to get the Jets-Steelers game in Monday's paper. We'll continue to make adjustments as feasible to provide as much late content as we can. Meanwhile, our website has more late and breaking news, sports, features, pictures, video, etc., than ever. And January, with several days to go, already is our best month ever for unique visitors to the site. Remember, we don't charge for access to dailyfreeman.com; we want you to visit early and often. It's our advertisers' business with us that subsidizes this endeavor. So don't look at their ads and pop-ups and videos as intrusions. They're paying the freight for your free access. Patronize the advertisers and make sure you tell them where you saw their online promotions.

Lots of other exciting things happening, including our Community Media Lab, which had a soft launch at the end of last year. Much more activity is planned as soon as we complete a bit of rehab in our conference room.

Where are the late scores?

2010-12-16T15:03:00.004-05:00

Deep into the second week of our production move to Troy, the biggest complaint is the one we knew from the first days of planning that we'd be getting: How come no late sports scores?

We now go to press at 9:30 p.m., right around the time many of the evening's contests are drawing to a close. Some results are immediately posted to our website. Some go up before dawn the next morning. But none are in the print edition, which understandly doesn't sit well with those relatively hearty few who enjoy scanning the box scores with their breakfast.

As a former sports editor, it pains me to admit that for years independent research has revealed that a sports section traditionally ranks among the least-read in a newspaper. But those who do read it are loyal.

Naturally, the last thing a publisher wants to do is alienate loyal readers. But, as noted in my recent blog, the newspaper world is changing and our company is on the front lines of the digital conversion. In adjusting to and taking a lead role in this brave new world, we've had to make a series of financial efficiencies and print content compromises, not the least of which has been closing our pressroom and having our sister company in Troy print our paper, which in turn has meant going to press a lot earlier. Thus, no late scores in print.

Our sports department continues to publish an interesting statistics page (or pages) each day. Meanwhile, scores and stories (including local events) that aren't in today's paper will be in tomorrow's (hopefully, with more depth).

It's not perfect, I know, especially for those who want their box scores with their Wheaties.

It does, however, fit into our Digital First philosophy, one which we believe will serve our readers and advertisers well today and well into the future.

Day 2

2010-12-08T09:36:00.002-05:00

Report card on the second day of our new production-distribution arrangement (as detailed in Sunday's column and blog):

Production: Again, excellent. Stories and pages moving smoothly. No hiccups on the print side in Troy. A few minor problems with inserts.

Distribution: 100 percent improvement. Papers are in home delivery tubes and newsstands throughout the area as scheduled.

Now back to the important business of journalism, digital and print, as well as sales and marketing for the area's most complete daily source for information.

Day 1

2010-12-07T14:01:00.003-05:00

Report card on the first day of our new production-distribution arrangement (as detailed in Sunday's column and blog):

Production: Excellent. Reporters and editors made deadline. Pages were electronically shipped ahead of schedule to Troy, where the press ran on time and the mailroom packaged the newspapers in good shape.

Distribution: Not as good. A variety of difficulties, some predictable for this kind of project, created a fair amount of late and/or missed deliveries. All involved are in communication today with expectations of a much better performance Wednesday. We (and you) demand nothing less.

The future is now

2010-12-05T09:18:00.002-05:00

The newspaper industry today is in a place that is at the same time challenging and troubling, invigorating and distressing.
Newspapers are experiencing a sea change unlike anything we’ve seen in decades, the late 1960s to be precise, when primitive “hot type” production technology was replaced by “cold type” computers.
In those days, however, there was hardly a question about readers and advertisers remaining loyal to their local newspapers.
Today, what’s going on in our industry is more about how and when people get their news and related information.
The media landscape has become crowded with voices, faces and technology that demand our attention around the clock. It’s now all about news on your schedule. It’s no longer just news delivered at the crack of dawn on printed pages, the content of which was packaged for you by someone else and remained the same until the next morning’s replacement, but news that constantly breaks and evolves.
Most traditional print newspapers like ours continue to be the dominant sources of information in our communities, but not the way we once were.

Most traditional print newspapers like ours continue to be profitable enterprises, but also not the way we once were.
Print’s decline has been vivid in its speed, but the industry’s reaction has not.
Belatedly, however, newspapers have come to better recognize where we’re going and what must happen to insure a long, healthy future.
No longer is it just the printed word on paper — a format that still works wonderfully for those to whom it appeals — it’s words on the Internet and mobile devices. It’s blogs and tweets and information spread on “social networks.” It’s also sound and video — formats that print newspapers historically had to cede to broadcasters. It’s immediacy, a constantly updated news environment, with live reports and interaction with our audience, delivered to you in real time on a variety of media platforms.
It is, in short, an exciting period in the history of newspapers as our venerable enterprise reinvents itself before our (and your) very eyes. The phrase that best describes it for me — and I take no ownership in its use — is that newspapers are “changing the tires while the car is moving.”
Challenging and invigorating, to say the least.
Yet, just as there were casualties in the aforementioned “cold type” newspaper revolution in the form longtime tradesmen and women whose jobs became obsolete in the name of progress, so, too, does the “digital age” mean individual casualties as our industry comes to grips with current fiscal realities and attempts to situate itself on a more secure footing.
Troubling and distressing, to be sure.

Beginning with Tuesday’s edition, the Freeman will be printed on the presses of our sister newspaper in Troy. Pre-printed advertisements and special sections will be inserted in Troy’s mailroom, from which the newspapers will be trucked by a third-party vendor to this area for home and store delivery.
Closing the pressroom and mailroom in Kingston, as well as changing the manner in which the newspapers are delivered, will result in the elimination of 58 full- and part-time, union and non-union jobs.
By consolidating our production in Troy — which already has absorbed production of another sister newspaper based in Saratoga Springs — the Freeman will save a conservatively estimated $500,000 a year at a time when advertising and circulation revenue is declining. It also will make more efficient use of the existing production infrastructure in Troy.
Other efficiencies and consolidation are likely to follow here in the new year.
The realities of the new production and distribution schedule are that we will be printed about three hours earlier each evening, thus some of the stories and scores you’ve come to expect in the Freeman each morning won’t be there.
We want to provide you with more in the way of context and perspective in the print edition. The stories and scores that are too late for print will be available on our website, www.dailyfreeman.com, as will a wide array of other features, videos and interactive content and advertisements, 24 hours a day.
But make no mistake: We will to continue to print a comprehensive local daily newspaper seven days a week.
And contrary to what you may have been led to believe, the Freeman is not going out of business. We are relocating production and distribution operations. But reporters, editors, sales representatives and others will continue to work in our Uptown Kingston facility.

As we hope you’ve already noticed, the digital revolution is well under way here. Our website has become a dynamic, ever-changing source of important content.
When news breaks, you’ll see it first on one of our many Twitter feeds and on our Facebook page. Then it will show up on our website, initially as a short story, which will expand throughout the day until press time for the print edition. Again, if a late story doesn’t make it into print, it will be on the website.
We currently offer links to a variety of local bloggers on our website, with more to come. A Community Media Lab is planned. We’ll be doing more of what’s become known in the business as “crowd sourcing.”
Combined — digital and print — the goal is for the full complement of Freeman offerings to allow the market’s strongest news operation to continue to grow.

We're proud to tell you that what we’re undertaking at the Freeman, as are others under the umbrella of our parent company, Journal Register Co., is the talk of the newspaper business.
Our “Digital First” game plan and all that it entails, much of it described above, is making us industry leaders, something we’ve rarely been able to boast.
There will be fits and starts, hits and misses, both in the digital expansion and the print relocation. But we hope and trust that you’ll stick with us for what promises to be a dynamic transition.
We look forward to your participation and feedback. We want you help us shape our future.
On a variety of distribution platforms, newspapers are vital, living and breathing institutions in the communities they serve. We pledge to remain a big part of your lives in this one.

Coming Sunday

2010-12-03T16:30:00.001-05:00

Look for my column on the future of the Freeman on the front page of Sunday's edition.

I'll post it as a blog, too.

Tune us in

2010-11-08T17:12:00.002-05:00

A lively discussion this week's Media Project on WAMC.

Never heard it? Try a program on for size.

This week, besides me in the third chair, it's host Rex Smith of the Albany Times-Union and the ubiquitous Alan Chartock of WAMC, SUNY, and a media outlet near you (including the Freeman, for which he's a Sunday columnist.

Listen here.

Chat room

2010-11-05T15:13:00.002-04:00

Want to chat? I'll be on (1490 AM) WKNY's talk show hosted by Jodie McTeague from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday.

Want to listen? This is my week onr the "Media Project" along with Rex Smith and Alan Chartock. It airs 6 p.m. Sunday on WAMC (90.9 FM), with a repeat at 3 p.m. Monday.

Political pops

2010-10-27T15:28:00.004-04:00

*I'm told Congressman Hinchey was in our building today. Best I can tell, there were no injuries.

*Very few warm and fuzzies in many of the political endorsements I've read so far. Lots of "lesser of two evils" kind of acknowledgements.

*I guess I'll never quite figure out why candidates believe lawn signs are effective.

*I watch little cable TV (I have a satellite dish) and rarely listen to local radio, so I don't know how much time is being purchased for political commercials. But my mailbox is overflowing from slick, large, glossy post cards from a variety of campaign hopefuls. More effective than lawn signs? Yes. Effective, period? Not if they immediately wind up with the other unsolicited advertisements that quickly find their way into the trash.

*There's a Tea Party guy who continually comments negatively on our website about the Freeman's coverage and/or editorials. That's fine; we solicit comments from all comers. This particular critic, however, also repeatedly claims our newspaper is "irrelevant." OK, if he says so. But it does beg the question, why is he wasting so much time reading and commenting on something "irrelevant"?

Notebook

2010-10-22T15:03:00.006-04:00

*If you follow this blog, you know how much I've enjoyed Leon Russell's music since the first time I saw and heard him in 1970 when he fronted the "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" band for Joe Cocker when its tour stopped at SUNY New Paltz. As the kids used to say, I have most of his albums. And I've seen him in concert a handful of times, including one of his two visits to Bearsville and last summer in Red Hook. But Russell has been an acquired taste over the last several decades, despite his many admirers within the music industry, largely because he has generally chosen to stay out of the limelight, playing small venues and making his music a secret except for his most ardent followers. Until now. Thanks to Elton John, who reached out to his old mentor after a 40-year disconnect, Russell is all over the press and on TV these days. John and Russell have just issued a favorably reviewed "The Union" CD and played it in its entirely the other night at a cable-televised (Fuse) live concert in front of an adoring audience at New York City's Beacon Theater. John and Russell also guested and played on ABC's "Good Morning America" and "The View" and a tour has been launched. As for those of us who've remained on the Leon Russell bandwagon all these years, it's nice to know we no longer have to answer the question, "Leon, who?"

*In New Haven the other night, I sampled a local favorite - mashed potato pizza - at an in spot called The Bar. Sorry to say I didn't get across the street to Louis' Lunch. Legend has it that Louis' is where the hamburger was born. (As for the mashed potato pizza, let's just say I prefer a more conventional pie, with, say, sausage and mushrooms.)

*What was NPR chief Vivian Schiller thinking when she canned commentator Juan Williams for what he said about Muslims on Fox News? Williams thinks she was looking for an excuse to get rid of him because he does appear on Fox News. If so, this wasn't it. Williams said he gets nervous when he sees a Muslim on an airplane. He wasn't being bombastic, as are others on Fox News; he was just expressing a feeling that, sadly, many have shared since 9/11. Point is, it was part of a broader discussion with Bill O'Reilly and another conservative analyst in which Williams (one of Fox News' house liberals) was being the voice of reason. NPR and Schiller come off far worse in this brouhaha than does Williams.

*You suppose tonight's Yankees game will be completed in under four hours?

On the right

2010-10-14T14:40:00.003-04:00

According to a New York Times column today by Peter Applebome about the demise of a couple of weekly newspapers in Ulster County, the Freeman has "historically tilted right..."

I suspect Applebome didn't consult with the many web posters who routinely describe our newspaper as a "liberal rag."

For the record, I'd like to think we're closer to the middle.

