Weakly flogging

[1stwahine]

Re: Weakly flogging

Mahalo Helen! I will make it a point to get one, so I can flogged too.

I am also impressed that some fellow members are or have worked for the two newspapers and HW. Wow! Mighty interesting our OHANA at Hawaii Threads.

I'm proud to be part of it.

Auntie Lynn aka Auntie Pupule

[LikaNui]

Re: Weakly flogging

I know for a fact that others here on HawaiiThreads.com are also current employees and alumnus of HW, The Honolulu Advertiser and The Honolulu Star-Bulletin. If that doesn't qualify us to comment on HW, what does?

Right!
Like Blaine (ZZ), I too am an alumnus of two of those three publications, plus a radio station. (And I'm former Editor In Chief of a magazine covering Hawaii and the west coast of the mainland.) There are many others here who also are media professionals. Back when the Hawaii Media board was on Mel's marvelous Hawaii Radio & TV website (http://www.hawaiiradiotv.com ), 95% or so of the posts were local media professionals. There were few if any 'outsiders'. There were one or two punks from local radio stations who used to flame their competitors, but other than that it was just fine. Now that the board moved here, we get a helluva lot more 'outsiders' and the pros have kind of backed off and become lurkers more often than not. It's a shame, though I love Hawaii Threads.
If these off-topic battles keep up, Mel may have to consider going to the Members Only concept that was kicked around back then. HT already has the Jukebox and The Tube sections, so the 'outsiders' could play there and the pros could do our job in this Hawaii Media sub-section.
Anyway, I too had to chuckle and shake my head at LoRider's blast at us for not being capable of writing for the Weakly. Little does he know.

[LikaNui]

Re: Weakly flogging

It's cool that you were there at the beginning, and I have a lot of respect for what you must have gone through in those days. But (forgive me for saying so) your post doesn't really address the current state of the Weekly at all. It's more a "I Used to Work There" thing. It's cool that you were there, but that was a long time ago.

That presumption is totally incorrect. If you look at the website we've posted, the one about the Weakly's 10th Anniversary, you'll see comments from at least 15 former senior staffers who worked there as recently as a year or so ago. They all, without exception, had a very long litany of complaints. Further, at least two current staffers have been flogging their own publication right here in the past couple of months.

And, due obviously to the fact that the writers are by definition not professional journalists, there are too many mistakes.

What "definition" could you possibly be using?!?? They most definitely are professional journalists. They are getting paid. Not much, that's for darned sure, but still. And most of them may not have tons of experience but they're in the game now and getting paychecks (whether salary or pay-by-word) and therefore are "professional".
That's one reason we expect better quality and why the floggings continue.

They give play to stories the dailies don't (they've been the leaders in coverage of native hawaiian politics and environmental issues.)

And almost every week there are corrections and apologies and letters from people who were either misqouted, misrepresented, or were never even contacted! There have been stories about meetings which the writers never attended! You call this "good"?!?

When I moved home from the mainland after college, I spent a number of years judging our institutions and finding them lacking.

That sounds arrogant. Your verifiable qualifications to be such a "judge" are... ???

Ultimately, I realized that you have to accept this place as it is. This is not an intellectual capitol, nor is it a haven for brilliant art, music or writing.

(coffee ---> nose ---> keyboard)
Say WHAT?!??
Your comment is so outrageously ludicrous that the only reply I can offer is... pffffbbbbbtttt.

The Weekly is flawed, but at least it's improving. It's no Village Voice, but it has its place.

The bottom of a birdcage comes to mind.

[lorider]

Re: Weakly flogging

Okay, a number of comments.

First of all, I post at several online communities, and HawaiiThreads stands out for its heat. Usually, when you speak candidly, people try not to use that candor as fodder for more flogging. I thought I was pretty clearly mocking a certain poster with my satirical post a few days ago. Sorry I missed the mark. I thought it was funny. Oops.

But most of the reaction to my last post is pretty much rhetoric. I said that zzrider's post was more about his history than about the Weekly. Somehow that got turned into "no one here but me is qualified to assess the Weekly." Not sure how that happened.

In the end. I was pretty sure my list of strengths and weaknesses would be met by others. I guess one of two things is true here: either no one thinks the Weekly has any strengths, or it's just about flaming other people.

One other thought: the moderators and admins of the site (thanks for doing what you do) might want to check out some message boards without moderation. In my experience, they tend to be the most civil boards on the web. Even when they aren't: who cares? I guess the question I'd pose is: what is wrong with a flame war? What is wrong with a thread that goes OT? Finally: Is it possible that community policing leads to a better neighborhood than a heavy blue presence?

[kimo55]

Re: Weakly flogging

no one even grasped the satire in my post. It was a joke. I was affecting the overblown and fatuous style that seems to be the cultural standard on this board. Maybe I missed, who knows.

I thought I was pretty clearly mocking a certain poster with my satirical post a few days ago. Sorry I missed the mark. I thought it was funny. Oops.

Possibly due to your standards, and leanings toward the lower journalitic levels set by your pet H.Weekly... you are the only one who views the posts as "overblown and fatuous"....

