#mrs. gannett

[alexusonfire]

♡•Elizabeth Marvel Masterlist•♡

♡•Elizabeth Keane•♡

♡•Ella Gannett•♡

♡•Mrs. Dalton•♡

♡•Victoria Helstrom•♡

♡•Rita Calhoun•♡

♡•Constance Heck•♡

♡•Jean Meyerowitz•♡

[brookston]

Holidays 8.12

Holidays

Adam Cole Appreciation Day

Air Force Day (Russia)

Aloha Day

Awa Dance Festival begins (Tokushima, Japan)

Baseball Fans Day

Children’s Health Day

812 Day

The Glorious Twelfth (a.k.a. Grouse Day; UK)

International Drive Like a Dickhead Day

International Youth Day (UN)

Karen Martyrs’ Day (Myanmar)

Mother’s Day (Thailand)

National Code Lavender Day

National Librarian Day (India)

National Mackey Day (UK)

National Middle Child Day

National Mother’s Day (Thailand)

National Remote Sensing Day (India)

National Sewing Machine Day

National Shout Out Day

Otter Day (French Republic)

PC Day (a.k.a. IBM-PC Day)

Queen Dowager’s Day (Thailand)

Solar Alignment at Teotihuacan (Mexico; also 4.29)

Truck Driver Day

Vinyl Record Day

War of the Worlds Day

World Elephant Day

World Hirola Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Milkman Day

Modern British Beer Day

National Gooey Butter Cake Day

National Julienne Fries Day

Oreo Day

Put Peanuts In Your Coca-Cola Day

Toasted Almond Bar Day

2nd Saturday in August

Bud Billiken Parade (Chicago, Illinois) [2nd Saturday]

Celebrate Your Lakes Day (New Hampshire) [2nd Saturday]

Ferry Fair Day (Edinburgh, Scotland) [2nd Saturday]

Great Taste of the Midwest (Wisconsin) [2nd Saturday]

International Swingers Day [2nd Saturday]

National Bowling Day [2nd Saturday]

National Garage Sale Day [2nd Saturday]

National Model Aviation Day [2nd Saturday]

Yard Sale Day [2nd Saturday]

Independence Days

India (Pre-Independence Celebrations; 1947)

Feast Days

Amaranth and Quinoa Day (Pagan)

Clare (Christian; Saint)

Euplius (Christian; Saint)

Eusebius of Milan (Christian; Saint)

Feast of the Prophet and His Bride (Thelema)

Festival for Venus Vitrix (Victorious Venus; Ancient Rone)

Festival of Hungry Ghosts (China) [15th of 7th lunar month]

Festival of Intoxication (Ancient Egyptian feast celebrating Sekhmet nearly destroying mankind, but stopped by being tricked into drinking a river full of red beer)

Festival of the Tooth begins (Buddhism)

Flunky (Muppetism)

Francisco Franco Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Ghost Festival (a.k.,a. Hungry Ghosts Festival) [15th Day of 7th Lunar Month]

Herculanus of Brescia (Christian; Saint)

Innocent XI, Pope (Christian; Saint)

Jænberht (Christian; Saint)

Jane Frances de Chantal (Christian; Saint)

Krishna Janmashtami (Hindu)

Light of Isis Feast (Ancient Egypt)

Lychnapsia (Birthday of Isis; Ancient Rome)

Milton (Positivist; Saint)

Muiredach (a.k.a. Murtagh; Christian; Saint)

Old Lammas Day

Osirisian Mysteries (a.k.a. Feast of the Lights of Isis; Ancient Egypt)

Porcarius II (Christian; Saint)

Sea Org Day (Scientology)

Thomas Bewick (Artology)

Vegetable Sauce Day (Pastafarian)

Zaraday (Discordian)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sensho (先勝 Japan) [Good luck in the morning, bad luck in the afternoon.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because it’s Hitler’s mother’s birthday.)

Premieres

The Aristocrats (Documentary Film; 2005)

The Asphalt Jungle, by W.R. Burnett (Novel; 1949)

Backstreet Boys, by the Backstreet Boys (Album; 1997)

Batman: Assault on Arkham (WB Animated Film; 2014)

The Black Album, by Metallica (Album; 1991)

Bosko the Musketeer (WB LT Cartoon; 1933)

Chances Are, by Johnny Mathis (Song; 1957)

Curse of the Pink Panther (Film; 1983)

Cycles (Virtual Reality Disney Cartoon; 2014)

Detroit Rock City (Film; 1999)

Dive Bomber (Film; 1941)

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Film; 1941)

Emily the Criminal (Film; 2022)

Fall (Film; 2022)

Green Eggs and Ham, by Dr. Seuss (Children’s Book; 1960)

Hare-um Scare-um (WB MM Cartoon; 1939)

Hillbilly Hare (WB MM Cartoon; 1950)

Horton Hears a Who!, by Dr. Seuss (Children’s Book; 1955)

Istanbul (Not Constantinople), recorded by The Four Lads (Song; 1953)

Just Dogs (Disney Cartoon; 1932)

The Lady in the Lake, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1943)

My Father's Dragon, by Ruth Stiles Gannett (Novel; 1948)

Old Ways, by Neil Young (Album; 1985)

Sausage Party (Film; 2016)

Senna (Documentary Film; 2011)

Sixteen Candles, by recorded The Crests (Song; 1958)

The Swimming Pool, by Mary Roberts Rinehart (Novel; 1952)

Trouble Is My Business, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1939)

Wings (Film; 1927)

Young Guns (Film; 1988)

