Ed Foster-Simeon Takes on USA Today Recruiting
Ed Foster-Simeon, who as deputy managing editor for news was the USA Today News Department’s highest ranking black journalist or journalist of color, has been reassigned to head strategic planning and recruiting, a move that appears to be a further aftershock from the Jack Kelley scandal.
Editor Karen Jurgensen, Executive Editor Brian Gallagher and Hal Ritter, managing editor for news, all left their jobs in the aftermath of the Kelley shock earlier this year, but the turnover had not reached the deputy managing editor level.
“To enhance our ability to produce a cohesive and comprehensive daily news report, Owen Ullmann will fill the job of Deputy Managing Editor for NEWS. He will work closely with me to plan and oversee coverage of national, international and Washington news,” Carol Stevens, managing editor of news, told the USA Today staff in an Oct. 5 memo posted on the Romenesko Web site.
“Ed Foster-Simeon also will take on a new role. He will become Deputy Managing Editor involved in strategic planning and recruiting.”
The recruiting role had been split among several people since newsroom recruiter Betty Anne Williams was laid off in 2001, Foster-Simeon told Journal-isms. The strategic planning job “didn’t exist in the newsroom before,” he said.
Mindy Fetterman, who also held the deputy managing editor for news title, overseeing national coverage, “will be joining the MONEY department where she will work as a reporter,” Stevens’ memo said.
Stevens told Journal-isms she was “thrilled” to have Foster-Simeon as a “trusted” part of her team and denied that any of the changes were related to the Kelley scandal. That “allegation” was wrong, she said, adding that she did not want to discuss anything that took place before she became managing editor.
Star reporter Kelley resigned under pressure in January. He was later found to have fabricated parts of at least 20 stories and stolen at least 100 passages from other news organizations.
The departures of Jurgensen, Gallagher (who announced his intention to resign, but then was named editorial page editor) and Ritter left Foster-Simeon briefly running the news department, as reported in April. A former White House and Pentagon editor who has won internal awards, Foster-Simeon supervised international and Washington news, including coverage of the war in Iraq.
Foster-Simeon told Journal-isms he views the reassignment as the consequence of “a new management team. This is a good change for me,” he said, “the right change at the right time.”
There are two ways to influence the news coverage, he said: by being a line editor, and by “ensuring that you are bringing in good, high-quality talent.” In addition, Foster-Simeon said, he will be able to focus on strategic planning, involving such issues as the location of the newspaper’s bureaus. There are six overseas and six or seven in the United States.
“Black World Today” Down After Virus-Like Attack
The Black World Today Web site, one with a strong black consciousness that launched in 1996, has been down at least since Friday after being hit with a “virus-like attack” that its editor says “may be a malicious racist attack that many black sites are heir to.”
Editor Herb Boyd told Journal-isms that “TBWT is the latest victim of something that is generally defined as DDOS (Distribute denial-of-service). It’s a virus-like attack that may have its origins in the MyDoom virus of some months ago. . . We are currently doing what we can to restore our site, and because it’s down the attacks have ceased. But they may recur once we’re up and running again.”
Boyd said he suspects racial motives because of the site’s content and because the site had to discontinue a chat room after a number racist comments. He said the site had been averaging 5,700 unique visitors a month, adding that 2,000 people were online at any given time.
While Boyd said the site had been down since Friday, others said they had been unable to access the site for a couple of weeks. Boyd said the differences in the browsers viewers use might explain the discrepancy.
Boyd writes for the New York Amsterdam News and has edited a number of nonfiction anthologies, including 1995?s ?Brotherman: The Odyssey of Black Men in America,? and the new “We Shall Overcome: A Living History of the Civil Rights Struggle.”
The Web site suspended operations on April 1, 2003, resurfacing about six months later with a scaled-down version in partnership with the Institute of the Black World. Providing the appropriate security for the site would be costly, and he is in no rush to put the site back up without that, Boyd said.
Meanwhile, Boyd sends along an essay, “Bush Soft on Civil Rights,” that would have been on The Black World Today. It appears at the end of today’s posting.