[LikaNui]

Re: Weakly flogging

I post at several online communities, and HawaiiThreads stands out for its heat.

Huh???

I said that zzrider's post was more about his history than about the Weekly. Somehow that got turned into "no one here but me is qualified to assess the Weekly." Not sure how that happened.

That happened with your own comment that ZZType (not ZZrider) re-quoted today, where you said that none of us here would qualify to write for the Weakly. Obviously you were sorely and massively mistaken.

I guess one of two things is true here: either no one thinks the Weekly has any strengths, or it's just about flaming other people.

What's happening here is nowhere even close to flaming. Sure, Kimo make take a couple of shots but they're usually done humorously. You wanna see some real flames, check out the UseNet newsgroups.
So, your first guess was closer to being correct: "no one thinks the Weekly has any strengths". Now, I don't think any of us said there were no strengths at all, though none come immediately to mind. Heck, we haven't addressed the issue of advertising yet!
Notice how small the classifieds have become? Less than two years ago the "Mind Body Spirit" classifieds alone took up almost four full pages and now it's down to less than half of just one page! And the entire classified section is less than three pages now, while that one MBS category alone used to be four pages.
Did the Weakly raise ad prices so high that almost all the advertisers bailed out? They used to sell the Back Page ads; now, you buy a classified ad and get a free BP ad, or the BP space is full of the Weakly's own in-house ads to hire new staff or push their ads. Employment classifieds are almost nonexistent except for the AAN CAN ads that are distributed nationally to all weeklies. Only five real Help Wanted ads (not counting the Weakly's own five ads to fill five positions at the paper). And all other classified categories have shrunk dramatically as well. Real Estate? There are two apartments for rent, period. Transportation? There are three cars for sale, period. Etc., etc.
So, um, no, I'm afraid no strengths come immediately to mind.

One other thought: the moderators and admins of the site might want to check out some message boards without moderation. In my experience, they tend to be the most civil boards on the web.

Shirley you jest!

Even when they aren't: who cares? I guess the question I'd pose is: what is wrong with a flame war?

Nothing, if that's what you want. But flames are not what 99% of HawaiiThreads readers want, and flame wars are certainly not why this site was created.
Indeed, flame wars are why God (or Al Gore) created UseNet newsgroups.

[zztype]

Re: Weakly flogging

What is with this loloroller guy? First he takes shots at us expressing a low opinion of the HW, says we couldn't possibly possess the skill to write for the HW, then gets all defensive when we try to point out that, why, yes, some of us do know our ass from a hole in the ground and in fact DID write for the HW!!!!

Whaaassup with DAT????

Bruddah, loloroller, you no like flames? No light da match!

CC Rider

[kimo55]

Re: Weakly flogging

What is with this loloroller guy? CC Rider

I said see, see, see rider
Oh, see what you have done...


I thot maybe lorider was Catherine Lo, writer for da weekly.
or not.

[lorider]

Re: Weakly flogging

Lol. Okay, okay. It's not my scene. That's fine. I'll try once more, then let it go. Since we're now in the business of proving our localness and our claim to brilliance, I'll make it in the local creole.


zzrider, try look yo own post. try look my response. try tell me what I tryn fo say, den try tell me if I rong. If you tink yo post iz about da weekly an how it stay tuday, fyne. I no tink so, braddah. instead of aking wise, try talk about someteen next time. Shua, you wen work dea long time ago. I said, right on. But dat ain't what we talkeen about ove hea.

an won lass time: my lolo post wit all da ajektives was one joke aready. joke. was makeen fun of won guy. Wen say sorry plennny times arrede. Never try fo say nobady had da rite fo talk stink about da weekly. was won joke.

chees. ralax arrede.

[zztype]

Re: Weakly flogging

Aw fuckit. Don't feed the trolls.

[1stwahine]

Re: Weakly flogging

I wuz waiting foa somebody to say dat to da LOLO...rider ! No mess with my Ohana , fool. Go back wea you came from.........

See what I can do? Lumerian power!

Ok, when the next HW come out. I'll check it out.

Keep cool, leave the madness to Auntie Pupule.

[lorider]

Re: Weakly flogging

No mess with my Ohana , fool. Go back wea you came from.........

Right on. Glad to hear all points of view are welcome.

I come from Kuliouou, btw. Don't want to go back.

[lorider]

Re: Weakly flogging

Aw fuckit. Don't feed the trolls.

Pretty much what I expected. Dodging.

This has taken a turn toward the silly. I posted that the Weekly is flawed but less terrible than many here think. It's a legit point of view. I'm happy to be engaged on point.

The whole trope that I claim special knowledge, that I think everyone else in unqualified to post, etc is absurd. If my one satirical post gave a different impression, I went out of my way to correct it.

[dick]

Re: Weakly flogging

This whole thing is amazingly fun to watch. I lurk, therefore I am... a lurker, taking notes. Keep up the good work.

[zztype]

Re: Weakly flogging

DON'T FEED THE TROLLS!

SUPAH TROLL!