OPUBCO / Oklahoman Business Practices

[Pete]

Berry Tramel and Jenni Carlson had farewell columns in the Oklahoman today.

Will be interesting to see who tries to fill their shoes.

[okatty]

^Yes, enjoyed reading both of those. They are excellent writers and have always enjoyed their work. Good luck filling those shoes.

[scottk]

Honest question, are they (Oklahoman/Gatehouse) going to fill those positions?

The Oklahoman went from a 12 story office tower to what I understand is about 1/4 of the top floor of Century Center downtown. With so many more digital exclusive options for sports coverage, is the draw of The Oklahoman going to still be sports with the departure of their two most well known writers or is this simply the time to downsize and save money?

[Mr. Blue Sky]

Berry Tramel and Jenni Carlson had farewell columns in the Oklahoman today.

Will be interesting to see who tries to fill their shoes.

It will indeed. Tramel was the reason many kept subscribing digitally, and with Jenni leaving as well, itÂ’s the end of an era. Tramel though, wow, heÂ’s an excellent writer. Even his vacation columns having nothing to do with sports were must-reads.

Are they both going to the new OK sports site? If not, is Jenni going to TV? So much sports knowledge between the two of them. I agree Pete, who will dare to fill their shoes? I just canÂ’t help but feel The Oklahoman should be referred to in the past tense. Lots of troubles with them over the years, but itÂ’s still hard to watch.

[Pete]

^

They are both going to a website called Sellout Crowds.

They will be joined by a couple of Tulsa World writers and some others.

My understanding is that it's Oklahoma-based, not some sort of national setup although the details are still sketchy.

[GaryOKC6]

Since selling to Gannett the Oklahoman's content is crap. Most stories are "opinion" or just regurgitated USA Today stories. They have cut so much staff that there is not much left of what used to be the Oklahoman.

[BoulderSooner]

Since selling to Gannett the Oklahoman's content is crap. Most stories are "opinion" or just regurgitated USA Today stories. They have cut so much staff that there is not much left of what used to be the Oklahoman.

and remember that this is really not "Gannett" the USAtoday florida today company ..... this is "gannett" really GateHouse

[Pete]

It's sad but they still don't have a sustainable business model. You can never cut your way to prosperity.

It looks very much like they have been offering buyout packages to shed the salaries of people that have been there the longest, and if they replace them at all it's a kid straight out of college (and often small colleges) or regional content creators not even based in OKC.

I just don't see how the trend that started 30 years ago is ever going to reverse or even level off. Having run the Gazette for a while, there are just too many fixed costs with print and as well all know, it's a horrible way to deliver information.

The only reason 99% of current newspapers exist is they used to fill a real need and there is still some remaining attachment by an ever-aging population. We've been witnessing the slow death of newspapers for the last 30 years and I can't see any reason to think things will change.

[GaryOKC6]

I think they just care about the direct mail business, not the paper.

[catcherinthewry]

Great news, campers. This is what we have to look forward to in The Oklahoman - AI generated stories for HS football games.

https://twitter.com/scavendish/statu...13660021669952

[Pete]

Great news, campers. This is what we have to look forward to in The Oklahoman - AI generated stories for HS football games.

https://twitter.com/scavendish/statu...13660021669952

This would be better than what the Oklahoman does now for most games, even in 6A: nothing.

I try to follow Putnam City and I'm lucky if the paper even has a Friday score on Sunday, and they never have the stats. Fortunately, and inevitably, there are websites and apps that allow fans at the game to provide updates in real-time.

[oktxatty]

It's sad but they still don't have a sustainable business model. You can never cut your way to prosperity.

It looks very much like they have been offering buyout packages to shed the salaries of people that have been there the longest, and if they replace them at all it's a kid straight out of college (and often small colleges) or regional content creators not even based in OKC.

I just don't see how the trend that started 30 years ago is ever going to reverse or even level off. Having run the Gazette for a while, there are just too many fixed costs with print and as well all know, it's a horrible way to deliver information.

The only reason 99% of current newspapers exist is they used to fill a real need and there is still some remaining attachment by an ever-aging population. We've been witnessing the slow death of newspapers for the last 30 years and I can't see any reason to think things will change.

Spot on. There's still something very satisfying about sitting down for a couple of hours with the Sunday edition of the NYT, a much better experience than the electronic edition, IMO.

[Pete]

Spot on. There's still something very satisfying about sitting down for a couple of hours with the Sunday edition of the NYT, a much better experience than the electronic edition, IMO.

Most people that grew up reading the newspaper over morning coffee agree and thankfully, the NYT is still earning their keep.

