but we like to poke fun of it too. Reporter Jim Camden says it's to determine whether "our stories are so hot, they're radioactive."Fresh and sweetJust released for this afternoon, this week's issue of 7 features local ice cream. Read it online here.
Tame meeting today, and the thin slices are as follows:• After Bush praises German asparagus, Washington ships him a box• Murder defendant will get new attorney• Patient numbers surge at Spokane hospitals• John Blanchette: Track and field trials• Making elaborate birthday cakes for kidsComing soonMore…
FYI in case there's some confusion, S-R Radio is only live on weekdays. Some editors wondered this morning whether it's confusing when everything we announce about the S-R Radio news says "bottom of the hour." Do enough day-to-day people think in radio lingo?"I have the…
The highlight story of the weekend was about Mayor Mary Verner's proposed restrictions for using your home sprinkler system this summer.Here's some of the detail, from Sunday's story (by Jonathan Brunt). Photos by Rajah Bose.• The ordinance would outlaw the use of sprinklers from noon…
Pretty tame meeting this morning, no deep discussions about anything in particular, but here go a few editor kudos: • Citizen Journal: Goal fulfilled with fundraising walk• 'Everybody wants their saloon back' (Spangle bar fire aftermath)• John Blanchette: Sonics exit Emerald City• School year budget…
• The economy still sucks, the budget situation is still dismal, stuff is expensive, and other newspapers are worse than here. But the best antidote to news industry doom and gloom is to focus on doing good work, editor Steve Smith said. • No layoffs…
At today's iSalon, we got ankle-deep in reader information absorption habits.Multimedia producer and djangoer Brian Immel brought his eight questions to get everybody talking - no right or wrong answers. By the way, if any readers are interested in taking this survey, email it to…
Before the meeting, investigative reporter Bill Morlin walks by wheeling a rolly cart. Bill--Bill--what are you doing, asks assistant managing editor Carla Savalli. He says he's moving files. It takes a cart to do that. He pushes it to the other side of the room.…
When all the senior management is out, at the bureau offices or otherwise, the 10 a.m. meeting is very short. Today's could be a record at 9 minutes 45 seconds. And as a minute-related video, the Minute Waltz comedy routine with Victor Borge and Leonid…
Orlando Sentinel unveiled a radical design overhaul today for their print newspaper (sample below), which brought up the discussion of a possible redesign of The Spokesman-Review, to prevent the dreaded concept of "get a cardboard sign, stand by the freeway, 'Will report for food.'" Does…
The comedian died at what journalists would consider an inconvenient time to die, due to weekend printing press deadlines. Some editions of S-R don't have the news about George Carlin's death - it turns out the page plate was subbed out midway through the printing…
The newsroom is eliminating the acronym "ACE," for "assistant city editor" because the title is now "deputy city editor." (There used to be one deputy and two or more assistant, but now they're all DCEs, DeCEs? DICE?) When staffers introduced themselves to a visiting DCE…
The story of Chewie, Rita and the other six pit bulls seized from a dog-fighting operation has had legs. Perhaps too many, judging from the bad jokes and rolled eyes at this morning's meeting.The latest, of course, is that the "Great Eight" will head to…
Innovation meeting today was some talk about element mapping, and some notes about video storytelling. Here's what happened today:» NEWSPAPER VIDEO ETHICS vs. TV NEWS ETHICS. (TV news ethics can be much more fluid, someone added) In the case of Nick Eaton's EWU mascot tryouts…
Special for the campaign season, a related video from the Muppets.
Spokane City Councilwoman Nancy McLaughlin performed with Doug Clark and co-conspirator Joey Brasch today at Street Music Week. She sang that sappy song "Close To You" by The Carpenters.Near the end, the falsetto voice singing "Laaa! la-la-la-la..." that's Clark. Get the Flash Player to see…
There are a lot of newsroom stories about the Wet Dog Fur Open annual staff golf tournament, some of which involve journalists consuming alcohol, running around with clubs and driving golf carts near water hazards. One year, the story goes, someone set a ball washer…
Happy Monday! No big discussions today at the 10 a.m., but notes about TXT... if you're looking for it in today's paper, it's not there. TXT runs Sunday on the back page in color. And yesterday, a TXT story was published on the front page…
So do we know the guy who appears on the 7 cover today? S-R photojournalist Rajah Bose was the one who took care of the cover shot, said features editor Ken Paulman. The goal was to illustrate the topic (sexual harassment) in a way that…
A couple weeks ago senior innovation editor Carla Savalli called for a new meeting called the Innovation Salon, or the iSalon, as a weekly one-hour brainstorming session and new media club. It's the next iteration for iTeam meetings - iSalon is open to all newsroommates.…
In a Sunday story about paddling, outdoors editor Rich Landers talked about a book he coauthored with deputy city editor Dan Hansen. The question this morning was whether it crossed the line into self-promotion. « Read the story in question: Power to the paddlers: Events,…
Senior management outlined some updates and pending Spokesman-Review content changes, tried to fight industry gloom with journalistic values, and took questions - in the first major huddle meeting since December."You have a right to know what amounts to a long-term survival strategy for the newsroom,"…
There's a whole slew of extra chairs at the "huddle table" for a couple sessions of the 'newsroom family meeting' type. We hear there's no big announcement planned, just some internal updates from the chief. But the furniture.... Here's a Muppet News Flash furniture sketch.Several…
We keep count of how many people read S-R content at various times of day. Most visitors come by in the morning or the afternoon. Here are the top five most-read S-R breaking news stories in the past three days:1. Chiefs win Memorial Cup2. Stimulus…
Keyworded thick slicesCINEMA: Indiana Jones shows his age: New sequel falls short of expectations. Likewise, deputy city editor Dan Hansen thought it was OK but wasn't thrilled to have spent $9.50 per person. The Hansen house's resident hobbit rated it as the second-best Indy movie,…
Each weekday morning and afternoon, the newsroom staff meets to discuss the coverage plan. This blog covers editors' discussions, upcoming coverage and miscellaneous newsroom news.
