Oregon Media Insiders

The good doctor is cashing out

Any truth to the rumor that sales manager Russ (Ross?) Martineau is leaving the Tribune? Could lend credence to the "cashing out" comment. I thought ad sales had picked up since he arrived.

russ is indeed going bye-bye. not sure exactly why.

the trib has before it dies?

I have no insider information on The Trib or the Pamplin business empire.

But, if I were to conjecture, I would say Pamplin never counted on the Trib making money. He gives large amounts of money away, after all.

The Trib is probably a "pet project" of his, just like Paul Allen's Trail Blazers team (which also loses money).

I think Pamplin would have bailed on the Trib three or four years back, if he was looking at it solely as a business.

He gains a certain cache by having a newspaper in Portland and that probably has a value to him, even if it's not monetary.

So, I won't enter a pool on when the Trib is going under. It would have gone under some time ago under normal business conditions. But when you have money to give away, why not just "lose it" on a venture that you feel is worthwhile?

After all, you can have buildings named after you, but they just stand there. The Trib is something that people see twice each week, and it might give him a sense of satisfaction that he owns such an enterprise.

I'm just making a guess. I don't really know how millionaires think.....

Please, everyone call KATU and demand the return of Mike Darcy's "In the Garden." We need a local show, not infomercials.

Pamplin has done absolutely NOTHING with KDUN's 50kw signal since about 2002. They ceased all sales operations, and left just one employeee there-- the receptionist-- to answer the phone and keep the automation system playing a 24/7 country format delivered via satellite. They didn't even bother to fill the 'mandatory' satellite commercial breaks, so you would hear the national jocks sending liners for other stations around the country over the air.
Fortunately, in 2003, some concerned, former radio pros in the community entered into a contratural agreement with Pamplin to at least bring some dignity back to the operation. That group sold a little airtime locally, cleaned up the on-air mess (local liners, correctly-timed breaks, etc.) put up a website, put on a one-hour morning show for community events, and put on the local high school games at night-- a huge hit with the community. I sure hope the new owner will be more community minded than the Pamplin organization is.

Page F1: Public Editor quotes editors who say they'd NEVER run the cartoon of Muhommed. They could. It's their right. But it would be as offensive as running the "N" word.

Page F5: A cartoon of Muhammed. Plain as day.

Thanks for clearing this up guys.

Well we DID support Mike's show. We watched it as often as it was on.
The a*****les at KATU were always preempting it, no notice, no word as to whether it would be shown later or not, in general just not giving a damn about it.
Screw KATU

Move to the open thread, please, this is off topic here.

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Lynn Siprelle * Former Innie * OMI Coordinator

Boy has KATU miss the mark when they droped Mike Darcy, the largest hobbie in the world Gardening and no show to draw the gardener. If the show wasn't paying for itself then maybe they should have look into why and eather changed its format or at least invested in another show. I for one will not be buying any of the stuff they are selling on their "Paids" show that has replaced "In the Garden" and if it wern't for Extream Make Over Home Addition and Desprate Housewife, we would not turn on KATU at all. We shop at Al's, had Axses put in our lawn, have copied alot of Mike's garden ideas and just enjoyed the show.
Terri & Richard Hegbom, Avid gardners.

Mostly due to being off-topic. Open threads, my dears, open threads.

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Lynn Siprelle * Former Innie * OMI Coordinator