Campaign '10

2010-10-13T11:26:00.004-04:00

*Most effective "positive" campaign commercial: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand promising not to vote for her own pay hike.

*Most effective "negative" campaign commercial(s): U.S. Senate candidate Linda McMahon of Connecticut letting challenger Richard Blumental speak for himself by using clips of his lying about serving in Vietnam and fumbling his way through a question about how he'd create jobs.

*Most uncomfortable campaign debate moments: California gubernatorial candidates Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown trying to explain her employment of an illegal immigrant and someone on his staff's use of the word "whore." (There's still enough time before Election Day for other debates to trump this one ... starting with Monday's faceoff in New York between Andrew Cuomo and Carl Paladino (and several minor party candidates).

*Speaking of Paladino, judging from the video clip on our website (admittedly a tiny sample) of his visit to Kingston Tuesday, I didn't sense a whole lot of passion for or against him. Seemed like supporters and protesters were going through the motions.

*I'm not privy to internal polling, but isn't it safe to presume that if Congressman Maurice Hinchey and the Democratic Party didn't have concerns about his ability to handily win re-election, former President Bill Clinton wouldn't have been recruited to speak on his behalf at a Binghamton rally?

*I know lawn signs are part of our nation's grand political traditions, but they're little more than blights on the landscape, as far as I'm concerned. (By the way, I notice a variety of businesses and non-profits using lawn signs nowadays. Shouldn't there be ordinances against these eyesores?)

From the notebook

2010-10-07T14:49:00.004-04:00

*It's a minority view, I know, but for my money, the Ryder Cup golf event is nothing more than a manufactured-for-TV excuse to wave the flag. Jingoism, pure and simple. The sight of golfers egging on fans and the sound of galleries cheering when someone misses a putt merely brings to golf some of what's bad about other sports.

*It's also a minority view, I know, but I think winning a divisional title in baseball is a better measurement of a team's worth than winning a short series in the playoffs. If you have the best record after 162 games, you're the best team. As for playoff series and the World Series, anything can happen. Heck, a last place team is capable of beating a first-place team three-out-five or four-out-of-seven. In other words, the best team doesn't always win.

*Those who think the press has been giving Andrew Cuomo's well-known temper a pass as it dissects Angry Carl Paladino have short memories. Cuomo's temperament has been well-documented over the years. (How do you suppose those critical of him know about it?) The thing is, next to Angry Carl, Cuomo is a choir boy. And Cuomo has been able to demonstrate the ability to govern, temper and all. Not so Paladino. We saw what happened when Eliot Spitzer tried to bully Albany. It would be worse with Paladino.

*You don't think the "social media" network is where it's at? Then you haven't seen the way programs like TweetDeck and Twitterific light up like Christmas trees when a big story breaks and those you "follow" on Twitter start informing and/or commenting. Take last night, for instance, when rapid-fire "tweets" about Doc Halliday's no-hitter nearly made my IPad go tilt just seconds after the last out.

*I've mentioned in the past that my son writes for the Fox animated TV series "American Dad". The show marked its 100th episode last Sunday, which means there are enough episodes for syndication. So there are the repeats now showing on TBS and Channel 11, among other outlets, including today's episode, which features an automotive dealership called "Fusfeld Motors". Let the record show it's named after my son, not me.

In the sandbox

2010-10-07T14:42:00.005-04:00

Fred Dicker of the New York Post wasn't the only journalist to get into a dust-up with GOP gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino. Bill Hammond of the New York Daily News also has suffered verbal blows from Angry Carl. This led Hammond, one of my favorites in Albany, to pen the following:

"Well, here's some more criticism he (Paladino) won't like: He's running the ugliest, most negative campaign in modern New York history. And he's acting like a wimp.

"I've called Gov. Paterson the 'bungler in chief' and a 'serial fabricator.'

"I referred to (Andrew) Cuomo in 2006 as an 'arrogant, headline-grabbing, pushy egomaniac.'

"I once called Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver the 'poster boy for Albany dysfunction.'

"None of them much liked it, I'm sure. But they recognized that absorbing pointed criticism goes with the territory. They took it like grownups. Imagine that."

Imagine that, indeed. Come to think of it, we could use some more grownups among local politicians who have come under the gun,too. They know who they are.

Meanwhile ...

2010-09-24T15:08:00.005-04:00

With all the serious matters that have dominated my thoughts at work in recent months, I haven't paid much attention to mundane matters about which I've been known blog.

For example:

*You must see the film "Get Low" and admire the gripping performance by Robert Duvall, one of a handful of actors who can mesmerize an audience.

*I keep tuning into WFAN radio on the way home each evening, hoping for a satisfying sports fix. Instead, I routinely get aggravated by Mike Francesa, whose bullying, know-it-all style is one thing, but whose horrible broadcasting skills are another. If you're a listener, you'll recognize the following oft-repeated phrases as if they were the sounds of chalk on a blackboard: "I mean" ... "obviously" ... "as a matter of fact" ... "no question" ... "I mean" (Oh, did I say that already? Francesa says it repeatedly.) And then there are his endless questions of guests, which are not only redundant, but more often than not statements of his own opinion. (Yes, I know, I can change the station. Believe me, I do.)

*George Steinbrenner was worthy of a place in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium. But the size of his plaque/monument is embarrassingly large.

*If I were Kingston Mayor Jim Sottile, I'd have vetoed the unenforceable cat law, too. That said, there's this cat that keeps showing up in my driveway in Woodstock and we can't figure out to whom it belongs and how to shoo it on its way. Animal control officer, take note.

*Can't say I don't share some of the anger of those who are trying to upset the political apple cart in this country. But I'd feel a lot better about them and their candidates if they stopped telling us they're angry and instead let us know specifically what they'd do to make things better. You'll never hear me automatically pooh-pooh a "throw the bums out" approach to politics. But you won't earn my vote if all you do is speak in slogans.

Sleepless nights

2010-09-10T11:47:00.002-04:00

Regular followers of this blog are aware that I don't approve comments from anonymous contributors. You know who I am, so if you want to reply to something I've written or done, have the courage to tell me who you are.

That said, a recent nameless critic of my blogs about production shifts and layoffs at the Freeman sarcastically asked the following: How do I sleep at night?

The answer is, not well. Difficult decisions that negatively impact people's lives will do that to someone who publishes a newspaper - or operates any business for that matter. I like to say that the last good night's sleep I had was in 1978. That's not precise, but it's probably not a bad guess.

Meanwhile, here are the thoughts of John Paton, CEO of our parent company, on his blog about "why we at Journal Register Company are doing what we are doing."

"That the newspaper industry is profoundly changed is a given. In the last four years half of all newspaper industry advertising has disappeared. Half. What took more than 200 years to build saw half disappear in four years. And it isn’t coming back anytime soon because how people want to access our core product – news – is also profoundly changed. And the way advertisers spend to reach our core customers has also changed. They spend less in newspapers and more elsewhere.

"If we want to survive we have to adapt to that change. And that won’t be easy because the new revenue streams of mobile, video, widgets and web will take years to grow to the levels that support our current cost structure. And then there is the cost of building those new platforms.

"We will have to cut our infrastructure costs – overhead, buildings, production, distribution, etc. – if we are to survive to enjoy that new future. So that means consolidation, in-sourcing and out-sourcing to reduce those costs. And training both current and new employees on the necessary new skills. ...

"So, yes, some of the jobs will be eliminated in that process and some added. All newspaper companies – including JRC – will be smaller going forward as they grow into more modern multiple-platform news companies preserving the jobs and fostering the careers of the vast majority of our current employees."

Since the last time

2010-08-24T12:13:00.001-04:00

When last I wrote on Aug. 9, I reported on our tentative decision to close the Freeman’s pressroom and mailroom and to move those departments’ operations to our sister company in Troy. I also mentioned the possibility of outsourcing our newspaper distribution to a third-party vendor.

Here’s what’s happened in the weeks since:

We have had meetings with unions representing employees who would be impacted by this decision, if it’s made final. We’ve provided the unions with financial data and explanatory documents explaining in detail the thought process that has led to our tentative decision. We’ve also solicited questions, comments and concerns from the unions, and offered them the opportunity to provide proposals of their own. The unions have responded thoughtfully and professionally, and we are in the processing of negotiating the terms of so-called “shutdown agreements,” which would then have to be ratified by the rank-and-file.

Meanwhile, we’ve continued to explore and fine-tune implementation of our tentative decision, should it become final, with our colleagues in Troy. Such important matters as production deadlines and computer protocols are high on our list.

We’re also still working on circulation details with a distribution company, should we decide to go through with this project.

And, I’ve heard directly from representatives of Ulster County and Kingston city government. They’re understandably concerned about the prospects of residents losing jobs. So am I.

There are many moving pieces to this project and each requires considerable attention. The seriousness of the initiative isn’t lost on any of us, in particular because it would impact several dozen employees, full and part time, union and non-union. I can assure the community – as I’ve assured the employees – that none of this is being taken lightly.

I’ll keep you informed in this space.

About those rumors ...

2010-08-09T18:47:00.002-04:00

Around this time last year, we were fending off rumors that the Freeman was bankrupt and would soon close. The Freeman wasn’t bankrupt – its parent company had entered bankruptcy proceedings from which it would quickly emerge – and we weren’t going to close. No matter our denials, rumors flourished until they finally had run their course.

Now we’re hearing them again.

This time people they’re about the real possibility of the Freeman moving our production departments out of Kingston. Many in the community apparently have translated that into, the Freeman is moving out of Kingston and/or closing.

Maybe yes, to statement No. 1. A definitive no to statement No. 2.

Here’s the lowdown:

As with many companies in our industry, we are looking for better ways to do business at a time when advertising volume and independently audited circulation numbers (so-called “ABC numbers”) are sliding. We want to bolster our news and sales divisions, but to free up money for those purposes, we need to find economic efficiencies. And find them we have, we believe, if we close our pressroom and mailroom and print our newspaper at our sister company in Troy. Other savings can be realized by outsourcing our newspaper distribution operation -- that is to say, have someone else deliver the paper to homes and stores. Annualized, we’re talking about a considerable sum.

For now, however, nothing is set in stone. We have notified the unions that represent employees in the impacted departments of our tentative decisions and we’re in the process of negotiating over the tentative decisions and their effects if implemented. We hope to be able to make a final decision in about a month. If we move forward, it’s possible we could be on Troy’s press in October. We’ll see.

So how did these tentative decisions to move production and outsource circulation become the source of misinformation? I’m guessing two reasons.

Part of what I just described above (regarding the pressroom and mailroom) is what I related during my monthly appearance on WGHQ radio last week when a caller (whose voice I recognized and who subsequently acknowledged he’s an employee) asked what was going on. (He’d heard rumors, too.) I emphasized what was being considered and that no final decision had been made.

But I’ve been doing radio long enough to know sometimes people hear what they want to hear.

Similarly, notification to the unions understandably created a buzz inside and outside the building among employees, their families and friends. Again, we’ve told the unions about our tentative decisions. They know we’re not closing.

But, again, some people hear what they want to hear.

So, yes, we’ve made tentative decisions to move the printing of our newspaper products to Troy and outsource our newspaper delivery to one of two independent contractors with whom we’re negotiating (and who have been told that we’ve made no final decision).

Again, are the decisions final? No, they’re tentative.

Is the Freeman closing? Absolutely not; indeed we’re aggressively moving along with our parent company’s “Digital First” philosophy, while continuing to publish a print edition of the newspaper that we know has considerable value to readers and advertisers every day of the week.

(By the way, our parent company’s new CEO has made it clear from his first conference call with all employees to his succession of blogs for the edification of all in the industry – naturally, including our employees – that the path to long-term health for newspapers requires a reduction in infrastructure costs such as the cost of printing and distributing our products. Therefore, nobody who works at the Freeman should be surprised that we are exploring these alternatives. The signals have been telegraphed for months.)

I’ll keep you posted.

The big Saturday in Rhinebeck

2010-08-02T15:39:00.004-04:00

A couple of hours of strolling the streets of Rhinebeck Saturday afternoon, just before the big wedding a mile or so down the road, led me to several observations (not necessarily in order of importance):

*People were polite, respectful, excited and not at all put out by all the attention and some inconvenience that landed on their doorstep.