Today’s Name Days

Hilaria, Karl, Radegunde (Austria)

Anicet, Franciska, Hilarija, Ivana, Veselka (Croatia)

Klára (Czech Republic)

Clara (Denmark)

Klaara, Klaarika (Estonia)

Kiira, Klaara (Finland)

Clarisse (France)

Andreas, Innozenz, Radegunde (Germany)

Photis (Greece)

Klára (Hungary)

Chiara, Equizio, Ercolano, Onofrio (Italy)

Anisa, Klāra, Klarisa, Vizma (Latvia)

Aiškutė, Laima, Laimona, Laimonas (Lithuania)

Camilla, Klara (Norway)

Bądzisław, Hilaria, Klara, Lech, Leonida, Piotr (Poland)

Darina (Slovakia)

Hilaria, Juana (Spain)

Klara (Sweden)

Clair, Claire, Clara, Clarabel, Clare, Clarinda, Clarissa, Murdock (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 224 of 2024; 141 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 32 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Coll (Hazel) [Day 5 of 28]

Chinese: Month 6 (Ji-Wei), Day 26 (Ren-Yin)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 25 Av 5783

Islamic: 25 Muharram 1445

J Cal: 14 Hasa; Sevenday [134 of 30]

Julian: 30 July 2023

Moon: 13%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 28 Dante (8th Month) [Milton]

Runic Half Month: Thorn (Defense) [Day 15 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 53 of 94)

Zodiac: Leo (Day 22 of 31)

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 8.12

Holidays

Adam Cole Appreciation Day

Air Force Day (Russia)

Aloha Day

Awa Dance Festival begins (Tokushima, Japan)

Baseball Fans Day

Children’s Health Day

812 Day

The Glorious Twelfth (a.k.a. Grouse Day; UK)

International Drive Like a Dickhead Day

International Youth Day (UN)

Karen Martyrs’ Day (Myanmar)

Mother’s Day (Thailand)

National Code Lavender Day

National Librarian Day (India)

National Mackey Day (UK)

National Middle Child Day

National Mother’s Day (Thailand)

National Remote Sensing Day (India)

National Sewing Machine Day

National Shout Out Day

Otter Day (French Republic)

PC Day (a.k.a. IBM-PC Day)

Queen Dowager’s Day (Thailand)

Solar Alignment at Teotihuacan (Mexico; also 4.29)

Truck Driver Day

Vinyl Record Day

War of the Worlds Day

World Elephant Day

World Hirola Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Milkman Day

Modern British Beer Day

National Gooey Butter Cake Day

National Julienne Fries Day

Oreo Day

Put Peanuts In Your Coca-Cola Day

Toasted Almond Bar Day

2nd Saturday in August

Bud Billiken Parade (Chicago, Illinois) [2nd Saturday]

Celebrate Your Lakes Day (New Hampshire) [2nd Saturday]

Ferry Fair Day (Edinburgh, Scotland) [2nd Saturday]

Great Taste of the Midwest (Wisconsin) [2nd Saturday]

International Swingers Day [2nd Saturday]

National Bowling Day [2nd Saturday]

National Garage Sale Day [2nd Saturday]

National Model Aviation Day [2nd Saturday]

Yard Sale Day [2nd Saturday]

Independence Days

India (Pre-Independence Celebrations; 1947)

Feast Days

Amaranth and Quinoa Day (Pagan)

Clare (Christian; Saint)

Euplius (Christian; Saint)

Eusebius of Milan (Christian; Saint)

Feast of the Prophet and His Bride (Thelema)

Festival for Venus Vitrix (Victorious Venus; Ancient Rone)

Festival of Hungry Ghosts (China) [15th of 7th lunar month]

Festival of Intoxication (Ancient Egyptian feast celebrating Sekhmet nearly destroying mankind, but stopped by being tricked into drinking a river full of red beer)

Festival of the Tooth begins (Buddhism)

Flunky (Muppetism)

Francisco Franco Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Ghost Festival (a.k.,a. Hungry Ghosts Festival) [15th Day of 7th Lunar Month]

Herculanus of Brescia (Christian; Saint)

Innocent XI, Pope (Christian; Saint)

Jænberht (Christian; Saint)

Jane Frances de Chantal (Christian; Saint)

Krishna Janmashtami (Hindu)

Light of Isis Feast (Ancient Egypt)

Lychnapsia (Birthday of Isis; Ancient Rome)

Milton (Positivist; Saint)

Muiredach (a.k.a. Murtagh; Christian; Saint)

Old Lammas Day

Osirisian Mysteries (a.k.a. Feast of the Lights of Isis; Ancient Egypt)

Porcarius II (Christian; Saint)

Sea Org Day (Scientology)

Thomas Bewick (Artology)

Vegetable Sauce Day (Pastafarian)

Zaraday (Discordian)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sensho (先勝 Japan) [Good luck in the morning, bad luck in the afternoon.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because it’s Hitler’s mother’s birthday.)