Beleaguered Hampton Paper Publishes at Last
The Hampton University student newspaper, the Hampton Script, belatedly published its first issue of the school year today, after a delay imposed by the administration while it searched for an editorial adviser for the paper.
The 12-page issue led with a profile of the new freshman class. One story was killed as out of date and another rewritten to keep it current, editor Talia Buford told Journal-isms.
The board of directors of the National Association of Black Journalists, meeting over the weekend in Washington, “got a preliminary report about what’s going on at Hampton and is looking at a range of options,” Bryan Monroe, vice president/print, said. NABJ had given Buford its first-ever NABJ Student Journalist of the Year award and, Monroe told Journal-isms, “continues to be very concerned about any pressure on student journalists” at the university.
Meanwhile, the student newspaper at Howard University, another historically black institution, weighed in Tuesday with a news story about the Script situation and an editorial supporting The Script editors.
“Hampton University’s newspaper, The Hampton Script, has taken more than its fair share of beatings lately and even though we have a longstanding rivalry with the fake HU, as fellow aspiring journalists, we can’t help but be outraged with the changes that they are having go through!” The Hilltop’s editorial began.
“. . . We truly hope this is the end of the saga for the Script!”
Another case: Ham-handed in Lynchburg (Barnie Day, Roanoke.com)
Black N.Y. News Columnist Likes Paper’s Circulation
Errol Louis has been writing columns twice a week for the New York Daily News since June, and having worked previously at the 50,000-daily New York Sun, appreciates the circulation difference.
“The Daily News sells about 750,000, and on Sundays, close to a million. If even 1 percent of its readers” look at his column, he said, that’s a good response. He recalled the thrill when, riding on the A train in New York, another subway rider recognized him from his photo, said he “liked my stuff, and said it made him interested in following politics again.”
On Monday, we reported that with the departure of Carolina Gonzalez, the number of journalists of color on the Daily News editorial board had been cut in half.
Arthur Browne, the News’ editorial page editor, who was unavailable on Monday’s Columbus Day holiday, tells Journal-isms that Louis, while primarily a columnist, is actually a member of the board. Louis says he has written a couple of editorials since he’s been at the News and does sit in on editorial board discussions but doesn’t consider himself a member.
According to his Web site bio, “Louis was born in Harlem, raised in New Rochelle and lives in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. He is the son of a retired NYPD inspector and formerly served as associate editor of The New York Sun. He has taught college, co-founded an inner-city community credit union, run for City Council and was once named by New York Magazine as one of 10 New Yorkers making a difference ‘with energy, vision and independent thinking.’ He holds degrees from Harvard and Yale and is currently enrolled in the night division at Brooklyn Law School.”
The addition of Louis is one of several changes in the last few months, Browne said. Columnist Karen Hunter, who co-authored Al Sharpton’s autobiography and became a morning co-host on WWRL radio, is no longer writing a News column.
Browne said he dropped columnist A.M. Rosenthal, former executive editor of the New York Times, and Mike Barnicle, who was given a column at the News five years ago after leaving the Boston Globe amid plagiarism allegations. Barnicle, who spent 25 years at the Globe, now writes columns for the rival Boston Herald.
Barnicle’s safe landings at the News and at MSNBC were cited as evidence of the disparity in treatment between members of the “old boys’ network” caught in plagiarism charges and those outside that network.
Media Consolidation Called Villain in Sinclair Case
Michael Copps, a Federal Communications Commission member who some believe could become chairman if John Kerry wins the presidency, calls the decision by Sinclair Broadcasting Co. ordering its 62 stations to air an anti-Kerry Vietnam documentary “an abuse of the public trust. And it is proof positive of media consolidation run amok when one owner can use the public airwaves to blanket the country with its political ideology.”
Sinclair has “the No. 2 collection after Paxson Communications — including many in such battleground states as Florida, Ohio, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and West Virginia,” writes David Lieberman in USA Today.
But Dow Jones ran a story saying that “experts said Tuesday there’s little the agency can do.
“‘In the short term, the FCC really can’t do anything, nor should it,’ said Jeff Chester of the Center for Digital Democracy in Washington, D.C.,” the Dow Jones story said.