*As often occurs when there's precious little hard news to report, the media does a lot of talking to each other. (I must admit, I've seen quite enough of the weekly newspaper editor who popped up on many of the networks and in lots of out-to-town publications, particularly since it doesn't appear that the major "scoop" that drew their attention to him in the first place (Oprah, Ted Turner, Barbra Streisand, John Major and Steven Spielberg on the guest list) was accurate.

*You know the old line about a big event putting a locale "on the map"? Well, I won't use that one here (although I just did), but it sure does seem true that the rave reviews received by Rhinebeck, in general, and its restaurants and shops, in particular, will pay dividends well into the future as people from around the world discover the village for themselves. I mean, who'll not want a table at Gigi's?

*All those TV trucks were parked in the lot behind Foster's Coach House Tavern in Rhinebeck. Good deal for someone, no?

*One TV network didn't position itself along media row on Market Street across from Beekman Arms. There, all by its lonesome, down the block and across Route 9 from the Beek, was the Fox News Channel. I'm just saying.

*The final irony about the hunt for celebrities over the weekend: Celebrities are more or less a common sight in Rhinebeck. On any other Saturday afternoon, seeing a Ted Danson and a Mary Steenburgen walking through the village would result in little more than a nod in their direction.

Yes, but ...

2010-07-26T14:58:00.002-04:00

*I thought I'd never cop to something like this, but my son, David, and I sat through the entire two-and-a-half-hour rain delay Sunday at Yankee Stadium. We left Woodstock at 8:15 a.m., arrived at the stadium shortly after 10, killed time inside and outside in the brutal heat until the first pitch shortly after 1. Our seats in leftfield were only partially shielded from the sun, so the early highlight of the game was when the cloud cover began arriving. At precisely 3 o'clock, the field under the lights and the skies dark, the rain came. It lasted on and off until 5. Another half-hour later, play resumed and at 6:55 the game between the Yankees and Kansas City ended. Our prize for patience? We were able to depart the parking garage without a hint of traffic. We were home by 9:30 (a half-hour fast food stop adding to the journey). I've been going to Yankee Stadium since 1956, but never had a day like this one.

*There's a long list of contenders in today's pop culture, but is there a collective group with less reason to reach "celebrity status" and earn serious money than the gang from MTV's "Jersey Shore"?

*Letter-writing campaigns come and go; we've experienced plenty here over the decades. The latest is from the anti-hydrofracking forces who have been firing them off with a vengeance for the last week or so. My instinct tells me two things: the writers are sincere and, given the coincidence of their near-simultaneous arrival, the letters are part of an organized effort, which sort of waters down their individual impact.

Lucie Walker

2010-07-22T15:22:00.003-04:00

So sorry to learn of the passing of Lucie Walker, wife of my friend and former Freeman colleague Charles "Bud" Walker.

Lucie successfully battled cancer for years - longer than most might have expected. But it finally caught up to her last night in a New York City hospital.

Lucie was a wonderful, loving, generous person. She will be dearly missed.

Condolences to Bud, the kids and family and all of us whose lives Lucie touched.

Steinbrenner

2010-07-13T11:31:00.002-04:00

I had the opportunity to be in George Steinbrenner's company a handful of times during my years as sports editor. That period - from 1976 to 1983 - was when Steinbrenner's Yankees had turned the corner and moved back into a place of baseball prominence. Making occasional forays to Yankee Stadium to write columns and cover World Series and All-Star games was a heady experience for this Bronx native who had been going to Yankees games since the mid-'50s.

Of course, with one exception, being in Steinbrenner's company for me meant the fringes of packs of beat reporters with whom he was on a first-name basis. But I do have one personal story to tell.

It was around 1980. I can't be exactly sure. I was alone at my desk around lunch time when one of our three telephones rang.

"Sports, Ira Fusfeld," was the way I typically answered the phone back then.

"I'm calling for Bruce Goldberg," said the voice at the other end.

Goldberg was one of our sportswriters. (He now runs the press club in Denver, Colo.)

"Sorry, he's out to lunch," I said. "Can I take a message?"

"This is George Steinbrenner, returning his call."

I paused, mainly because I thought it was some wise guy pulling my leg.

"George Steinbrenner?" was my witty reply. Fortunately, I waited another beat or else I would have put my foot in my mouth.

"Yes, I'm calling about the golf course project up there."

By then, there was no mistaking his voice. Yes, it was George Steinbrenner and he was personally returning Goldberg's phone call about the old Carvel golf course in Pine Plains. Rumor was that Steinbrenner and his pal John Fugazy were working on a deal with ice cream magnate (and golf course owner) Tom Carvel to renovate the club and add condominiums.

Certain that if I told Steinbrenner Goldberg was out of the office, we'd never again have the opportunity for a second telephone connection, I asked him the necessary questions myself (Steinbrenner said there was no such deal regarding Carvel) and after several minutes concluded the call.

Now, understand, this was at the height of the Bronx Zoo era of Steinbrenner's ownership. It was a time when many journalists and fans mocked the bombastic owner; it was long before he toned down his act and began to be recognized favorably for what he did to put his Yankees in position to win every year.

But that brief personal encounter made me see him in a new light. I mean, what was the owner of the New York Yankees doing returning a phone call to a sportswriter in Kingston, N.Y.? You'd think that would be a job for a minion.

This was the other George Steinbrenner, not the one who dumped on Kingston's Mike Ferraro, then the team's third-base coach, for sending home a runner in a decisive playoff game. (The runner was out, because of a perfect relay by the Kansas City Royals. ABC cameras caught Steinbrenner in the stands throwing up his arms in disgust. Ferraro's days with the Yankees were numbered.)

No, this was George Steinbrenner the mensch, the one who did good things for people behind the scenes. His phone call to a small-city sportswriter wasn't much in the big picture, but for us, it was memorable for all the right reasons.

I'm about 100 pages into Bill Madden's "Steinbrenner" book. So far, there's a lot of craziness, with more to come. I'm looking forward to fondly reading the rest of it.

I've been meaning to tell you ...

2010-06-28T17:11:00.003-04:00

*Gov. David Paterson's show of strength the last couple of months is a great advertisement for term limits. Paterson isn't a candidate for election to a full term (not because of term limits, which don't exist here, but a poor performance early in his tenure, which led to horrible poll numbers and his decision not to run). As a result, the governor has been holding the Legislature's feet to the fire during the protracted and contentious budget talks. And he's been doing what most legislators who face re-election are afraid to do: alienate special interests who don't want their sacred cows trimmed.

*The U.S. is out of the World Cup, which means interest in soccer in this country will diminish until the next World Cup, just as interest falls in between Olympic games in what Americans consider to be other minor sports - like skiing, figure skating, to name a couple. Big TV ratings and widespread water cooler talk about soccer have less to do with the game and more to do with waving the flag.

*Finally caught up to the docoumentary film "Smash His Camera" by Woodstock's Academy Award-winning director Leon Gast. It's a wonderful look at the king of the paparazzi Ron Galella. Check it out on HBO (next airing on July 14).

*Sorry to learn of the passing of one of Kingston's true characters, John Mazzuca. I best knew John - at least prior to his sandwich-making days at the old "Mr. Broadway" - as the color man for Kingston High School and Ulster County Community College basketball games on WKNY radio in the 1970s. John drove referees wild, criticizing them in ways print reporters wouldn't even attempt. He was less an announcer as he was a fan. I could be wrong, but I believe it was John who coined the name "U-Tri-C". He was an original. My condolences to his family and friends.

TKO

2010-06-17T15:59:00.003-04:00

Here's the kind of thing that drives newspaper people nuts and reminds us it doesn't always pay to be nice guys.

Kingston native Billy Costello, a former world championship boxer, has cancer. You may have read about it today in a newspaper other than ours.

A few weeks ago, one of Costello's pals asked me if he could borrow some of our photos from the boxer's ring days. He wanted to them as part of a tribute planned in Costello's honor in light of the discovery of the illness. The buddy also suggested we do a story informing Costello's friends and fans of the ex-champ's condition.

Of course. I passed along the news to the sports editor, who provided the pal with the photos and then assigned a reporter to the story.

But Costello didn't want to talk to our reporter about the cancer. He was interested only in promoting a local boxing show he was organizing.

We discussed it among ourselves and decided that if Costello wanted his illness kept private, we'd respect his privacy. The subsequent story, for which Costello was interviewed, made no mention of his condition.

We did the right thing, in my view, even though we knew that in a small town, news like this tends to find its way on to the streets. Sure enough, there on the front page of the regional daily this morning was a picture of Costello, and in the sports section was a column in which the ex-champ talks about his cancer.

No doubt many in Kingston who read that story are wondering why it hasn't been in the Freeman. Now you know.

The Ben Franklin Project

2010-06-15T12:00:00.002-04:00

The Ben Franklin Project continues at the Freeman, as we count down to July 4, Independence Day.

What is The Ben Franklin Project? It's about technology available to everyone and how a newspaper can publish using it. Most importantly, it's about you, the readers, whose input is essential.

For more on The Ben Franklin Project, click here.

Into the weekend

2010-06-11T13:50:00.002-04:00

*Are you watching "Treme" on HBO? You should be. Great music, interesting character development, authentic post-Katrina New Orleans setting and tremendous acting - including by locals Melissa Leo and Steve Earle.

*I don't get too worked up over a sports event anymore, but I have to say, the big league debut of Washington pitcher Stephen Strasburg was exceptionally impressive and great sports-TV theater by any measurement.

*Another sign that I'm no longer a kid: Driving 350 miles roundtrip in one day (as I did Thursday) is about 200 miles more than I have the energy to navigate.

*Freeman reporters are now tweeting. Find 'em (like Paul Kirby) and follow 'em for news alerts and interactivity with the newsroom. (Yes, I tweet, too, as does the prolific Ivan Lajara.)

*Run-up to the newsroom's new computer system continues, with training being scheduled and "go live" planned for the week of June 28. On the heels of that is our parent company's Ben Franklin Project, with a number of "crowd-sourcing" stories and other behind the scenes initiatives in the works for the edition of July 4, Independence Day.

*Did you know the our website is drawing about 150,000 unique visitors a month? Are newspapers dying? More people today read the Freeman on-line and in print than ever in its 139-year history.

*139 years! Is it too soon to start planning our gala 150th anniversary edition?

Service clubs

2010-06-04T14:41:00.002-04:00

In many respects, service clubs are the backbone of a community.

Kiwanis, Lions, Rotary and others are comprised of volunteers who give back to their neighbors in the form of scholarships, labor and a variety of other worthwhile initiatives too many to mention.

Their fellowship is evident throughout the year, most visibly at their luncheon meetings, where they break bread, plan projects, tease each other and, often, listen to a guest speaker.

I was pleased to be the latter at Thursday's Kingston Kiwanis session at Skytop.

About 30 Kiwanians heard me talk about the newspaper business, our Digital First agenda and the Ben Franklin Project. They laughed at my jokes - if you've ever been a speaker or MC, you know how important that is - and they asked thoughtful questions.

Thanks to Kiwanians Joe Fay, Art Gould and the rest for their invitation. More importantly, thanks for all the good work you and other service clubs do.

Orvil's back

2010-06-01T13:05:00.003-04:00

A pleasant surprise this morning to enter the WGHQ radio studio in Kingston and see the familiar face of long-time morning show host Orvil Norman.

Orvil has been out of action for three months tending to some physical woes. But while he says he's not yet at 100 percent, I'm here to report Orvil looked and sounded great - and he's lost 20 pounds, which I envy.

Also glad co-hosts Sue Wittig and Al Teetsel teed is up for me to again tout some of the exciting things happening at the Freeman as our "Digital First" era continues to unfold.

Didn't get to mention the Ben Franklin Project. But we'll have a lot more to write about that in the paper in the days ahead.

It's an upbeat message I'm touting these days, one I'll be bringing to the Kingston Kiwanis Club as its lunch-time speaker on Thursday.