I took the Sunday LA Times for a long time but they were an early web publisher and I soon started to feel very guilty about dumping that huge pile of paper into the trash, even though it went in the recycling bin.

I felt very guilty about the Gazette as well. You are literally chopping down trees but it's way, way worse than that. All that raw material has to be processed and trucked in and out. The only viable printer for us was in Dallas, so that was another big truck on the road both ways. Then, we had about a dozen drivers and 100 drop points. THEN people had to drive to pick it up. Sometimes we would co-publish on OKCTalk with literally a click of a mouse on our end and the same for readers.

It was all so incredibly wasteful and silly. But I get the appeal to anyone who grew up with newspaper ink on their fingers; I was that guy for a long time and it took a while for me to stop missing it.

[Dob Hooligan]

I'm old and was a print guy through and through. But I am 100% sold on electronic edition. Straight out of bed and onto the toilet with the iPad. No more slogging in the yard looking for a wet paper that may, or may not, be there. I read the print replica. Zoom in on items I might be having trouble with because I'm not seeing so good that morning. Shift to other papers, sites, or google an item I notice. I'm at a point where I don't like reading books or magazines either. It is all electronic for me. IPad, iPhone, Fire tablet, laptop or desktop. If I'm awake I am looking at a screen. With a TV playing in the room.

[Pete]

I'm old and was a print guy through and through. But I am 100% sold on electronic edition. Straight out of bed and onto the toilet with the iPad. No more slogging in the yard looking for a wet paper that may, or may not, be there. I read the print replica. Zoom in on items I might be having trouble with because I'm not seeing so good that morning. Shift to other papers, sites, or google an item I notice. I'm at a point where I don't like reading books or magazines either. It is all electronic for me. IPad, iPhone, Fire tablet, laptop or desktop. If I'm awake I am looking at a screen. With a TV playing in the room.

This describes 98% of Americans.

When you can't even count on baby boomers, you know you've lost your market (and I'm a boomer).

[catcherinthewry]

This describes 98% of Americans.

When you can't even count on baby boomers, you know you've lost your market (and I'm a boomer).

For me the only reason to get a physical paper would to be able to do the crossword, sudoku and the crypto quote. But their service was so unreliable that I had to discontinue home delivery. I hope they get to the point soon where they are 100% digital so they don't have to worry about their ridiculously early deadline (thanks to printing in Tulsa) and can fit more late breaking news in their E-edition.

[unfundedrick]

For me the only reason to get a physical paper would to be able to do the crossword, sudoku and the crypto quote. But their service was so unreliable that I had to discontinue home delivery. I hope they get to the point soon where they are 100% digital so they don't have to worry about their ridiculously early deadline (thanks to printing in Tulsa) and can fit more late breaking news in their E-edition.

I have a lot of uses for a newspaper besides reading it. I would be lost without that.

[SEMIweather]

Fairly underwhelmed by how Sellout Crowd has been rolling out their website today. It will be interesting to see whether this will be a successful venture or not. https://twitter.com/selloutcrowd_

[barrettd]

Fairly underwhelmed by how Sellout Crowd has been rolling out their website today. It will be interesting to see whether this will be a successful venture or not. https://twitter.com/selloutcrowd_

Is this a new feature of Twitter that it won't let me read anything unless I'm signed in?

[Pete]

Is this a new feature of Twitter that it won't let me read anything unless I'm signed in?

You mean X? (haha)... Yes, that's yet another change under the Musk regime.

[Martin]

i've been following several twitter channels for updates on the ukraine conflict and have been using nitter to bypass twitter's craziness. all you have to do is replace "twitter.com" with "nitter.net" for any twitter link:

Sellout Crowd (@selloutcrowd_) | nitter

[barrettd]

You mean X? (haha)... Yes, that's yet another change under the Musk regime.

I thought as much. Sometimes links work and sometimes they don't, so I wasn't sure if it was a feature or a bug. Hard to discern in the new regime, I suppose.

[barrettd]

i've been following several twitter channels for updates on the ukraine conflict and have been using nitter to bypass twitter's craziness. all you have to do is replace "twitter.com" with "nitter.net" for any twitter link:

Sellout Crowd (@selloutcrowd_) | nitter

Thanks! The site timed out on the nitter link, but I'll keep it in mind!

[HangryHippo]

i've been following several twitter channels for updates on the ukraine conflict and have been using nitter to bypass twitter's craziness. all you have to do is replace "twitter.com" with "nitter.net" for any twitter link:

Sellout Crowd (@selloutcrowd_) | nitter

What other magic have you been holding out on sharing with us, Martin?

[Martin]

What other magic have you been holding out on sharing with us, Martin?

i plead the 5th!