Media Grunt: Michael Bazeley

This is a really neat way to display video. Instead editing all three camera angles into one video, they just let them play side-by-side-by-side. I can’t think of a lot of places where it would make sense to display online video this way. But a live performance is definitely one of them. Not only is the experience more immersive, but it mimics how we watch live shows, with our eyes darting around the stage, dwelling on the drummer for a bit, then the singer, then the guitarist.

So let me guess. Peter Magowan is stepping down as Giants GM:

Dave Butler is right, of course. It’s time to focus on the future - not the past - at the Mercury News. In a memo to staffers yesterday, the executive editor noted a recent photo essay by designer Martin Gee that documents the empty desks and offices left behind by recent layoffs and buyouts.

“I think we have to let go of what was,'’ Butler wrote, “face the realities of the business as it is today, and concentrate on what can be now to best serve our readers….Somehow, we must shake loose of these constant reminders of what was and focus on what can be.'’

Indeed. I have argued and will continue to argue that papers like the Merc need to completely retool themselves for the new realities of the media world, even if that means stripping the operation down to its core and rebuilding it. The threats are that big.

But you can’t deny people their hard-earned grief, especially when reminders of better times surround them at every turn. The Merc newsroom was a haunting, depressing shell of itself when I left four months ago, and frankly I’m glad that Martin decided to capture this moment in time. He is a journalist after all.

When Dean Singleton bought the Oakland Tribune back in 1992, he moved its newsroom out of its iconic downtown building to a non-descript waterfront office building. (It wasn’t a calculated move. It’s just that Singleton didn’t buy the Tribune building.) Many people howled. A link with history was broken. But I think ultimately it was easier for the reporters and editors who stayed with the Singleton Tribune to begin to let go of the Robert Maynard Tribune by leaving the old newsroom. Singleton could do the Mercury News staffers a similar favor by moving them out of the crummy old Merc offices to somewhere new and different, giving them a fresh perspective on things.

Speaking of moving on, I don’t see myself blogging about the Merc much more. I’ve said what I need to say. And it’s frankly not fair for me to toss pebbles at the windows from outside. More pertinently, my new job has me very busy. And I’ve foolishly taken on a personal side project that I’ll probably be more interested in writing about, once it’s up and running.

So we’ll leave it at that. Good luck, Merc. Cheers.

Executive Editor Dave Butler sent the following email to the Mercury News newsroom. There’s a part of me that wants to deconstruct it line-by-line. But I think I’ll just let the words speak for themselves.

Colleagues:

Where are we headed? What’s my vision for The Mercury News? I’ve been asked those questions many times. In preparation for an upcoming staff meeting (time and date still to be set) I thought I’d spell out a few thoughts after having been here almost 3 months. Certainly a large part of our news mission remains focused on technology and diversity.

The Mercury News continues to be THE local news source for residents of Silicon Valley and beyond. It also can be and should be the leader for our Bay area sister publications in many areas of topical content. And, we can be and should be the leaders of news experimentation on the Web - trying new ways to satisfy the varying needs of our readers.

Are we still: The Newspaper of Silicon Valley? Or should we change that motto to get beyond the “paper” part to reflect the changing world? I donno - but we ought to decide soon.
Continue Reading »

I received an email from VideoEgg today telling me that they were closing my publisher account. Their FAQ says why:

As you know, resources at technology startups are limited and it is in our best interest to focus on the core of our business at this time….Once [your] video is removed from our servers, embedded video functionality will also be discontinued and a corresponding message will be displayed.

VideoEgg has shifted it business model to emphasize its ad network. None of this matters to me personally, as I never used VideoEgg for anything other than testing. But it’s an important reminder to those content creators who are currently relying on startups or other relatively new companies to host their content. The media landscape is constantly shifting. If the company you’ve partnered with or the service you’re using - Brightcove, Blip.tv, etc. - goes belly up, is sold or changes direction, are you prepared for the effect that will have on your hosted content?