Idle, but busy

2010-05-27T15:35:00.004-04:00

Lots of projects and too little time to blog recently. I'll try to get back into a regular routine, although it will be difficult, given what's going on here.

For example, we're proceeding with something called the Ben Franklin Project. The editors will be telling you a lot more about it in the days to come. In short, it will culminate in a special edition on July 4, Independence Day, highlighted by contributions generated by our readers. There's much more to it than that - particularly behind the scenes, as we attempt to publish a newspaper using tools available to anyone on the Internet. Stay tuned.

Then there's the matter of installing a brand, new computer system for our editors and reporters. Long-overdue and highly anticipated, the system will replace software and hardware that needed replacement a decade ago. What will it mean to us? Think about the difference in your lives when you junked your first computer for a faster, more versatile laptop, for example. But before that happens, there's the not so small matter of installation and training. We're looking at "going live" before the end of June. Keep your fingers crossed.

Meantime, it's been fascinating watching the numbers climb on our Website. Page views and unique visitors continue to rise. Well over 125,000 "uniques" a month visit our site. And at a time when newspaper sales are dropping dramatically around the country, the slippage here is far short of the industry average. (And we're starting to see growth again in subscriptions.)

There was a time not all that long ago when it was hard to be optimistic about newspapering. No longer.

Midweek notes

2010-05-19T13:21:00.002-04:00

*I'm sure Donald Christian will be a fine interim president at SUNY New Paltz, but I sure would have liked to see Gerry Benjamin get the nod. Gerry has risen through the ranks over many years at New Paltz. He knows the terrain and his expertise on state government has made him the go-to guy for many big-time media outlets, thus increasing the college's visibility. An appointment as interim president would have been a fitting cap to his academic career.

*It's not just the media and umpires like Joe West who think Yankees-Red Sox games are too long. It's many everyday fans like me (it's been years since I was a sportswriter), who can't sit through four-hour marathons such as last night's (into early this morning) game. Other than added TV commercial time and its impact on lengthening games, baseball is the same as when Whitey Ford and Bob Gibson would start and finish in about 2:10. Once a big league baseball game exceeds three hours, something's wrong.

*No question the tea party movement is shaking things up in politics. But I'm not ready to say it had much to do with the Pennsylvania Democratic Senate primary, in which Arlen Specter's career came to an end. Specter's party switch and age (80) were the big turnoffs in his unsuccessful race with a little known congressman.

Off the air

2010-05-11T17:06:00.002-04:00

The importance of cameras in courtrooms is underlined in today's New York Daily News column by Bill Hammond.

Hammond repports on what the public missed - and should have been allowed to see and hear - in the courtroom last week when former state Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno was sentenced.

Moreover, he notes that a camera actually did capture the proceedings for those in an auxiliary courtroom, but that the images and sound were not allowed to escape the federal courthouse in Albany. In other words, while the cameras didn't interfere with the court action, as oppponents of cameras in courts typically warn, the public was kept in the dark until after the gavel, when print and broadcast media scurried to report the news.

Read the full column here.

Monday afternoon quarterback

2010-05-03T14:18:00.004-04:00

*Worst of two poor performances over the weekend: Jay Leno at the White House Correspondents Dinner, or Conan O'Brien on "60 Minutes"? Leno, by a chin.

*Speaking of the correspondents event in Washington, it took an unfortunate turn some years ago when news organizations began peppering their tables with celebrities. Not necessarily in order of importance (or lack thereof), this year's guest list included the likes of the Jonas Brothers, Justin Bieber, Kim Karsdashian, Jessica Simpson and Omarosa, among dozens of others. With all the troubles the big time media has these days, why would it want take down its level of respect another couple of notches by engaging in these kind of trivial one-night associations?

*I know I've lost my senses when I play 27 holes of golf, most in one weekend for me in well over a year, in stifling heat. Considering how poorly I play - and I do mean poorly - it's yet another reminder that not all of my decisions are good ones.

Week-enders

2010-04-30T13:28:00.003-04:00

A little of this, a little of that:

*Fastest way to get breaking news about Kingston, Ulster County and the surrounding area? Follow the Daily Freeman on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook. Our editors are updating our website throughout the day and night.

*You'll excuse the wet blanket, but it will take a few more months of baseball before I'm convinced the Mets are pennant contenders and the Yanks' Robinson Cano is going to win the MVP award. In case you haven't heard, the baseball season is a marathon, not a sprint.

*If the voters of this state aren't finally prepared in November to make wholesale changes in the makeup of an increasingly worse Assembly and Senate, it never will happen.

*Early reports out of Washington are that New Yorkers are lagging in filing Census information. If you didn't mail your forms, answer the questions when Census takers knock on your door. (Disclosure: My wife is working for the Census bureau.) If New Yorkers wind up being under-counted, it will result in fewer congressional representatives and less federal funding for the state.

*I see where Meatloaf's daughter is performing in Kingston tonight. Our story says she was born here. You suppose it was in the back of the old Schneller's Market?

*Plenty of interesting stuff coming from the Freeman's growing list of community and staff bloggers, but if you read nobody else, you have to follow the wit and wisdom of our own Ivan Lajara.

*RNN failed, but Time Warner's YNN has finally given the Hudson Valley a respectable TV news-gathering outlet.

Poskanzer

2010-04-23T13:31:00.004-04:00

Shortly after the tumultuous period when Steve Poskanzer was plucked from SUNY Central to become president at SUNY New Paltz (replacing Roger Bowen, who had been forced out by the Gov. Pataki administration after a controversial women's studies conference drew scorn in the New York Post), there was talk that it wouldn't be long before Poskanzer returned to Albany, maybe even as chancellor.

Poskanzer was young, smart and energetic, and many of us saw bigger and better things for him in SUNY.

Nearly a decade later, Poskanzer is indeed moving on, but in a different direction. We learned today that he's accepted the presidency at a small college in Minnesota.

In the days ahead, we'll get a better sense of what Poskanzer's depature means to him personally and New Paltz as an institution.

But the initial reaction from this New Paltz alum, who also once sat on the College Council (the board of trustees, if you will) prior to his arrival, is that Poskanzer served New Paltz well, both on campus and in the Hudson Valley community.

Poskanzer had a vision for the college and succeeded in many initiatives. And he was limber enough to manage the often difficult balancing act of serving the faculty, staff and study body.

Poskanzer won't be irreplaceable; nobody is. But he's leaving behind big shoes to fill.

Exciting times at the Freeman

2010-04-20T14:52:00.004-04:00

So much is happening so quickly around our shop and on our website that it's worth my stepping back a moment to point them out, in the unlikely event you haven't taken note.

It really hit me last week from the perspective of reading the Freeman on-line (on my new iPad) while visiting family in Los Angeles.

For example:

*Video, video, video. Public officials. Artists. Community activists. Live action (from cars dodging potholes to youngsters competing in a one-mile run). Stories are coming to life on our website.

*Speaking of potholes, there's the already popular See, Click, Fix feature, in which you tell us, your neighbors and the powers that be what's going on in your community. Great introductory piece, with videos, can be found here.

*Blogs. If you've found this one, you probably are aware that our roster has expanded dramatically. Not only are we providing offerings from Freeman people, but we're adding links to community bloggers, too. Your search for local blogs should begin at our site.

*Breaking news, updates, weather alerts, same-day local sports scores and more, all the time. News doesn't stop, nor does our coverage of it. If you're not constantly checking back at our website, you're missing out.

*Advertising opportunities. Plenty of advertisers and their customers have realized the value of the audience our site brings them. And we can offer a variety of ways, including creative animation and, yes, videos, to spread your message. (Ask the Hurley Mountain Inn, for one prime example, how Freeman videos are working out of them.)

Our page views have tripled in recent weeks. More people than ever are reading the Freeman in print and on-line.

And we're just starting. We're even in the midst of getting our reporters and editors new computers and software to make their busy lives easier.

Who said the newspaper business isn't fun anymore?

The world of iPad

2010-04-07T11:27:00.003-04:00

I've used my brand new iPad for only a couple of hours, so I've only scratched the surface (figuratively speaking, of course). But already I can tell you, it's quite something. Very impressive, indeed. (And this is from someone whose Apple computing has been limited to "paginating" Freeman pages on my office Mac. Otherwise, I'm PC-centric.)

I do have an iPod, so since the first step out of the box with the iPad is to register at the iTunes Store, it was liking hooking up with an old friend when my iPod ID put me on a first-name basis with the iPad.

If you're interested in the iPad, which went on sale last weekend to much acclaim and countless media stories, you already know the basics: It's lightweight, offers brilliant screen resolution and the ability to get on the Internet and handle e-mail (via Wi-Fi), video, audio, e-books and what's promised to be an increasing number of "apps".

For a test run, I downloaded a free e-book, title unknown. My granddaughter will be pleased to find out it was "Winnie the Pooh". I'd have preferred something more substantial, but hey, it was free. I also loaded free apps from The Weather Channel, Tweet Deck and Pandora (Internet radio). I had accounts for the latter two on my PC and they worked like a charm on the iPad. So far I've stumbled on the weather app, which did nothing after I entered my ZIP code. Maybe a bug, maybe I screwed it up; we'll see.

What I'm primarily interested in is how publications like the Freeman and others will fit into the iPad world. Some in our industry believe computer tablets like iPad and those to come will be the salvation of newspapers, particularly when consumers start buying their apps. Perhaps. For now I can tell you that reading the Freeman and New York Times Website on the iPad is a pleasant experience.

I'm leaving on a jet plane tomorrow morning and I'm bringing my new best friend the iPad (and my wife). The airline offers free Wi-Fi, so I'll have plenty of time to fiddle around. We'll see if even at my age, an old dog can learn new tricks. (I mean me, not my wife.)

Internet anonymity

2010-04-05T13:56:00.002-04:00

This week on the Media Project on WAMC Northeast Public Radio, we're talking about anonymity on the Internet, among other topics.

Listen to it here.

Hammond on health care

2010-03-30T15:40:00.001-04:00

Bill Hammond of the New York Daily News is often linked from this blog for his on-target analysis of the state's dysfunctional government. Today he shifts focus to "scaremongering" and the health care legislation.

Check it out here.

Worth reading

2010-03-29T13:49:00.003-04:00

I commend your attention to two pieces on wildly different subjects.

First is Frank Rich's Sunday New York Times column in which he opines that health care isn't behind the anger in the nation.

Second is Frank DeFord's wonderful "Confessions of a Sportswriter" in Sports Illustrated magazine's March 29 issue. Sorry, it doesn't appear this one can be linked. Go out and buy it, you know, the old fashioned way people used to get their reading material.

Spooky

2010-03-25T14:44:00.004-04:00

Changing the channels two nights ago. I came across the film "The Pelican Brief", which featured, among others, actor Robert Culp. Got me to wondering if Culp, best known for TV's "I Spy" and the movie "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice" was still alive.

Last night, I came home just in time to hear NBC's Brian Williams report that Robert Culp had died a few hours earlier from a fall near his Hollywood home.

Flash forward to this morning. I'm driving to Albany, listening to a radio podcast recorded yesterday. The host played a snippet of the long-ago hit song "16 Candles" by a group called The Crests, fronted by singer Johnny Maestro. He then played "The Worst That Could Happen", a hit for Maestro when he was lead singer of a group called The Brooklyn Bridge. It prompted the host to wonder if Maestro was still alive. He was alive, a co-host assured him after looking it up.

A couple of hours later, back in the office, I read that Johnny Maestro had just succumbed to cancer in Florida.

Here's hoping I'm not thinking of you, at least for the next 24 hours. It might be bad luck.

O'Reilly, Biden, Tiger and us

2010-03-24T10:41:00.004-04:00

*I don't know how to tell you this, but Bill O'Reilly is beginning to sound like a moderate in comparison to his Fox News colleagues, as well as to some of the talk-radio screamers. Last night he suggested the radio reactionaries are going too far in their ratcheted right wing rhetoric. His guests, John Grambling and Mike Gallagher, the latter in particular, said, in effect, "You ain't seen nothing yet!"