Premieres

The Aristocrats (Documentary Film; 2005)

The Asphalt Jungle, by W.R. Burnett (Novel; 1949)

Backstreet Boys, by the Backstreet Boys (Album; 1997)

Batman: Assault on Arkham (WB Animated Film; 2014)

The Black Album, by Metallica (Album; 1991)

Bosko the Musketeer (WB LT Cartoon; 1933)

Chances Are, by Johnny Mathis (Song; 1957)

Curse of the Pink Panther (Film; 1983)

Cycles (Virtual Reality Disney Cartoon; 2014)

Detroit Rock City (Film; 1999)

Dive Bomber (Film; 1941)

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Film; 1941)

Emily the Criminal (Film; 2022)

Fall (Film; 2022)

Green Eggs and Ham, by Dr. Seuss (Children’s Book; 1960)

Hare-um Scare-um (WB MM Cartoon; 1939)

Hillbilly Hare (WB MM Cartoon; 1950)

Horton Hears a Who!, by Dr. Seuss (Children’s Book; 1955)

Istanbul (Not Constantinople), recorded by The Four Lads (Song; 1953)

Just Dogs (Disney Cartoon; 1932)

The Lady in the Lake, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1943)

My Father's Dragon, by Ruth Stiles Gannett (Novel; 1948)

Old Ways, by Neil Young (Album; 1985)

Sausage Party (Film; 2016)

Senna (Documentary Film; 2011)

Sixteen Candles, by recorded The Crests (Song; 1958)

The Swimming Pool, by Mary Roberts Rinehart (Novel; 1952)

Trouble Is My Business, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1939)

Wings (Film; 1927)

Young Guns (Film; 1988)

Today’s Name Days

Hilaria, Karl, Radegunde (Austria)

Anicet, Franciska, Hilarija, Ivana, Veselka (Croatia)

Klára (Czech Republic)

Clara (Denmark)

Klaara, Klaarika (Estonia)

Kiira, Klaara (Finland)

Clarisse (France)

Andreas, Innozenz, Radegunde (Germany)

Photis (Greece)

Klára (Hungary)

Chiara, Equizio, Ercolano, Onofrio (Italy)

Anisa, Klāra, Klarisa, Vizma (Latvia)

Aiškutė, Laima, Laimona, Laimonas (Lithuania)

Camilla, Klara (Norway)

Bądzisław, Hilaria, Klara, Lech, Leonida, Piotr (Poland)

Darina (Slovakia)

Hilaria, Juana (Spain)

Klara (Sweden)

Clair, Claire, Clara, Clarabel, Clare, Clarinda, Clarissa, Murdock (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 224 of 2024; 141 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 6 of week 32 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Coll (Hazel) [Day 5 of 28]

Chinese: Month 6 (Ji-Wei), Day 26 (Ren-Yin)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 25 Av 5783

Islamic: 25 Muharram 1445

J Cal: 14 Hasa; Sevenday [134 of 30]

Julian: 30 July 2023

Moon: 13%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 28 Dante (8th Month) [Milton]

Runic Half Month: Thorn (Defense) [Day 15 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 53 of 94)

Zodiac: Leo (Day 22 of 31)

[cavenewstimes]

Mr. Pickles, a 90-year-old tortoise, becomes first-time dad after Mrs. Pickles' surprise birth USA TODAY on March 21, 2023 at 12:37 PM

Mr. Pickles, a radiated tortoise at the Houston Zoo, and his partner Mrs. Pickles welcomed three hatchlings: Dill, Gherkin and Jalapeño.        Mr. Pickles, a radiated tortoise at the Houston Zoo, and his partner Mrs. Pickles welcomed three hatchlings: Dill, Gherkin and Jalapeño.        Read More  GANNETT Syndication Service 

[kohn-singleton-copley]

William Brattle (1706-1776), John Singleton Copley, 1756, Harvard Art Museums

Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Partial Gift of Mrs. Thomas Brattle Gannett and Partial Purchase through the generosity of Robert T. Gannett, an Anonymous Donor and the Alpheus Hyatt Purchasing Fund Size: 128 x 102.5 cm (50 3/8 x 40 3/8 in.) framed: 143.5 x 118.4 x 7.3 cm (56 1/2 x 46 5/8 x 2 7/8 in.) Medium: Oil on canvas

https://www.harvardartmuseums.org/collections/object/227540

[lafiametta]

Psst imagine John tucking his hair behind his ears when he gets nervous

(Just to make it clear, I haven’t actually read The Terror, so while what follows is true to show-canon, it isn’t necessarily in keeping with book-canon.)

So many weeks and months on board a ship, you come to quickly learn each man’s small personal tics and habits. Like how Barnett, the young midshipman from Cork, bites his nails down to the quick until they’re red and ragged. Or how Sharpe, the cook’s assistant, cracks his knuckles, kneading his fist into the meat of his palm as he listens to them pop in neat succession. Most of the other ABs on the Gannett are young, like Henry, and high-spirited, the sound of at least one knee jangling up and down against the wooden boards of a mess table often lasting the length of their meal.

And then there is Mr. Bridgens, the wardroom steward. 

Normally, Henry would take little notice of someone not in his immediate circle, and much older besides, but the man has been helping Henry and a few of the others with their letters, instructing them after supper with all the patience of a long-suffering schoolmaster. His hair is dark, a flinty gray, and he grows it long, past the nape of his neck. It never seems to be out of place, always wetly slicked back against his head, and yet occasionally Henry catches him stopping to tuck some imaginary stray strand behind his ear. 

It seems to happen most often when Mr. Bridgens is in the presence of an officer, either when attending on them at table, or else in the performance of one of his other many duties, and so Henry would chalk it up to a simple nervous slip, an unthinking habit that even Mr. Bridgens himself was perhaps not fully aware of. 

And yet it manifests on other occasions, too, at moments when the steward should have no true cause for disquiet. For sometimes when they are hunched side-by-side over a thin volume of English grammar, Mr. Bridgens’s sonorous voice rounding out some tricky joining of vowel and consonant, he will glance over at Henry, and then suddenly his fingers will lift from off the page and circle over the top of his ear, with only the slightest tremor in his recitation.