I can’t say I’m a big fan of Sarah Lacy. She seems just a tad too enamored with and starry-eyed over the Web 2.0 crowd she covers as a journalist. But now that the (almost) full video of her SXSW interview with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is out, it’s clear the negative reaction on blogs and Twitter was completely disproportionate to the crimes committed. Yes, Lacy’s mannerisms are somewhat annoying. Yes, her personal anecdotes about her encounters with Zuckerberg were pointless and made me cringe. And yes, her defensiveness was the worst way she could have reacted to a hostile crowd. But I thought most of her questions were thoughtful and well-informed. On the other hand, Zuckerberg’s answers were long-winded and largely uninteresting. The interview was nowhere near the “train wreck'’ that people made it to be. Nor did it descend into “chaos.” Lacy got mugged by the Twitter mob. Zuckerberg got a pass. Why?

It’s sort of beside the point - kind of like asking how you’d rather be executed - but someone raised the issue again of how the Mercury News laid off employees today. In the last round of layoffs, and again today, management ordered everyone to stay home between 8 a.m and 10 a.m. to await a phone call. If they called you before 10 a.m., you were history. No phone call and you were safe. It’s an excruciating two hours and somewhat impersonal. But I’m struggling to see a better alternative. Is walking up to someone’s desk and marching them into HR or the editor’s office - in full view of the newsroom - somehow more humane or respectful? I’d be mortified if I had to go out that way, in front of my friends and colleagues. And when do you do something like that? At a pre-set time? Randomly? How, dear readers, should these situations be handled? How is it done elsewhere? I’m curious.

At the risk of offending my friends and former colleagues still at the San Jose Mercury News, I’m writing its obituary today. There will be more buyouts and layoffs this week, the fourth round of en-masse departures in the last few years. Sadly, I fear the paper will not recover.

I worked at the Merc for 11 years, and for about half that time we were a helluva little paper. We competed aggressively with the San Francisco Chronicle, we wrote big stories with sophistication, had a kick-ass state capital bureau, and for a time, we covered Silicon Valley and technology like no one else. A lot of really talented people moved through Ridder Park Drive in the decade I was there. That’s not to say we reporters didn’t bitch and moan about where we worked. We did, a lot. But looking back, we didn’t see how good we had it.

Now? Here’s what’s going to happen: Continue Reading »

I tried to leave a comment on a Fortune blog last week (owned by CNN). I say tried because a) the comment still isn’t posted, and b) I’m left with the impression that it may never be. Why? Here’s the confirmation message I got after I hit the publish button (emphasis mine):

Thank you for your comment. Comments are moderated by CNN and will not appear on this blog until they have been reviewed and deemed appropriate for posting. Also, due to the volume of comments we receive, not all comments will be posted.

Although I’m not a big fan of moderated comments, I recognize they sometimes are a necessary evil. But saying you’re too busy to post the comments that come in? That won’t go very far toward building a community around your blogs. There’s a cost involved in nuturing and maintaining online communities, and blogs are no exception. If you’re not willing to bear that cost, then don’t bother having blogs in the first place.

(Speaking of moderated comments, when I tried to leave a comment on a New York Times blog a couple of weeks ago about the Yahoo layoff situation, I was politely informed by the technology editor that the word “suck'’ is not allowed. As in “Layoffs suck.'’ Always interesting to see where media outlets draw the good taste line.)

When I moved over from reporter to online editor at the Merc, one of the first things I wanted to do was build a site focused on the local music scene. Alas, because of the many distractions at the Merc, lack of resources, competing demands, etc., it didn’t get done before I left. As the online focus evolved more into video, we began talking about producing a regular series of videos with local bands. The pessimist in me never thought it would happen.

So I’m thrilled to see that the Merc has launched Merc Sessions, video interviews with local bands and musicians. I’ll get the nitpicking out of the way first. I wish the video player was bigger. I wish the interviews and performances were mixed together into one video (the Sound Opinions guys do a great job of this with their audio podcast). And ultimately, this video should live on a much more interactive site where music fans can be part of the conversation with each other and the bands.

But Richard Koci Hernandez is producing the videos with his usual flair. And Shay Quillen is a knowledgeable interviewer. Kudos to them and the others involved. I know how much effort goes into producing shows like these. Here’s hoping my compadres there can keep it going.