*Speaking of which, I can't find an excuse for VP Joe Biden's dropping of the F-bomb at the health care signing ceremony; he ought to know about microphones, after all. But at least he thought his colorful language was only for the president's ear in which he whispered it. Then there's Rush Limbaugh, who bellowed into the microphone for the edification of millions of listeners that his followers have to "go after the bastards" who pushed the health care bill into law. How's that for reasoned discourse? Sadly, more so than ever, it's SOP for extremists of all stripes.

*When Tiger Woods made his initial public mea culpa, he acknowledged having operated within his own set of rules, the suggestion being that it would stop then and there. Wrong! When he offered himself up for interviews Sunday, he didn't impose a subject limit, but he did restrict the questioning to five minutes. ESPN and The Golf Channel took the bait. CBS did not. Woods is all about control. As long as journalists let him get away with it, he will.

*If you're reading this blog, you're already on the Freeman's Website. We're happy to have you. And we encourage you to invite those who haven't discovered our evolving and expanding www.dailyfreeman.com for breaking news, updates, weather alerts, news videos and lots more. And by all means, if you're into Twitter, check us out there, too. And surely you'll want to be a Daily Freeman fan on Facebook.

Health care scorecard

2010-03-23T13:24:00.002-04:00

Winners and losers in health care reform?

Here's the way Chris Cillizza sees it in the Washington Post.

Mr. Tony

2010-03-18T16:21:00.004-04:00

If you read my recent blog (Feb. 24) about broadcaster Tony Kornheiser, you know he's one of my favorites and that I thought his recent suspension from ESPN was nonsense.

If that holds your interest, check out these two pieces, the first on ESPN's ombudsman saying Kornheiser's suspension was inappropriate, the second critical of those, including Lance Armstrong, whom Mr. Tony PO'd this time.

Steve Levy

2010-03-18T14:55:00.004-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, as I was heading upstairs to my office, I noticed a guy entering the Freeman's first floor conference room. He vaguely looked familiar: short, mustache, middle-aged. I'd seen him someplace, but couldn't remember where. It happens.

Later in the day, when reading the managing editor's story budget for the next edition, I saw the name Steve Levy ... not the sports broadcaster, but the Suffolk County executive. That's why the aforementioned visitor was familiar. I'd seen him on the New York TV news.

Levy, it turns out, was making the rounds of newspapers and communities up and down the state as he pondered entering the gubernatorial contest. Considered a longshot at this early stage, he wasn't given the editorial board treatment by us. But a reporter was assigned to interview him. In case you missed it, the story and a video are here.

But things can change quickly in politics. With Democrat David Paterson out, fellow Democrat Andrew Cuomo encountering a bit of criticism and Republican Rick Lazionot setting the world on fire, Levy's stock has risen.

Today, there he is on the front page of The New York Times as he officially throws his hat in the ring. The twist? Conservative-Democrat Levy will run as a Republican who vows to take on Albany.

Maybe it won't be a dull campaign season after all.

Same old story

2010-03-16T17:18:00.002-04:00

The latest round of state legislative nonsense is chronicled here by New York Daily News columnist Bill Hammond.

Will there ever be light at the end of Albany's tunnel?

Raines on Fox

2010-03-14T16:18:00.002-04:00

Good rainy day reading is this analysis in the Washington Post by former New York Times editor Howell Raines on the damage to journalism done by Roger Ailes, Rupert Murdoch and Fox News.

The new Journal Register Co.

2010-03-12T13:51:00.005-05:00

On Feb. 5 and 10, I blogged about the digital revolution that had belatedly come to the Freeman and our parent organization, the Journal Register Co.

Six weeks into the game, it's worth saying more, because after a long period of unrest and uncertainty in our shop, there's renewed enthusiasm as we plunge head-first into digital.

In doing so, we're not leaving print behind. Hardly. It's still the bread and butter of the industry. But likely not for long. Times are changing and so must we, with increased emphasis on our Website, in terms of both the immediacy and uniqueness of its content. It also means embracing and participating in social networks, thus our links to Twitter and Facebook, as well as others to come.

Our parent company has new leadership committed to doing what it will take to move the Freeman and its sister newspapers along. New CEO John Paton has built an impressive resume in print and digital. A career journalist, Paton has pledged to provide employees with the hardware and software required to advance into the new world. (Given that much of our current computer technology is relatively ancient, that's no small undertaking.) His first step - as much symbolic as it is practical - was to provide all reporters at all the newspapers with Flip video cameras. About the size of a pack of cigarettes, the Flips are easy to use and produce HD quality images. We've already posted dozens of videos on our Website and they've helped make otherwise stagnant stories come to life.

Paton also has ushered in a new era of open communications at Journal Register Co. He's blogging and talking directly to the employees and the public. You have to be a Journal Register veteran to understand the groundbreaking nature of this new atmosphere.

Equally as exciting as Paton's arrival and goals is the announcement of Bill Higginson's promotion to president and COO of Journal Register. Those of us who have worked with Higginson during his decades as a hands-on vice president can't be more pleased to know we'll be working with him side-by-side to make the company's new vision a reality.

Understand this: Journal Register Co.'s efforts are being closely watched in our industry. The company has been much maligned over the years, sometimes with justification, and its new direction already is turning heads among our colleagues. That's what happens when a John Paton - a one-time Editor & Publisher magazine Publisher of the Year - gets behind the wheels.

Many believe newspapers are dying. Journal Register Co. and the Freeman are out to prove otherwise.

Paton likes to say Journal Register is "changing the tires while the car is moving." I'll add another one: In Texas Hold 'em terminology, we're going "all in" on the digital future.

We believe this will prove just as interesting, rewarding and exciting for Freeman readers and advertisers - those we have and those we will attract - as it will for those on the inside. I hope you'll be along with us for the ride.

Countdown on Paterson

2010-03-04T15:06:00.003-05:00

What's the over-under on David Paterson?

With the accusations mounting and his support crumbling, who'd be surprised if the accidental governor yielded his keys to the Executive Mansion by the close of business Friday?

Regardless of how the Paterson matter sorts out, New Yorkers have to be humiliated by the many bad characters they've sent to Albany. Then again, maybe not. What's Abe Lincoln's old saying about fooling some of the people, some of time ...? New Yorkers keep electing bad guys and then they're surprised to learn they really are bad guys. Fooled again.

Spitzer, Bruno, Hevesi come to mind. Paterson's on the brink. The list is long and growing. And we're only talking about the ones with legal and/or ethical problems. This doesn't even begin to account for those of the rest of the Albany establishment who put the dys in dysfunction.

No, New York isn't the only state with corrupt pols and do-little lawmakers. But somehow that doesn't make me feel any better.

Required reading

2010-03-02T10:49:00.004-05:00

Several particularly interesting pieces in Sunday's New York Times "Week in Review" section.

On health care, there was a good analysis here by Reed Abelson.

On climate change, there was Thomas Friedman here on Lindsey Graham. Yes, Lindsey Graham. And, there was Al Gore here. Yes, Al Gore. Read it with an open mind if you're a skeptic.

On the political climate, there was Frank Rich here. Again, read it with an open mind. And there was solid backgrounder on David Paterson here by Sam Roberts.

Frozen in time

2010-03-01T11:46:00.004-05:00

I know a lot about hockey.

I've watched and enjoyed it for a half-century. I spent more than my share of Saturday nights when I was a kid staying home to view the local games of the week on Channel 11. (This was long before hockey was all over the cable networks.) Old-timers might remember those games, with Win Elliott calling the action.

I remember when WCBS radio broadcast Rangers games, but only the last six minutes of the first two periods before doing all of Period 3.

I'd used my G.O. card in high school to buy cheap tickets in the side balcony at the old Madison Square Garden, where you'd literally have to stand the entire game because the overhang blocked half the ice if you were sitting. When I had enough spending money, I'd pay $2 a game for tickets in the end balcony, where there was a clear sightline.

I attended the first hockey game in the new Garden (an exhition game, no less).

Years later, as a professional sportswriter, my National Hockey League press card gave me access to games at the Garden and Nassau Coliseum. And when my sons started getting interested, we made a number of forays to New Jersey Devils games at the Meadowlands.

In recent years, I've been less engaged in hockey, as with other sports. But I still tune in from time to time.

Sunday was one of those times.

My distaste for the Olympics has been well-chronicled here. But yesterday's Gold Medal game between Canada and the U.S. was worth catching, less for what was at stake, and more because it promised to be a first-rate game between the best two teams in the world.

And the game didn't disappoint. It was a thriller, right to the closing seconds of regulation, when the U.S. tied the score and sent the match into overtime.

It was at that point when I got confused.

Not having seen any of the other Olympic games, I wasn't sure how the tie would be broken.

In the NHL, there's a five-minute sudden death period, each team playing with one fewer skater. If no goals are scored, they resort to a gimmicky shootout to settle the contest.

That's what I thought we were in for yesterday, because NBC's announcers didn't tell us otherwise. Instead, as we now know, it was supposed to be a 20-minute sudden death period, followed by a shootout, if necessary because no goals had been scored. We learned that only after Sidney Crosby's goal sparked a wild celebration in the Vancouver arena and across Canada.

To the best of my recollection, play-by-play man Mike Emrick never said "sudden death" and didn't explain to hockey fans (and the millions of non-hockey fans who were attracted to this match) any of the rules particular to the Olympics.

What could be more important than explaining the rules?

So count me in as one of those disappointed by the outcome - not that Canada beat the U.S., but that I didn't know it until the game-ending celebration.

As I said, I know a fair amount about hockey, and if I was in the dark, millions of others were, too.

--

One more note, while I'm at it:

Emrick is generally considered to be the finest hockey announcer alive. I'd agree if he did the games on radio.

The man is unbelievably good at painting the pictures, often with phrases that are uniquely descriptive.

Problem is, he's a TV announcer, and he talks too much. The pictures tell the story. The announcers shouldn't interfere.

Indeed, that makes his failure to tell us how overtime worked all the more glaring. Here was a time when I wanted him to tell me something I didn't know, and he didn't.

Storm clouds

2010-02-26T15:52:00.004-05:00

*There may come a day when we'll wish David Paterson was still governor of New York ... particularly when Andrew Cuomo displays his Eliot Spitzer steamroller side or when Rick Lazio demonstrates he isn't up to the task. But for now, it seems Paterson did everyone a favor by withdrawing from the race. Now we'll see is his official lame duck status makes matters better or worse with the renegate Legislature as the budget comes due.

*The memory fades as I get older, so I'm really hard-pressed to remember a winter storm anything like this week's. Other than a night without power in Woodstock and a couple of neighboring communities, the greater Kingston area has been like an oasis, with huge snow totals and widespread power outages missing us in favor of nearby locations to our east, south and west. One for the books, to be sure.

*Jay Leno returns to "The Tonight Show" next week, with NBC heralding guest appearances by several notable U.S. Olympians. But after two weeks of the network shoving the Olympics down our throats, do we want yet more fawning chit chat with people who soon will go back into relative obscurity for four years? Even people who love the Olympics have to be tired of these people by now.

Now that's funny

2010-02-24T14:39:00.003-05:00

ESPN wants to have it both ways.

ESPN wants to be funny and irreverent, then it punishes one of the few members of its broadcasting stable who actually is funny for being irreverent.

Readers of this blog may know how much I've admired the work of Tony Kornheiser, whose career in print and broadcast I've followed since our paths briefly crossed in 1973 when we were both covering a basketball tournament at Ulster County Community College, he for Newsday, I for the Freeman.

Sports fans hereabouts most likely know him from "Monday Night Football" and "Pardon the Interruption" on ESPN, for which he's been a quality performer since giving up print, after years at Newsday, The Washington Post and The New York Times. There was even a brief-lived TV sitcom based on his life starring Jason Alexander of "Seinfeld" fame.

Many may not be aware Kornheiser's real strength as a broadcaster is on the radio. He's had several programs over the years based in Washington. At one time, he was on nationally on ESPN radio, which slapped him on the wrists for talking, humorously and irreverently, about others on ESPN. For the last year or so, he's been on ESPN 980 in the nation's capital with a rotating support crew and guests offering two hours sports, movies, politics, food, his life and whatever else strikes his fancy. I listen to the Podcast, which you can find here or on ITunes.