[hub-pub-bub]

Agents have to consider where your work fits in a crowded marketplace. By including that information in your query letter, you’re making their job easier—and what stands out about your manuscript even more evident.

3 Ways to Find Your Book’s Unique Selling Proposition

1. THE SAME, BUT DIFFERENT

“The same, but different,” is what publishing is all about in today’s challenging environment. Publishers are looking for something the same as [insert your favorite bestseller here]; saying your work is “just like a bestselling XYZ,” proves there is a market for that kind of book.

But your concept should also be fresh enough to set it apart from the bestseller and to distinguish itself in a marketplace full of similar stories. The same, but different.

Consider these examples of stories broken down in this way:

“Just like J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, only based on the War of the Roses.” (George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones)

“Just like Jane Austen’s Emma, only set in Beverly Hills.” (Amy Heckerling’s Clueless)

“Just like Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind, only the slaves are the main characters.” (Alice Randall’s The Wind Done Gone)

Plot Perfect: How to Build Unforgettable Stories Scene by Scene

In marketing parlance, “the same, but different” statement is known as a unique selling proposition (USP). This term refers to the qualities that differentiate a product. A USP is the marketing angle to your theme. It’s what you need to pitch the book to agents, publishers, booksellers and, ultimately, readers. There’s no point in trying to sell a story that has no USP— that is just “same old, same old,” and cannot find its place in today’s competitive market.

To find your own USP, ask yourself these questions.

• What is my story really about? • What am I trying to say? • How is my story different from all the others on the same shelf? • Why would readers choose to read this story instead of [insert bestseller here]?

Now describe your own story in terms of “the same, but different.” Consider the plot of the work you’re comparing your own story to—and how yours differs from it.

2. X MEETS Y

Another way to think of USPs is to borrow from the classic Hollywood high-concept formula: X meets Y. This works well when your story is a new twist on an old favorite or a mash-up of two genres, ideas or characters.

Successful examples include:

“Abraham Lincoln meets vampires.” (Seth Grahame-Smith’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter)

“The Handmaid’s Tale meets The Hunger Games.” (Shannon Stoker’s The Registry)

“Prizzi’s Honor meets True Lies.” (Simon Kinberg’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith)

Try coming up with an X meets Y formula for your story. Once you’ve got it, ask yourself how the respective themes of X and Y relate to your story—and perhaps create a new theme.

3. THE ONLY TROUBLE IS …

If you’re still stuck trying to find a unique selling point for your story, identify the main conflict and rework your USP so that it highlights your hero or heroine’s problem. This is another way of looking at plot, as in the following examples.

“A young man meets the girl of his dreams. The only trouble is, she’s a fish.” (Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel and Bruce Jay Friedman’s Splash)

“A playboy joins a single parents’ group to hit on single moms. The only trouble is, he doesn’t have a kid.” (Nick Hornby’s About a Boy)

“A newly crowned king must comfort his people during troubling times. The only trouble is, he stutters very badly.” (David Seidler’s The King’s Speech)

What’s the trouble in your story? What’s the main obstacle your protagonist must overcome—and how does that obstacle relate to your theme?

Excerpted from Plot Perfect © 2014 by Paula Munier, with permission from Writer’s Digest Books.

About Paula Munier

Paula Munier, Senior Literary Agent and Content Strategist at Talcott Notch Literary Services, boasts broad experience creating and marketing exceptional content in all formats across all markets for such media giants as WGBH, Disney, Fidelity, Gannett, Greenspun Media Group, F&W Media, and Quayside. She began her career as a journalist, and along the way added editor, acquisitions specialist, digital content manager, and publishing executive to her repertoire. Her specialties include crime fiction, women’s fiction, upmarket fiction, crossover YA, high-concept SFF, and nonfiction. Paula is very involved with the mystery community, having served four terms as President of the New England chapter of Mystery Writers of America as well as on the MWA board. Paula has also served on the New England Crime Bake committee for ten years and counting. And she’s an active member of Sisters in Crime, ITW, AWP, and SCBWI. A popular speaker and writing teacher, Paula has authored/co-authored more than a dozen books, including the bestselling Plot Perfect, The Writer’s Guide to Beginnings, Writing with Quiet Hands, and the acclaimed memoir Fixing Freddie: A True Story about a Boy, a Mom, and a Very, Very Bad Beagle. Her first mystery, A Borrowing of Bones, debuted in September 2018 from Minotaur, an imprint of St. Martin’s Press.

View all posts by Paula Munier →

[musicalcuriosity]

Friday, December 29th, 1899- The Democrat and Chronicle

How the newsboys in Rochester spent their Christmas. 230 boys from the Boys’ Evening Club celebrated at the Unitarian Church in Rochester. The boys, newsboys and bootblacks, would attend school here two nights a week. They were instructed in regular school subjects and various trades. 