Ifill’s Questions, Moderators’ Insights Critiqued
As critics and commentators awaited tonight’s final 2004 presidential debate, National Urban League President Marc H. Morial said the three matchups, “all moderated by White males, are not likely to provide sufficient insight into where the two major candidates stand on issues important to African-Americans,” according to Hazel Trice Edney of the National Newspaper Publishers Association News Service.
Meanwhile, Chip Scanlan of the Poynter Institute analyzed the questions posed by PBS’ Gwen Ifill, who moderated last week’s vice presidential debate.
“Questions can be either open-ended or closed,” Scanlan writes, quoting Canadian journalist John Sawatsky, described as an interviewing expert. “They can launch a conversation or stop one dead in its tracks. Open-ended questions green light a conversation. Beginning with ‘how’ or ‘what’ or why,’ they invite explanation, encourage amplification.
“Closed-ended questions flash a red light. The subject can say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and stop the interview dead in its tracks.”
“Of the 20 or so questions that moderator Gwen Ifill of PBS divided between the candidates, half waved green lights, about the same ratio as the first presidential debate, moderated by her boss, Jim Lehrer.
“. . . Unfortunately, too many of the questions echoed the interviewing technique favored by the Washington press corps — closed-ended questions that may sound tough but actually let subjects off easy.”
Repeating sentiments presented in a Sept. 26 Washington Post op-ed, Morial, who is married to broadcast journalist Michelle Miller, asked the Commission on Presidential Debates Sept. 22, “What do the three chosen moderators have that Lester Holt, NBC; Juan Williams, NPR; Tavis Smiley, PBS and NPR; Joe Johns, CNN; Suzanne Malveaux, CNN; George Curry, NNPA and hundreds of other journalists of color do not?” Edley reported.
Pols ignore crisis among black women (Lenore Skenazy, New York Daily News)
Democrats, GOP Make Black Supporters Available
The Kerry-Edwards campaign announced that it would make available to journalists after the debate these supporters: Reps. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., chair of the Congressional Black Caucus; John Lewis, D-Ga.; and Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y.; Carol Mosely Braun, former U.S. senator and presidential candidate; Rodney Slater, Clinton administration secretary of transportation; and Columbus, Ohio, Mayor Michael Coleman.
The Republican National Committee set up a conference call today with Florida State Rep. Jennifer Carroll, and Virginia Walden Ford, executive director of D.C. Parents for School Choice, “to discuss President Bush’s accomplishments for the African American community.”
Editors Called Timid in Covering Immigration
“Editors and reporters do need to stiffen their journalistic backbone to cover immigration well. And they also will need to shift from the traditional reliance on hard numbers, concise economic formulas, and think tank studies,” writes Mary Sanchez of the Kansas City Star on the Poynter Institute Web site.
“Few of these things exist when you’re talking about immigration. And the ones that do often conflict with one another, largely because immigration is such a polarized issue.
“One side leans far toward seeing all immigrants, but especially Latinos illegally in the country, as harmless, humble, poor workers.
“The other side argues the same immigrants can be blamed for every economic and social woe.
“The truth is somewhere in the middle. But proving it is another thing.
” . . . Editors have to get comfortable with openly listening to critics without automatically flinching under the charge of ‘racism.’ A good defense: Editors who trust their reporters to know the nuances and complexities of minority communities. The bedrock of journalism — accuracy — can stave off critics who huff and puff, alleging racism if there is no other legitimate complaint.”
David Aldridge of ESPN Joining Philly Inquirer
David Aldridge, an 18-year veteran most recently known as NBA correspondent on ESPN, is joining the Philadelphia Inquirer sports department, Inquirer sports editor Jim Jenks has announced to his staff.
“He will make his Inquirer writing debut at the Eagles-Ravens game on Halloween, when he will join the talented football staff of Bob Brookover, Ashley McGeachy Fox and Shannon Ryan,” a memo from Jenks sent Monday said.
“. . . He was a regular contributor to all of the network’s NBA programs and to SportsCenter as well as a regular provider to ESPN.com and ESPN Radio.