Here's what you need to know about Kornheiser's approach to himself and his program: The show's email address starts with the phrase "this show stinks".

During Kornheiser's program, he can view a bank of TV sets, the programs on which he often comments. His rants about Ann Curry, Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee Gifford on "The Today Show" are classic. And occasionally he'll look up and see Hannah Storm on ESPN.

Unlike the "Today" trio, Kornheiser (or Mr. Tony, as he calls himself) likes the broadcasting creds of Storm and has frequently spoken highly of her. But he doesn't always care for the way she dresses.

The self-deprecating Kornheiser will acknowledge that he's hardly the one who should be criticizing others' fashion, given his own wardrobe and his balding "orange" head. But it doesn't stop him. And everyone knows it's all in fun.

Everyone except the suits at ESPN, who last week indefinitely suspended Kornheiser from his "Pardon the Interruption" gig after he said Storm, among other things, looked "like she has sausage casing wrapping around her upper body."

The funny and irreverent Kornheiser was suspended for being funny and irreverent.

It says here the joke is on ESPN.

Hits and misses

2010-02-23T14:57:00.005-05:00

*Just when I thought we were catching up on the digital front - videos, social networks, etc. - along comes something called Chatroulette. Haven't heard of it? Same here, until it was on the front page of The New York Times Sunday Week in Review. The New York Times! Read all about it here before you give it a try.

*We have this on-going discussion at the paper about weather forecasting. Several big storms have been predicted this winter, only to fizzle out. It's enough to drive us (and readers) nuts. Another big storm is in today's forecast, and it's properly heralded and frequently updated on the front page of our Website. The thing is, the news story source is the National Weather Service. Another prediction elsewhere on the site (AccuWeather) calls for less snow (as does the Weather Channel). Which will be correct this time? Check back in 24 hours when we could have as much as a foot of wet snow on the ground ... or not.

*There was an Internet item floating around last week saying singer Gordon Lightfoot had died. Turned out to be false. What a relief: WKNY's playlist would have taken a big hit. The Kingston station seems to be the only place you can hear the likes of Gordon Lightfoot, Seals and Crofts and Hall and Oates. I'm not saying that's a good thing.

Tiger Woods

2010-02-19T11:34:00.003-05:00

Tiger Woods said he's sorry. He pledged to try and work out the problems in his marriage. He said he's been in therapy and is going back for more. He said he'd probably return to play golf, but he didn't say when. Mostly he said he's sorry.

Sincere? That's for his wife to determine.

As for the rest of his heralded, choreographed statement before a select group of family and friends (but few members of the press - and none from the Golf Writers Association, which refused to be represented given the restricted, no-questions nature of the event), Tiger came across as the robotic, angry, controlling figure that has made him a force on the golf course and an unpleasant person off it.

Woods spent considerable time blaming the media for wrong reports and/or invasive coverage. He didn't acknowledge, naturally, that he could have short-circuited it by stepping before microphones and pads within 12 hours of Thanksgiving night episode that launched his downfall. He could have been in front of this story and he blew it. Nor did he point out the IDs of those few camera crews (read paparazzi) that followed his children.

Woods said nobody should blame his wife for his transgressions. Who was doing that? Certainly not the media, which correctly branded Woods' wife as a victim as a parade of women with whom Woods had cheated stepped forward.

At the end of the day, Tiger Woods doesn't owe the public much more than his skills on the golf course, for which he is admired and paid handsomely.

But based on what he said this morning, Tiger Woods didn't do much to regain our support as a person. He should ask for a mulligan.

Mort Laffin

2010-02-18T09:58:00.004-05:00

*Nice job by the Freeman's Mike Stribl today on the passing of our former colleague Mort Laffin. Other touching tributes are in the Poughkeepsie Journal and on this Hudson Valley sports Website. Mort had been a Freeman sports reporter for about a year when I arrived as No. 3 man in the department in 1970. We worked closely on many a basketball weeknight and football Saturday until he moved over the news side. He was a colleague, mentor and pal during our Freeman years. And as you can tell from the aforementioned stories, he was a beloved figure in the regional sports community. Condolences to his family.

*Lindsey Vonn won the gold medal in downhill skiing just days after a highly publicized surprise injury threatened to keep her out of the competition. Modern medicine or NBC hype? Speaking of NBC, every morning the Today Show has "exclusive" interviews with U.S. Olympians. How do they do it?

*Hope you've seen some of the videos accompanying stories on our Website. Particularly helpful is today's clip of the Kingston City Hall steps.

*The much-anticipated New York Times piece about Gov. Paterson turned out not to be about Gov. Paterson at all, but about his aide. That has led to more undeserved ridicule of the Times from those who were expecting the rumored blockbuster. Only the Times didn't start the rumors and never promised more than it delivered. If you think the story isn't much in of itself, that's fine. But don't compare it to what you incorrectly thought it was going to be.

Patterns

2010-02-16T11:56:00.003-05:00

*I'm not interested in dissuading people from visiting www.dailyfreeman.com early and often throughout the day, but it is interesting to track viewer patterns. Like many media Websites, ours seems to be most frequented during business hours - in other words, likely by people who are tapping in on their computers at work. Same goes with the timing of comments to our stories. Typically there is a flurry of responses early in the morning or early in the evening. Mostly, the back and forth goes on roughly between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Heaviest daily traffic generally is Monday through Friday. There's less activity on the weekends. If my theory is correct, I wonder if employers know about the at-work browsing?

*The most important race on NASCAR's schedule is the Daytona 500. It's become auto racing's Super Bowl, World Series and Kentucky Derby. So how is it that NASCAR officials can excuse a nearly three-hour delay during the race Sunday for pothole repairs on the Daytona oval? And how come the Daytona track reportedly hasn't been repaved since 1978? NASCAR ought to be ashamed.

*Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana, whose seat apparently wasn't in danger, won't run for re-election. He cites the polarization of a Congress which is more interested in taking political sides than making policy. Bayh is the latest in a growing list to bemoan the dysfunctional condition of the federal government. (New Yorkers can nod knowingly, given the years of dysfunction in their state government.)

*Spring training baseball camps are opening this week. Normally, that's a reason to cheer, as the light at the end of winter's tunnel appears on the horizon. But last year's World Series went deep into November before the Yankees conquered the Phillies. For me, it seems like only yesterday. Put another way, it sure has been a short off-season.

Rumor mill

2010-02-13T08:52:00.001-05:00

Wonderful column by my radio colleague Rex Smith of the Albany Times Union on rumors, journalism and the realities of today's media world.

Check it out here.

Videos and Olympics

2010-02-10T15:52:00.004-05:00

*Check out the videos on the Daily Freeman Website. Mayor Sottile comments about the snow and a homicide in Kingston, and we have a brief clip of a bus fire in Midtown. Also go to the Life page for Ivan Lajara's video. We expect to be bringing you a steady digital flow of what we used to called "moving pictures" ("talkies" even) as we step lively to another platform. Put another, the Freeman is not just a newspaper company, but a multi-media company.

*NBC long ago ruined the Olympics by focusing mainly on U.S. athletes - to the exclusion of many worthwhile competitors from the rest of the world - and by tape-delaying events to build story lines, the completion of which would come just before the late news to cap primetime. The Olympics were special back in the black and white TV days of ABC and CBS. The Games were every four years then, Winter and Summer in the same calendar years. To be sure, they also were special because the world wasn't as connected. So seeing exotic and grainy images of athletes from other continents was truly unique. But times and marketing have changed. Now NBC promotes the Olympics by disguising commercials as news stories on the Nightly News and Today Show. Worse, Matt Lauer will signal an interview with a U.S. Olympian as "exclusive." Of course, it's exclusive. NBC is paying a pile of cash for the Olympics, while the other networks virtually ignore the Games, in part because they don't have access to video.

*Matt Lauer's "exclusive" this morning was an interview with someone named Lindsey Vonn, who was revealing an injury that might keep her out of the skiing competition. Until yesterday, I'd never heard of Lindsey Vonn. Then I saw a picture of her. On the ski slopes? No, in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. If she does compete in the Games, I hope she dresses warmer than she was when posing in the magazine.

Paterson, Francesa, Townsend

2010-02-09T13:30:00.002-05:00

*Nobody knows what will become of Gov. David Paterson, particularly as a new round of rumors (all of which he's denying) make their way around the Capitol. But according to this story in New York Magazine, Paterson won't go down without a fight. Interesting stuff in this piece, particularly about how the New York Post allegedly has it in for him.

*I did watch all of the M*A*S*H finale that held the previous record for highest rated TV show in U.S. history. But I only watched a little of the record-breaking Super Bowl game. So I can't offer much other than Peyton Manning seemed mortal in the few minutes I caught. Anyway, I did listen to a Mike Francesa interview on WFAN with the usually enligthening Phil Simms to hear more about the game. Check that, I only listened to part of the interview, because, as usual, Francesa did most of the talking. I wanted Simms' opinion, not Francesa's. But that's been Francesa's M.O. for years: Guests come on his show and he dominates the conversation. It's what makes the program must-not-listen radio.

*I saw a clip of The Who's halftime performance. I know I'm the last to say this, but why was The Who selected to play at the Super Bowl? Put another way, what does this say about the National Football League's view of its demographics? At least there were no wardrobe malfunctions, a la Janet Jackson ... if you don't count a bit too much of Peter Townsend's belly.

We tweet you right

2010-02-05T16:25:00.003-05:00

In case you haven't noticed, the Freeman is tweeting at www.twitter.com/dailyfreeman. And there's a Daily Freeman page on Facebook.

We may be a little late to the party, but we've arrived. (Thanks to shoves by Ivan Lajara, our he-knows-a-lot-more-about-digital-technology-than-most-of-us Life editor, and by the enlightened new management at our parent company, Journal Register Company, which is quickly trying to make up for lost time and emphasizing the new media (without ignoring the core print product).

In the weeks ahead, you'll see additional content and assorted bells and whistles (to use the low-tech term) on our Website.

We'll keep you posted as we progress.

Meantime, I can't help but telling you about how newspapers sometimes can't win, whether it's in print or on-line.

The comments section under our stories has been a popular feature since the day it was installed. The free flow back and forth is not always pretty, but it's certainly passionate and generates lots of interest.

The newspaper serves as a referee of sorts. Pretty much everything that's submitted is approved ... with several key exceptions: no libel, no improper language, no phony names (or no names at all) by those who register, and, hopefully, no gratuitous personal attacks.

The latter is toughest to determine, because the qualification line may be different depending on your sensibilities.

Which brings us to how a newspaper can't win.

Glancing at the comments today, I noticed one from a writer who claimed we'd censored his remarks. (They didn't get an OK, it turns out, because they were virtually incomprehensible.) A few posts later, we were chastised for allowing someone's remarks to be posted. How dare we?, was the gist of the complaint.

The newspaper OKs a post and it's blasted. It does not OK a post and it's blasted.

Welcome to our world.

Last licks for the week

2010-01-29T16:21:00.002-05:00

*Obama visits the Republican retreat. Like my grandma's chicken soup, it couldn't hurt. I look forward to watching a replay tonight.

*I'd be less concerned about the Yankees breaking ways with Johnny Damon if I thought they had a better replacement than the Brett Gardner-Randy Winn tandem.

*I'm looking forward to seeing Martin Scorsese's next film, "Shelter Island", but I'm not bowled over by the trailer. It can't be a good sign that the film's release was delayed until Feb. 19, rather than late 2009, when studios like to unveil what they think will be Oscar contenders.

*Devices like the IPad may be lifesavers for newspapers, but only if newspapers produce content people want to read. For now, I'm off to a publisher's meeting next week. I'm bringing my laptop and my IPod.

The speech

2010-01-28T13:21:00.002-05:00

I turned off the TV last night shortly after the president's State of the Union speech. (I did stay with it long enough to see the usual posse of congressional camera hogs - like chief hog Eliot Engel of the Bronx - who annually stake out their places on the aisle early in the day to shake the president's hand and get their mugs on television.)

The president gave a good speech, I thought: firm where it needed to be; taking blame where it was deserved, but pointing the finger at others as warranted (including the Supreme Court, much to the obvious disdain of Justice Alito).