People:

Mr. and Mrs. Gannett, teachers at the school at the Unitarian Church

Superintendent Sweet

George W. Loomis, gave a lecture on Egypt

Places:

Unitarian Church (Cortland & Temple Streets)

[alexusonfire]

Ella Gannett Moodboard

[kohn-singleton-copley]

William Brattle (1706-1776), John Singleton Copley, 1756, Harvard Art Museums

Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Partial Gift of Mrs. Thomas Brattle Gannett and Partial Purchase through the generosity of Robert T. Gannett, an Anonymous Donor and the Alpheus Hyatt Purchasing Fund Size: 128 x 102.5 cm (50 3/8 x 40 3/8 in.) framed: 143.5 x 118.4 x 7.3 cm (56 1/2 x 46 5/8 x 2 7/8 in.) Medium: Oil on canvas

https://www.harvardartmuseums.org/collections/object/227540

[orbemnews]

New Suitor May Enter Fray for Tribune Publishing A deal that would reshape the American newspaper industry has run into complications just one month after an agreement was reached, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. As a result, the New York hedge fund Alden Global Capital may have to fend off a new suitor for Tribune Publishing, the chain that owns major metropolitan dailies across the country, including The Chicago Tribune, The Daily News and The Baltimore Sun, the people said. On Feb. 16, Alden, the largest shareholder in Tribune Publishing, with a 32 percent stake, reached an agreement to buy the rest of the chain in a deal that valued the company at $630 million. In the deal, Alden would take ownership of all the Tribune Publishing papers — and then spin off The Sun and two smaller Maryland papers at a price of $65 million to a nonprofit organization controlled by the Maryland hotel magnate Stewart W. Bainum Jr. In recent days, Mr. Bainum and Alden have found themselves at loggerheads over details of the operating agreements that would be in effect as the Maryland papers transitioned from one owner to another, the people said. In response, Mr. Bainum has taken a preliminary step toward making a bid for all of Tribune Publishing, the people said. Mr. Bainum has asked the Tribune Publishing special committee, a group made up of three independent board members, for permission to be released from a nondisclosure agreement prohibiting him from discussing the deal, so that he would be able to pursue partners for a new bid, the people said. A spokeswoman for Mr. Bainum said he had no comment. Through a spokesman, Tribune Publishing’s special committee declined to comment. An Alden spokesman had no comment. Alden has invested in the newspaper business for more than a decade. It owns around 60 dailies, including The Denver Post and The San Jose Mercury News, through a subsidiary, MediaNews Group. Its deal to acquire the rest of Tribune Publishing would make it an even greater force in the news media industry, by some measures the second-largest newspaper company after Gannett, the company that publishes one-fifth of all American newspapers, including USA Today. Journalists have criticized Alden for deep cost-cutting at its newspapers, often through laying off journalists and shrinking its local news coverage. Over the last year, journalists at several Tribune papers have led public campaigns urging local benefactors to buy the newspapers that employ them so that they would not fall under the hedge fund’s control. Alden maintains that it is the rare company that keeps local newspapers from going out of business. The Alden-Tribune deal requires the approval of the shareholders who own the roughly two-thirds of Tribune Publishing stock not owned by Alden. The largest holder of those shares, with a nearly 25 percent overall stake, is Patrick Soon-Shiong, the biotech billionaire who owns The Los Angeles Times with his wife, Michele B. Chan. Dr. Soon-Shiong, who owns enough of Tribune Publishing to veto the deal himself, has declined to comment on the agreement between Alden and Tribune. He declined to comment on Sunday on Mr. Bainum’s plan. If Mr. Bainum manages to reach an agreement to buy Tribune, he would be likely to seek local owners for its other newspapers, which also include The Hartford Courant, The Orlando Sentinel and The South Florida Sun Sentinel, the people said. Two of the people said Mr. Bainum, who resides in a Maryland suburb of Washington, was prepared to put up $100 million for a bid and then seek additional investments from others. Since 1997 Mr. Bainum has been the chairman of Choice Hotels, a multibillion-dollar public company that owns the Comfort Inn, Quality Inn and MainStay Suites brands, a company that grew out of his father’s business. Alden has sought full ownership of Tribune Publishing since 2019, when it revealed that it had bought its 32 percent stake. Last year, it failed to reach an agreement to buy the rest of the company with a bid that valued the total company at $520 million. Tribune announced last month that it held $99 million in cash at the end of 2020. It also announced in December the sale of a majority-owned subsidiary for $160 million. Source link Orbem News #enter #Fray #Publishing #Suitor #Tribune

[haitilegends]

