AJC Does a Little Preachin’
September 24, 2009 | 12:01 pmAll AJC print subscribers received this email yesterday.
Dear _________,
The floods that washed across most of Georgia have personally impacted everyone. Whether you’ve experienced power outages, been stuck in the traffic gridlock or have property damage, your life has been affected.
This epic story is a reminder of the vital role that newspapers play in the communities we serve. Our journalists traveled far and wide in the middle of the floods, photographers took to the skies in a helicopter to document the damage, and newspaper carriers battled traffic, detours and downed trees to deliver the paper to you. Like no other news source could, the AJC delivered ongoing, up-to-the-minute information on ajc.com, and in-depth coverage in the AJC.
Each and every day, employees are committed to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution being a forum for the local community. The AJC doesn’t take this responsibility lightly. We work very hard at fulfilling our mission – providing news and information that’s meaningful to our readers every day.
With the largest news-gathering team in the state, the AJC will continue to bring you the most extensive coverage on the efforts to recover and rebuild. You can trust that we will see the story through and provide investigative journalism that only a newspaper can provide. Our commitment to serving you remains strong. Thank you for being our subscriber.
Sincerely,
Michael Joseph
That third paragraph is a great example of the rift that creates so much of the tension and collision between the old print model and the new, online model. What does the last sentence of that paragraph have to do with the first two?
Providing excellent, in-depth coverage of a topic doesn’t automatically mean that you become a valuable forum for the local community. Just like the production of the much-worshiped “story”, the resulting conversation needs attention too. Why? Because otherwise, it devolves into what your website comments section currently looks like – hate-filled rants by faceless flamers who want nothing more than to deconstruct any sort of inherent, fledgling “community” on your site.
Truly a great job with the flood coverage AJC. But in the future, I hope you’ll not only work harder on providing meaningful news and information, but also at taking responsibility for the forums you create and its resulting impact (positive or negative) on your community.
Testify!
You mean what they do at the AJC is called journalism? Who’duh thunk it?
And I thought the faceless flamers only hung out in midtown…
I sure am glad we don’t see any “hate-filled rants by faceless flamers” here.
Yeah, there’s no difference between dialogue here and endless comments like this over on the AJC…
“Cutty, you are a moron. Katrina is the best thing that happened to New Orleans. That city needed and needs to be cleaned up! The thugs down there had plenty of notice and had time to get out. They were even offering free transportation.”
I remember just the other day I was explaining to Scott what a moron he was and how utter devastation is a great way to revitalize cities.
WORD. I can’t even stomach slogging through Wooten’s board anymore– it’s difficult to be shrill in a soundless medium, but those folks manage it effortlessly.
But it’s always good for a chuckle–you know, when you waiting for the water to boil.
Huh . . . everyone who was harmed in New Orleans and lost everything was ‘thugs.’ Also, the AJC has changed so much – small and only worth the Sunday coupons.
I’m not sure I understand. Are you advocating the AJC censor its
comments so they are friendlier?
I’m not saying I love all the comments posted on
ajc.com. Still, censorship? No.
I’m not sure I understand. Why not?
If you’re going to be liberal with the word “censorship” so will I. Doesn’t a journalist pick and choose between quotes and statements when writing an article? Is it OK when it’s in the name of the story, but not in the name of civility? What about the selection of letters to the editor? Is refusing to run something full of insults an unpalatable version “censorship”?
And let’s not pretend other newspaper websites don’t already have comment policies.
http://www.boston.com/help/message_board_rules/
Smacks of desperation to me.
Still, they have a point. I’ll be sure to turn to the AJC for the next “100 year” flood. That should be about year 2100 or so.
Well it’s one thing to x out curse words or threats, it’s another
to decide what’s nice enough or not.
You might be the civility editor for this one-man band website,
that’d be a tougher job for a larger publication.
Newspapers are supposed to provide a wider
forum. And, it doesn’t have to all be sweet.
People aren’t always sweet.