Obama was grim, but hopeful, stern, but with an outstretched hand. Should get a pretty good bump in the polls and maybe even some grudging admiration from political foes, is what I concluded as I clicked off the set.

Nope.

First thing this morning the commentators and Republicans I heard were on the attack. The outstretched hand was figuratively swatted aside.

Maybe this is the way Democrats acted when Ronald Reagan's first-year numbers were even worse than Obama's. But Reagan had deal-making Democratic leader Tip O'Neill with whom to govern. Nobody on today's Republican roster can stand in O'Neill's shoes.

Maybe Obama will have better luck this weekend when he speaks at a Republican House retreat. But I wouldn't bet on it.

Rainy day words

2010-01-25T11:47:00.002-05:00

*It strikes me that The New York Times is giving Harold Ford Jr. an inordinate amount of space (including an op-ed column this morning) for someone who hasn't officially declared as a candidate for U.S. Senate. Incumbent Kirsten Gillibrand has some work to do. (And we aren't even yet sure who will emerge to represent the interests of the other party.)

*Typical "Today Show" lineup: bad weather somewhere - featuring Al Roker in a funny hat; "exclusive" interview with the parents of a missing child; political story followed by interviews with John McCain or Barney Frank; "exclusive" details about Tiger Woods. Dave Garroway, where have you gone?

*I've never seen a quarterback more animated at the line of scrimmage than Peyton Manning. After watching Manning rip apart the Jets' No. 1 defense, I'm convinced the Saints may have to score 60 points to win the Super Bowl.

*If Brett Favre is finally ready to retire - and who believes he is? - it's fitting that his last pass was intercepted.

*"...A lot of Democrats who ought to be preparing to take the field in November seem to be running for shelter. In Illinois and Connecticut, the best candidates available have announced that they’re running to be the state attorney general. These days, everybody wants to be an attorney general and cuddle up and sue dairies that sell curdled milk until the political weather improves. It is very hard to be unpopular when you’re an attorney general. Even Martha Coakley was a popular attorney general." That paragraph by Gail Collins of The New York Times
should resonate throughout the Empire State, as Andrew Cuomo's momentum builds and the memory of Eliot Spitzer remains fresh.

Bill of sale

2010-01-22T15:07:00.002-05:00

*Sen. John McCain told Don Imus yesterday that no major piece of legislation in the nation's history has ever passed without support from both sides of the aisle, and that the president didn't reach out to Republicans on health care reform. I'd have to do some homework to speak to the first point, but how can the senator allege the latter with a straight face? Of course there was an attempt to get Republicans' input on health care, but the obstructionist party wouldn't bite. Republicans could have helped make a better bill, but didn't. It finally became clear that Senate Democrats would have to go it alone.

*Just saw the president speak at a town hall meeting in Ohio. His comments on health care were notable. Too bad he didn't "campaign" sooner and more forcefully around the country, rather than wait as 435 congressmen and 100 senators were thrashing around.

*If you don't wear an American flag lapel pin, does that make you less patriotic than those who do? I think not.

*Remember the James Taylor benefit concert for Haiti can be heard live tonight at 8 p.m. on WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

*The Mets got Gary Mathews Jr. today in a trade with the Angels. Is it too soon to order World Series tickets?

Names in the news

2010-01-21T14:21:00.002-05:00

*Was the John Edwards paternity admission so important that it took "top story" status on this morning's NBC "Today Show"? I think not.

*Sorry to hear of the passing of John Halligan, former PR man for the New York Rangers, who recently worked out of the National Hockey League office. Halligan - and his wife/assistant, Janet, who survives - were particularly helpful to an upstate community newspaper's young sports editor when he needed press credentials for Madison Square Garden.

*Politics aside, would a woman who once posed nude for a magazine have a chance at election for U.S. Senate? Unlikely. Yet that's in the background of Massachusetts' Sen.-elect Scott Brown.

*Disappointed to discover our paper didn't carry an obit for Robert B. Parker, author of the "Spenser" detective novels. He was major figure who shouldn't have been overlooked. Same with Kate McGarrigle, the well-known singer also died earlier this week.

Wednesday worksheet

2010-01-20T14:13:00.003-05:00

*James Taylor is doing a pair of benefit concerts in Great Barrington, Mass., to raise money for Haiti. WAMC Northeast Public Radio will simulcast the Friday show and have volunteers ready for phone pledges. Learn more here.

*I promise I'd say the same thing if the Republicans had a big majority in Congress: It doesn't seem appropriate that the Democrats' ability to forward legislation falls apart because a 60-40 margin has become 59-41. If a presidential candidate won an election by 59-41 it would be considered a landslide. (Yes, political scientists, I know about filibusters.)

*The inability of our representatives in Washington (and often in Albany) to come together on the major issues of the day will do long-term harm, it says here. Our polarized country is in a mess and it will take statesmen, not talk show hosts, columnists, bloggers or those on the fringes, to rise up and be heard.

*Forget possible Democratic challenger Harold Ford Jr. as a threat to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. If a Republican can win a Senate seat in Massachusetts, who says some little known GOP candidate can't beat Gillibrand in New York?

Radio, TV, movies

2010-01-18T13:54:00.003-05:00

*Haven't heard The Media Project on WAMC? Check out this week's episode here.

*Other than a couple of sportswriters and local TV anchors (notably Bruce Beck on Channel 4) do you know anyone who calls the New York Jets "Gang Green"? Have you ever heard a fan say, "I hope 'Gang Green' wins today"? Unlikely.

*The Golden Globes show was breezy, in that it filled the allotted three hours without running over. And Ricky Gervais was humorous, albeit not nearly as outrageous as the frequent NBC commercials suggested he'd be. But it was nowhere near the wild and crazy party of years past, which means it was pretty much just another awards show.

*Glad to see Jeff Bridges won a Globe. Haven't yet seen "Crazy Heart" but he's been quite good in other films. I particularly liked him in the little known "Hearts of the West" with Blythe Danner, Alan Arkin and Andy Griffith.

*Call me stubborn, but I won't see "Avatar", just like I never saw "E.T.", or any of the "Star Wars" or "Indiana Jones" movies, among others that scored big at the box office. I generally prefer movies with less bells and whistles and more intelligent dialogue and good acting. Speaking of which, "Up in the Air" is all it's cracked up to be, "It's Complicated" a little less so.

Friday finishers

2010-01-15T16:18:00.003-05:00

*Reading and watching news and photo/video coverage from Haiti is a reminder of journalism and journalists at their finest.

*Rest in peace, Teddy Pendergrass, wonderful soul singer, who spent the last half of his life in a wheelchair after an auto accident, yet never stopped making beautiful music.

*Jimmy Kimmel is emerging from the midnight shadows and coming up big in the wake of the NBC-Leno-O'Brien fracas. Kimmel scored on his own ABC late night show with a Leno impersonation, then guested on Leno's program the next night with more biting material.

*If you thought the U.S. Senate moved at a snail's pace last month, when the Democrats held a 60-40 edge, imagine what it will be like if the Republican wins next week's special election in perennially liberal Massachusetts.

*Now that the Jets are in the NFL playoffs, Gotham TV newscasters become cheerleaders, not reporters. Same as when any of the other New York teams make the post-season.

Rush, too, of course

2010-01-14T16:40:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I mentioned Pat Robertson's out-there comments on the earthquake. I missed Rush Limbaugh's predictable take.

Here's how CBS News relays it:

"In the face of utter devastation across Haiti following a huge earthquake, conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh took to the airwaves yesterday to blast President Obama for his response to the crisis.

"The disaster enables Mr. Obama to highlight his 'compassionate' and 'humanitarian' credentials and to 'boost his credibility with the black community,' Limbaugh said.

"He also decried the White House's promotion of charitable organizations through which people can contribute to the disaster relief. 'We've already donated to Haiti,' he said. 'It's called the U.S. income tax.'

"White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs at his daily press briefing today criticized Limbaugh's remarks.

"'I think in times of great crisis, there are always people that say really stupid things,' Gibbs said. 'I don't know how anybody -- I don't know how anybody could sit where he does, having enjoyed the success that he has, and not feel some measure of sorrow for what has happened in Haiti. I think to use the power of your pulpit to try to convince those not to help their brothers and sisters is sad.'"

CBS reported that Obama's initiatives have bipartisan support in Congress.

Grab bag

2010-01-13T15:52:00.002-05:00

*If you ever wanted to program your own radio station, now's your chance. Give it a look if you're not one of the 43 million already clued into www.pandora.com. Here's a feature about it in today's USA Today.

*Nobody knows for sure if Harold Ford Jr. will mount a campaign against Kirsten Gillibrand for U.S. Senate from New York. As noted yesterday, Gillibrand shouldn't be underestimated and likely would win, given her backing from most of the major players in the Democratic Party. But let's not roll out the carpetbagger claim against Ford, the former congressman from Tennessee. He may not be Bobby Kennedy or Hillary Clinton, but they cleared the way for newbie New Yorkers to represent their adopted state in Washington.

*Remember when we laughed at the funny programs on NBC? Now we laugh at the funny programmers who run the network.

*According to Pat Robertson, he of the far right religious point of view, Haiti "swore a pact to the devil" two centuries ago, thus the devestating earthquake that leveled the capital city. What's more frightening, that he said it, or that his followers might believe it?

People

2010-01-12T13:28:00.003-05:00

*Snookie: Of all the famous people who live in Ulster County, it's a sad commentary on the times in which we live that this young woman from Marlboro, who has become part of the pop culture via MTV's "Jersey Shore", has become a a celebrity.

*Harry Reid: Unimpressive United State senator? Yes. Racist? I doubt it. But in today's round-the-clock talk radio/talk TV/blogosphere nation, it's too easy to make political hay out of an ill-advised remark. Just ask all the Republicans who have been pounced on by Democrats in much the same manner as Republicans have pounced on Reid.

*Kirsten Gillibrand:She's been little more than Chuck Schumer's caddy so far in her brief time in the U.S. Senate. But unless a particularly formidable candidate emerges, either within the Democratic Party for a primary, or in the general election against the Republican candidate, don't underestimate her ability to prevail on Election Day. First, she's already banking plenty of campaign cash. Second, she plays rough. Just ask former Congressman John Sweeney.

*Rudy Giuliani: Wasn't it on his watch that New York City was attacked on Sept. 11? I'm just sayin'.

Weekend words of wisdom

2010-01-08T14:58:00.002-05:00

*I'm a late convert to HDTV. My old TVs produce bright, sharp pictures. Sure, HDTVs are better. But not that much, I've always declared. Then, over the holidays, after seeing even newer, brighter, sharper HDTVs, I made the jump and bought a couple. They'll be delivered next week. I'm set, no? Maybe not even for a couple of years. Now they're starting to push 3D-TVs. Mark it down: Not interested. I hope I don't have to eat my words ... again.

*Speaking of TV, how come everybody knew Jay Leno's shift to primetime was going to be a disaster, except the people at NBC who did the shifting? We told you in this blog the day after his debut that Leno's program was a dud. Then again, it's pretty much his old "Tonight Show", only 90 minutes earlier, and I didn't care for that either. But millions did, and they loyally tuned in every night after the late news. But NBC was too smart by half. Years ago they signed Conan O'Brien to replace Leno, figuring that by 2009, the latter would have run his course, and the former would bring in the next generation of viewers. But Leno was still at the top of his game - whatever that is - in 2009, yet he was pushed into a new and predictably vulnerable time slot. And O'Brien, while indeed drawing higher ratings than CBS' David Letterman in the youth market, overall is trailing by 2 million viewers a night. In short, NBC created its own mess. Now it appears Leno may go back to his old slot, but only for a half-hour, pushing O'Brien (and Jimmy Fallon behind him) to post-midnight. To my knowledge, no NBC executives have fallen on a sword ... yet. But it may not be long: NBC is being sold to Comcast.