THE SOUND OF SILENCE - KILLING THE HOPE IN HAITI by JEAN JEAN-PIERRE THE VILLAGE VOICE, NEW YORK The myriad bullet holes embedded in the facade of Radio Haiti since the military staged the bloodiest coup d'etat in Haiti's history in 1991 stand as a reminder of the precariousness of practicing independent journalism there. Memories of the expulsion and torture of scores of journalists and human rights activists and the total destruction of Radio Haiti by the regime of Jean-Claude (Baby Doc) Duvalier in the wake of the 1980 U.S. presidential election are indelibly etched in the national consciousness. But last week, a voice that had survived all those perilous episodes was silenced forever. Early on Monday, April 3, journalist and radio station owner JEAN LÉOPOLD DOMINIQUE was shot dead, execution style, in Radio Haiti's garage in Delmas, just outside of Port-au-Prince, as he was about to enter the building to host his popular daily program, Inter-Actualités. MICHELLE MONTAS, his wife and co-anchor, missed the assassin or assassins by minutes. She discovered the bodies of Dominique and caretaker Jean-Claude Louissaint, also murdered, lying a few feet from each other. "Today was one of the rare occasions we drove to the station in separate vehicles," she said in a telephone interview from Port-au-Prince. With the odious murder of this courageous journalist much of the hope entertained by many Haitians about the future of democracy in their country was wiped out. Indeed Jean Dominique epitomized the difficult battle for freedom of expression in Haiti. An #agronomist by profession, Dominique, 69, began his #broadcasting career in the early '60s with a time-leased commercial program on Radio Haiti. After he purchased the station in the mid '70s, he changed its name to Radio Haiti Inter. Dominique gained prominence in 1973 when U.S. ambassador and Duvalier apologist Clinton Knox was kidnapped by a group of leftists. They demanded the release of political prisoners, $500,000 ransom, and a plane to Mexico. Dominique's nonstop reportage and the subsequent cave-in of Baby Doc emboldened journalists and activists. Dominique's work, along with that of the weekly newspaper Le Petit Samedi Soir, laid the groundwork for an independent press in Haiti. In the late '60s, Dominique introduced the first daily #Creole program in Haiti. Prior to that, all programs other than government propaganda and time-leased shows were broadcast in French, the colonialist tongue, as a way of keeping the masses outside of the mainstream. Following the election of Jimmy Carter in 1976, his administration's human rights-oriented foreign policy helped create a new journalistic paradigm in Haiti. This allowed Dominique and an increasing number of people working in the media to challenge the repressive rule of the Duvaliers and their thuggish Tonton Macoutes. Dominique took advantage of U.S. pressure on the dictator to begin broadcasting editorials critical of the government. Through it all, Dominique always sought to inform his listeners on the role Washington played in Haitian politics. Ronald Reagan's election in 1980 focused his analysis. Less than one month after the election, the Duvalier government sent more than 30 journalists and human rights activists into exile. Dominique escaped to the Venezuelan embassy and later to the U.S., where he was reunited with his wife, who was among the exiles. They remained in New York for the next six years. In February 1986, in the aftermath of the popular revolt that overthrew Baby Doc, they returned to Haiti. More than 50,000 people greeted them at the airport. Radio Haiti had to be rebuilt from scratch. Haitians from every shade of the socioeconomic spectrum from the impoverished street vendor in Port-au-Prince to those living in the Diaspora poured in thousands of dollars. In late 1986, Dominique was back on the air. In December 1990, Jean-Bertrand Aristide won the presidency in what was called the first truly democratic election in Haitian history. Although Dominique was a fervent Aristide supporter from the start, he refused the president's offer to become minister of information. "I am an independent, and I will die an independent," he often said. Yet his advice was often sought by Aristide (as it was by René Préval, the current president), fueling rumors that he was in Aristide's pocket until his death. However, the acerbic editorials of the sometimes irascible journalist spared no one. Dominique was known to publicly and privately criticize the popular Aristide for his intractability, as well as for his penchant to surround himself with sycophants. The violent 1991 military coup thrust Dominique and his wife into three more years of exile in the U.S. Upon his return to Haiti in 1994, when Aristide was restored by a U.S.-led multinational force, Dominique faced some of the toughest hurdles of his career: The oligarchy refused to air commercials on his station. "You have betrayed our class," he once recalled being told by some of his former sponsors. In a country where privileges are commensurate with the lightness of one's skin, Dominique, a mulatto from a well-to-do family, chose agronomy, a profession which, in Haiti then a truly agricultural country brought him closer to the peasants. As a journalist, he grew into a passionate advocate for social justice for the downtrodden. Filmmaker Jonathan Demme, who was working on a documentary on Dominique at the time of his death, referred to him as "a composite of Edward R. Murrow and Paul Revere in that he was the quintessential professional and patriot." News of Dominique's murder brought a disturbing dose of new reality to the Haitians in the Diaspora, as both of his daily programs Inter-Actualités at 7 a.m. and the interview-oriented Face à l'Opinion (Face the Opinion) in the afternoon have been simulcast since 1995 in the tri-state area over Haitian-owned Radio Soleil, a Brooklyn-based subcarrier, which reaches over 275,000 people. As speculations abound as to who was responsible for the assassinations of Dominique and Louissaint, some suspicions have focused on the atavistic Tonton Macoutes, while others hint at participation of the left. Jean Dominique was a staunch opponent of the Duvaliers and their murderous Tonton Macoutes, who had tortured and jailed him. And a celebrated editorial last fall addressing what he believed was unjust pressure being put on him by Aristide's former chief of police, Danny Toussaint, now a senatorial candidate, reads like a testament: " . . . and if I am still alive, I will close down the station after having denounced the plot hatched against me and I will return into exile one more time with my wife and my children." Nevertheless, in spite of the tears of his friends, nobody on the political scene in Haiti today can be exculpated. Friends and foes alike have helped create a climate of violence in which a life is not even worth the $100 that is reportedly the asking price for hired guns these days in the country. Jean Dominique recently told a journalist, "I have no tolerance for those who speak with guns in their hands." Once again in Haiti, we are reminded that those with the guns have no tolerance for people who speak with their hearts and minds. ~ Jean Jean-Pierre (Photo courtesy of AFP Photo) http://www.nchr.org/nchr/images/Jean_Dominique http://www.nchr.org/nchr/images/spacer.gif The Sound of Silence - Killing the Hope in Haiti 🎶 Listen to Ode to Jean Dominique par Jean Jean-Pierre et son Orchestre Kiskeya au Carnegie Hall 3 Jan. 2004 by HAITI☆LEGENDS #np on #SoundCloud https://soundcloud.com/gabrisan/ode-to-jean-dominique-par-jean ---------------------------------------- ABOUT JEAN JEAN-PIERRE Jean-Pierre, the founder and director of the Kiskeya Orchestra and its driving force, is a journalist, composer, musician, arranger, playwright, screenwriter, producer and bandleader. His unrelenting passion to affirm his Haitian identity and represent the rich and vibrant culture of Haiti led to the birth of the orchestra. Born and raised in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Mr. Jean Jean-Pierre began his training as a drummer and gained invaluable experience as a young musician performing locally with the Bossa Combo Band and with popular recording artists such as Haiti’s star Ansy Dérose, Brazilian vocalist Nelson Ned, and Puerto Rican singer Daniel Santos. He moved to the United States in the summer of 1974 and quickly immersed himself in New York’s music world. Since then he has distinguished himself as a musician and composer, performing with several touring bands whose styles range from R & B to pop-rock. Pursuing his commitment to affirm his Haitian identity and represent the best of Haitian society and culture, Mr. Jean Jean-Pierre began a journalistic career focused on Haitian issues, writing for the Village Voice and United Nations Radio and as a columnist for the Gannett Newspapers – all while writing and producing music. READ MORE: https://ht.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Jean-Pierre HAITI☆LEGENDS #history #JeanDominique #RadioHaiti #MichelleMontas #VillageVoice #JeanléopoldDominique #JeanJeanPierre #JonathanDemme #haitilegends #iamgabrisan