“Did you know before that he covered football? He was the Redskins beat reporter for The Washington Post from 1993-96 after covering the Bullets and Georgetown University in a nine-year run at the paper. David’s depth of coverage includes the Super Bowl, Olympics, World Series, Stanley Cup playoffs, U.S. Open tennis, Indy 500 as well as college football and basketball.
“David was the recipient of the 2002 Sam Lacy Journalist of the Year from the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition for his work on ESPN. His Post story, ‘A Team’s True Colors,’ detailing race relations among Redskins players, was cited in the 1996 edition of ‘The Best American Sportswriting’ and won an annual award from the National Association of Black Journalists. “
Al Neuharth Receives Shield of Buffalo Skin
Our report Monday on the Native American Journalists Association’ honoring former Gannett Co. CEO Al Neuharth neglected to say what the honor was: a shield made of buffalo skin, the Miami Herald reports.
Executive Director Ron Walters “said Native Americans have used shields for protection from bullets and arrows and prayed with them for good health,” reported Jerry Berrios.
“Neuharth later joked that he could have used the shield during his days as a journalist,” Berrios continued.
Flash! Memorial Honors Slave, Not Slaveholder
There are so many memorials to slaveholders — think Washington and Jefferson — that when a slave is so honored, it should be news, especially if it’s one who led a slave revolt.
On Sunday, reports Julian Walker in Virginia’s Richmond Times-Dispatch, in a story that received almost no national attention, a historical marker was unveiled honoring Gabriel Prosser, who organized “what was to have been one of the largest slave revolts in American history, only to see foul weather and betrayal foil his plans.
“For leading the plot, Gabriel was executed Oct. 10, 1800 at the Richmond gallows,” Walker wrote.
“. . . The air was thick with the smell of incense and the sound of African drums as the walkers approached.
“The Execution of Gabriel historical highway marker denotes the site where Prosser was hanged.
“‘Oh my God, it’s beautiful,’ said Ana Edwards, a founder of the Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality group which lobbied for the marker. ‘This is a tremendous symbol. Gabriel Prosser is an inspiration for attempting to do something that monumental at a time when resources for slaves were phenomenally low.'”
Bush Soft on Civil Rights
By Herb Boyd
Thus far, in two presidential debates and one between the vice-presidential contenders, nothing has been said about civil rights, though there was a brief mention about the Patriot Act in the last debate between President Bush and Senator Kerry.
Kerry certainly could have zoomed in on this matter if had known about the recent report by the United States Commission on Civil Rights. In this report, which has been embargoed until after the elections, but is available at the Commission?s Web site, www.usccr.gov, the Bush administration is severely criticized for its abysmal record on civil rights.
Among the most damaging findings is that President Bush has not demonstrated any concern about ?pressing civil rights issues, nor taken actions that matched his words,? according to the report. Bush was further excoriated for his lack of initiative in funding civil rights enforcement, his stance on voting rights and affirmative action as well as his relative silence on hate crimes.
On voting rights, the report noted that the Bush administration ?did not provide leadership to ensure timely passage and swift implementation of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002. As a result, Congress did not appropriate funds for election reform until almost two years into the administration.?
On educational opportunity and the often discussed No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the Bush administration did not nor does not ?sufficiently address unequal education, a major barrier to closing the achievement gap between minority and white students.?
When it comes to affirmative action, the administration has tended to promote ?race neutral alternatives? on matters of federal contracting and education.
Very little action, the report stated, has been taken on environmental justice, thus ensuring ?disparate impact of minority communities to environmental contamination.?
To the administration?s credit, the report did conclude that Bush was committed to assisting people with disabilities, and it also praised him for a ?commendably diverse cabinet and moderately diverse judiciary.?
Even so, on the critical issue of racial profiling, the administration chose to employ an aggressive [policy of] assailing and arresting immigrants and visitors from Arab and Middle Eastern countries. And some of this intense scrutiny targeted people who identified with these cultures or practiced their religion.
Ken Lisaius, a White House spokesperson, took exception to the report, telling the press that, ?President Bush is fully committed to making a real difference in the lives of all Americans? and that his record reflected this intent.
Mary Francis Berry, chair of the commission, dismissed any notion that the report was timed to affect the coming elections.