*What typically sets apart the National Baseball Hall of Fame from other sports shrines is its exclusivity. Only the best and most dominant players get in. Maybe not. Take Andre Dawson, an excellent hitter-outfielder by any measurement. But who looks back on Dawson's era and says he was so exceptional as to be a Hall-worthy player? Few, I'd say. Yet there he was this week getting enough votes to punch a ticket to Cooperstown. By the way, the baseball writers/voters have to come to grips with designated hitters. For better or worse, the DH position has been part of the game for decades. Sure, DHs are incomplete players. But that's the job the American League has designed for them. So if they're part of the game, the absolute best should be cited. And in this case, Seattle's Edgar Martinez absolutely was the dominant DH during his playing days, so much so that the league's annual award for the best DH is named after him. Nonetheless, Martinez didn't come close to earning enough votes. Does that mean Mariano Rivera won't get in when the Yankees' closer's days are done? After all, he only pitches about an inning at a time. Incomplete by the voters' DH standards. No way, obviously.

* As I mentioned in the last blog, I'm not a violent man. But I'd pay for a ringside seat to see Bill O'Reilly slug it out with Keith Olbermann.

Publisher vs. mayor

2010-01-07T14:05:00.003-05:00

I've had some heated phone calls and email swaps with Kingston Mayor Jim Sottile over the years, but it's never come to this:

In Gallup, N.M., the mayor and the newspaper pubisher got into a fist fight. Both say the other started it. And if that's not enough to raise your eyebrows, consider the dispute apparently resulted from stories linking the mayor to something that allegedly occurred in 1948!

Now, I'm the peaceful type. On those rare occasions when I lose my temper, it comes in the manner of raising my voice.

The mayor? Many consider him too temperamental. More than verbally? Can't say for sure, although there was that well-documented (and videoed) incident a couple of years ago at a downtown nightspot.

Once thing's for certain: Sottile and I aren't likely to duke it out over something that might have happened 62 years ago. He wasn't yet born and I was just making my worldly debut.

Words and pictures

2010-01-05T10:59:00.002-05:00

*Others have already commented on this, but let me add that I, too, can't help but wonder how conservatives would have reacted had a liberal county court judge used a dictionary instead of Bible in the swearing-in ceremonies, as did Republican Don Williams the other day in Ulster County. No Bible available? Fine, no need for anything, at least not in the ceremonial ceremony, as was this one.

*ESPN has announced plans to launch 3D TV. Please keep Chris Berman off the programming. He's hard enough to take in traditional TV.

*Former Vice President Dick Cheney isn't letting go, throwing brickbats at President Obama at every turn. On the local level, looks like former Ulster Supervisor Nick Woerner is in a similar place. He's already steering people to a blog that appears dedicated to criticizing new Supervisor Jim Quigley's every move.

*Did you see the pictures of Tiger Woods in the new Vanity Fair? Taken months ago by famed photographer (and part-time Rhinebeck resident) Annie Liebovitz, the pictures show a side of the golfer that might have shocked fans had it not been for revelations about him in recent weeks.

*One more time for people who don't quite get the concept: Newspaper editorials are by definition biased. They express an opinion. They slant this way or that.

9:30 p.m. Sunday on Fox

2010-01-03T12:40:00.003-05:00

Fox and Time Warner Cable have settled their dispute. So there's no excuse not to tune into Channel 5 tonight (Sunday) at 9:30 to watch "American Dad."

This week's episode is called, "Don't look a Smith horse in the mouth." I've seen it. It's funny.

And did I tell you it's written by Matt Fusfeld and Alex Cuthberston?

Onward and upward

2009-12-31T15:44:00.002-05:00

It being New Year's Eve, it would be downright dastardly of me to turn the page on 2009 without expressing bright expectations for 2010.

But the best I can come up with is, I hope next year won't be worse than this one.

On paper, that shouldn't be hard to achieve. Then again, this time 365 days ago, who would have thought that within a few months, I would be diagnosed with leukemia and the company that owns my newspaper would file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy? In short, we can't be sure what's around the next corner, can we?

Fortunately, after six months of treatment, the illness seems to be under control and my prognosis is favorable. As for the newspaper's parent company, it emerged from bankruptcy relatively quickly. So on both fronts, it says here 2010 will be an improvement.

Not that 2009 was all bad. My younger son was married and his TV writing career thrived. My older son continued to be the perfect dad for our beautiful granddaughter. Both of our daughters-in-law are gems. And, oh yeah, my wife of 38 years continues to put up with me. None of that is small stuff.

Thus, I move on to 2010 with a measure of optimism, thankful for all the good in our lives.

Happy New Year!

Fox vs. Time Warner

2009-12-29T14:59:00.003-05:00

You may have read that the Fox TV network and Time Warner Cable are in neogiations for a new contract. Best we can tell, Fox wants more money from Time Warner for the rights to carry its programming. Time Warner is resisting, saying to do so would meaning charging subscribers more money. Should an agreement not be reached by New Year's Day, Time Warner customers in this market could turn on Channel 5 and see a blank screen. (I believe the negotiations also involve several of Fox's sister cable channels.)

Let me tell you the selfish part: I don't watch Fox much once the baseball season is over. For instance, I've never seen "American Idol" (a new season of which starts soon) and, as I've noted in this space in the past, for an ex-sports editor, I am surprisingly uninterested in pro football telecasts.

That said, although I get basic cable from Time Warner, I won't be without Fox because I do most of my TV watching via a DirecTV satellite connection.

But, also for selfish reasons, I'm rooting for Fox and Time Warner to strike a deal before the weekend, because my son, Matt, and his writing partner, Alex Cuthbertson, have written the script for Sunday night's episode of the Fox animated comedy, "American Dad". In short, I want millions of people to see this week's episode to do so. And they won't be able to if Time Warner blacks out Fox.

The broader issue is one that likely will involve more networks, as well as Time Warner, DirecTV and whatever provider is putting pictures and sounds on your television sets.

"Free TV" is basically a thing of the past. Although some Americans still receive TV the old fashioned way, albeit with a government-mandated digital box, most of us pay for the privilege by paying a monthly fee for cable, satellite and/or fiber optics. We pay a lot more for premium channels like HBO, but we also are paying for "basic" channels, as your provider passes along the per-subscriber charge levied by program originators.

There have been few high-profile network-cable disputes such as the current Fox-Time Warner tiff, but this one probably is a preview of what's to come. (On a much lesser scale, it happened this year on DirecTV, which did not strike a new deal with the Versus sports network (home of pro hockey) and took it off the air.

Naturally, the consumer is caught in the middle. Want Fox? You'll pay more. But if the cable company plays hardball, a la Time Warner, you may not get Fox, even if you're willing to pay. There goes "American Idol", "American Dad", "Family Guy", "House", the NFL, "24" and many of your other favorites.

It's hard to find a good guy in these fights. But one thing's sure: You the viewer/customer will be impacted one way or the other.

Sneak peek

2009-12-24T14:58:00.002-05:00

With the impending retirement of longtime syndicated columnist Ellen Goodman of the Boston Globe (her last column in the Freeman will be on Jan. 4), we'll be bringing Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus into our rotation.

You'll get your first full column from Marcus on Monday, just to give you a preview of what's to come.

But for a sneak peek, here's a blog Marcus filed this morning after the health care vote in the Senate:

"Cash for Cloture! Cornhusker Kickback! Louisiana Purchase!

"We are, or so we are told by conservative commentators and politicians, supposed to be indignant, outraged, horrified at the fact that lawmakers with bargaining power extracted special deals for their states in the negotiations over health care reform.

"'Prostitution has been legalized in Washington, D.C.,' railed Rush Limbaugh. 'Backroom deals that amount to bribes,'lamented South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

"Give me a break.

"You may not like it. It's certainly not pretty. But this kind of political horse-trading has been around since the dawn of politics, if not the dawn of horses. So the protestations of fury from opponents of the measure are awfully hard to take.

"Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson obtained special treatment on Medicaid for his state before he agreed, at long last, to provide the 60th Senate vote. Louisiana Democrat Mary Landrieu squeezed out extra Medicaid funding for her state -- and proudly pointed out that the actual amount was $300 million, not a mere $100 million as had initially been reported. These are lawmakers looking out for the interests of their states, which, if I'm not mistaken, is a big part of what they were elected to do. Somewhere I hear the faint sound of Lyndon Johnson clapping. Exhortations about the common good are nice, but nothing persuades like a bridge.

"If anything, the Democratic deal-making looks tame by comparison to the Republican arm-twisting in advance of - and during - the House vote on the prescription drug program for Medicare in 2003. In the most egregious example, then-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, offered to endorse the son of retiring Michigan Republican Nick Smith if he agreed to vote "yes" on the bill. Somehow I don't recall the Limbaughs of the world getting the vapors over DeLay's behavior.

"In any event, there's a huge difference between an offer that goes purely to a politician's personal benefit and an offer of help to a lawmaker's state (and therefore to his or her own political benefit). The first verges on the criminal. The second is part of the job description.

"Granted, this is not President Obama's promised change from politics as usual. Then again, that's just what it is: politics as usual."

The holiday shift

2009-12-24T10:55:00.004-05:00

Most Freeman employees are working today, Christmas Eve, including me. Some are working well into the evening. Others, including independent contractors, will be out in the wee hours delivering the paper. Most of the same people will be on duty again tomorrow, Christmas Day and night. Then all will repeat the drill next week on New Year's Eve and New Year's night.

All of these employees have one thing in common: They'd rather not be working on the holidays. And that's no doubt the same sentiment felt by millions who have jobs to do at a time of year when they'd rather be at home with their families. But they,too, work because their jobs require it and they need the income.

In fact, millions of unemployed Americans would gladly relinquish their holiday time off if they had jobs to which to report on Christmas and New Year's and the rest of the year.

So should anyone be shedding a tear because members of the U.S. Senate have been working day and night these last couple of weeks to create a health care bill? Should we commiserating because they had to report to the Capitol at 7 a.m. today for a landmark vote, a time to which otherwise disagreeable Republicans agreed because everyone wanted to venture home sooner than later, particularly with a big storm making travel to the midwest treacherous?

TV commentators this morning emphasized the historic nature of today's vote, not just that it was to pass a landmark health care initiative, but because of the rarity of a Christmas Eve session.

Forgive me if I don't take the time to bemoan their fate. I'll be too busy in the office most of the day.

Athletes beware

2009-12-23T10:59:00.003-05:00

That collective chill being felt in arenas, stadiums and strip clubs these days from word that TMZ is adding a sports component.

TMZ is the on-line and TV entity that has brought the world of celebrity gossip to new levels. You can decide if that means up or down.

With the Tiger Woods saga an apparent tipping point, look for TMZ to do with athletes what it does best(?): reveal what athletes don't want the public (or their spouses) to know.

There may be no bigger fish to fry than Woods, but if you believe the whispers - and who wouldn't believe them? - lots of other athletes are going to be exposed - no pun intended - in ways that at the least will embarrass them, and ultimately could cost them marriages and money.

As long as America has a fascination with celebrity dirt - and it always has - TMZ Sports will thrive and the image of many athletes will suffer.

Wrong Brittany

2009-12-22T09:36:00.004-05:00

The death of Brittany Murphy triggered my increasingly weak memory for my last entry.

No, Brittany Murphy wasn't a guest on the Adam Carolla podcast to which I referred. It was Brittany Snow.

Sorry about that.

Sunday musings

2009-12-20T15:37:00.005-05:00

*For your viewing pleasure, "Men of a Certain Age," Ray Romano's new weekly series on TNT. Excellent cast, quality writing.

*Sorry to learn of the death today of actress Brittany Murphy, 32. To be truthful, I'd never heard of her until the other day, when I listened to an interview with her and actor Adam Scott on Adam Carolla's podcast. She sounded engaging and funny. News of her passing today from an apparent heart attack was a shocker.

*Fun to see analyst Charles Davis working the Jets game this afternoon on Fox. Davis was one of the top athletes and best people I covered all those years ago when I was writing sports and he was a three-sport star at New Paltz High School.

*Speaking of Fox, one question for the guys on the pre-game show - the same one I'd ask their counterparts on CBS: What's so funny? The laughter is forced.

*No snow for us in the Kingston area, yet nearby, including New York City and Long Island, they were clobbered. It just goes to show how difficult it is to predict the weather and how much difference there can be within a fraction of an inch on the map.