[all-my-books]

2017 Reading

262 books read. 60% of new reads Non-fiction, authors from 55 unique countries, 35% of authors read from countries other than USA, UK, Canada, and Australia. Asterisks denote re-reads, bolds are favorites. January: The Deeds of the Disturber – Elizabeth Peters The Wiregrass – Pam Webber Homegoing – Yaa Gyasi It Didn't Start With You – Mark Wolynn Facing the Lion – Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton Before We Visit the Goddess – Chitra Divakaruni Colored People – Henry Louis Gates Jr. My Khyber Marriage – Morag Murray Abdullah Miss Bianca in the Salt Mines – Margery Sharp Farewell to the East End – Jennifer Worth Fire and Air – Erik Vlaminck My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me – Jennifer Teege Catherine the Great – Robert K Massie My Mother's Sabbath Days – Chaim Grade Not the Israel My Parents Promised Me – Harvey Pekar, JT Waldman The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend – Katarina Bivald Stammered Songbook – Erwin Mortier Savushun – Simin Daneshvar The Prophet – Kahlil Gibran Beyond the Walls – Nazim Hikmet The Dressmaker of Khair Khana – Gayle Tzemach Lemmon A Day No Pigs Would Die – Robert Newton Peck *

February: Bone Black – bell hooks Special Exits – Joyce Farmer Reading Like a Writer – Francine Prose Bright Dead Things – Ada Limon Middlemarch – George Eliot Confessions of an English Opium Eater – Thomas de Quincey Medusa's Gaze – Marina Belozerskaya Child of the Prophecy – Juliet Marillier * The File on H – Ismail Kadare The Motorcycle Diaries – Ernesto Che Guevara Passing – Nella Larsen Whose Body? - Dorothy L. Sayers The Spiral Staircase – Karen Armstrong Station Eleven – Emily St. John Mandel Reading Lolita in Tehran – Azar Nafisi Defiance – Nechama Tec

March: Yes, Chef – Marcus Samuelsson Discontent and its Civilizations – Mohsin Hamid The Gulag Archipelago Vol. 1 – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Patience and Sarah – Isabel Miller Dying Light in Corduba – Lindsey Davis * Five Days at Memorial – Sheri Fink A Man Called Ove – Fredrik Backman * The Shia Revival – Vali Nasr Girt – David Hunt Half Magic – Edward Eager * Dreams of Joy – Lisa See * Too Pretty to Live – Dennis Brooks West with the Night – Beryl Markham Little Fuzzy – H. Beam Piper *

April: Defying Hitler – Sebastian Haffner Monsters in Appalachia – Sheryl Monks Sorcerer to the Crown – Zen Cho The Man Without a Face – Masha Gessen Peace is Every Step – Thich Nhat Hanh Flory – Flory van Beek Why Soccer Matters – Pele The Zhivago Affair – Peter Finn, Petra Couvee The Stories of Breece D'J Pancake – Breece Pancake The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared – Jonas Jonasson Chasing Utopia – Nikki Giovanni The Invisible Bridge – Julie Orringer * Young Adults – Daniel Pinkwater Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel – John Stubbs Black Gun, Silver Star – Art T. Burton The Arab of the Future 2 – Riad Sattouf Hole in the Heart – Henny Beaumont MASH – Richard Hooker Forgotten Ally – Rana Mitter Zorro – Isabel Allende Flying Couch – Amy Kurzweil

May: The Bite of the Mango – Mariatu Kamara Mystic and Rider – Sharon Shinn * Freedom is a Constant Struggle – Angela Davis Capture – David A. Kessler Poor Cow – Nell Dunn My Father's Dragon – Ruth Stiles Gannett * Elmer and the Dragon – Ruth Stiles Gannett * The Dragons of Blueland – Ruth Stiles Gannett * Hetty Feather – Jacqueline Wilson In the Shadow of the Banyan – Vaddey Ratner The Last Camel Died at Noon – Elizabeth Peters Cannibalism – Bill Schutt The Handmaid's Tale – Margaret Atwood A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry The Food of a Younger Land – Mark Kurlansky Behold the Dreamers – Imbolo Mbue Words on the Move – John McWhorter John Ransom's Diary: Andersonville – John Ransom Such a Lovely Little War – Marcelino Truong Child of All Nations – Irmgard Keun One Child – Mei Fong Country of Red Azaleas – Domnica Radulescu Between Two Worlds – Zainab Salbi Malinche – Julia Esquivel A Lucky Child – Thomas Buergenthal The Drackenberg Adventure – Lloyd Alexander Say You're One of Them – Uwem Akpan William Wells Brown – Ezra Greenspan

June: Partners In Crime – Agatha Christie The Chinese in America – Iris Chang The Great Escape – Kati Marton As Texas Goes... – Gail Collins Pavilion of Women – Pearl S. Buck Classic Chinese Stories – Lu Xun The Return of the Soldier – Rebecca West The Slave Across the Street – Theresa Flores Miss Bianca in the Orient – Margery Sharp Boy Erased – Garrard Conley How to Be a Dictator – Mikal Hem A Thousand Splendid Suns – Khaled Hosseini Tears of the Desert – Halima Bashir The Death and Life of Great American Cities – Jane Jacobs The First Salute – Barbara Tuchman Come as You Are – Emily Nagoski The Want-Ad Killer – Ann Rule The Gulag Archipelago Vol 2 – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

July: Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz – L. Frank Baum * The Blazing World – Margaret Cavendish Madonna in a Fur Coat – Sabahattin Ali Duende – tracy k. smith The ACB With Honora Lee – Kate de Goldi Mountains of the Pharaohs – Zahi Hawass Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy Chronicle of a Last Summer – Yasmine el Rashidi Killers of the Flower Moon – David Grann Mister Monday – Garth Nix * Leaving Yuba City – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni The Silk Roads – Peter Frankopan The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams A Corner of White – Jaclyn Moriarty * Circling the Sun – Paula McLain Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them – Al Franken Believe Me – Eddie Izzard The Cracks in the Kingdom – Jaclyn Moriarty * Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe – Fannie Flagg * One Hundred and One Days – Asne Seierstad Grim Tuesday – Garth Nix * The Vanishing Velasquez – Laura Cumming Four Against the Arctic – David Roberts The Marriage Bureau – Penrose Halson The Jesuit and the Skull – Amir D Aczel Drowned Wednesday – Garth Nix * Roots, Radicals, and Rockers – Billy Bragg A Tangle of Gold – Jaclyn Moriarty * Lydia, Queen of Palestine – Uri Orlev *

August: Sir Thursday – Garth Nix * The Hoboken Chicken Emergency – Daniel Pinkwater * Lady Friday – Garth Nix * Freddy and the Perilous Adventure – Walter R. Brooks * Venice – Jan Morris China's Long March – Jean Fritz Trials of the Earth – Mary Mann Hamilton The Bully Pulpit – Doris Kearns Goodwin Final Exit – Derek Humphry The Book of Emma Reyes – Emma Reyes Freddy the Politician – Walter R. Brooks * Dragonflight – Anne McCaffrey * What the Witch Left – Ruth Chew All Passion Spent – Vita Sackville-West The Picture of Dorian Gray – Oscar Wilde The Curse of the Blue Figurine – John Bellairs * When They Severed Earth From Sky – Elizabeth Wayland Barber Superior Saturday – Garth Nix * The Boston Girl – Anita Diamant The Mummy, The Will, and the Crypt – John Bellairs * Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? - Frans de Waal The Philadelphia Adventure – Lloyd Alexander * Lord Sunday – Garth Nix * The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull – John Bellairs * Five Little Pigs – Agatha Christie * Love in Vain – JM Dupont, Mezzo A Little History of the World – EH Gombrich Last Things – Marissa Moss Imagine Wanting Only This – Kristen Radtke Dinosaur Empire – Abby Howard The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents – Terry Pratchett *

September: First Bite by Bee Wilson The Xanadu Adventure by Lloyd Alexander Orientalism – Edward Said The Lost Crown of Genghis Khan – Carl Barks The Island on Bird Street – Uri Orlev * The Indifferent Stars Above – Daniel James Brown Beneath the Lion's Gaze – Maaza Mengiste The Importance of Being Earnest – Oscar Wilde * The Book of Five Rings – Miyamoto Musashi The Drunken Botanist – Amy Stewart The Turtle of Oman – Naomi Shahib Nye The Alleluia Files – Sharon Shinn * Gut Feelings – Gerd Gigerenzer The Secret of Hondorica – Carl Barks Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight – Alexandra Fuller The Abominable Mr. Seabrook – Joe Ollmann Black Flags – Joby Warrick

October: Fear – Thich Nhat Hanh Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 – Naoki Higashida To the Bright Edge of the World – Eowyn Ivey Why? - Mario Livio Just One Damned Thing After Another – Jodi Taylor The Yellow Wallpaper – Charlotte Perkins Gilman Blindness – Jose Saramago The Book Thieves – Anders Rydell Reality is not What it Seems – Carlo Rovelli Cranford – Elizabeth Gaskell * The Witch Family – Eleanor Estes * Sister Mine – Nalo Hopkinson La Vagabonde – Colette Becoming Nicole – Amy Ellis Nutt

November: The Golden Notebook – Doris Lessing The Children's Book – A.S. Byatt The Fire Next Time – James Baldwin Under the Udala Trees – Chinelo Okparanta Who Killed These Girls? – Beverly Lowry Running for my Life – Lopez Lmong Radium Girls – Kate Moore News of the World – Paulette Jiles The Red Pony – John Steinbeck The Edible History of Humanity – Tom Standage A Woman in Arabia – Gertrude Bell and Georgina Howell Founding Gardeners – Andrea Wulf Anatomy of a Disapperance – Hisham Matar The Book of Night Women – Marlon James Ground Zero – Kevin J. Anderson * Acorna – Anne McCaffrey and Margaret Ball * A Girl Named Zippy – Haven Kimmel * The Age of the Vikings – Anders Winroth The Spanish Civil War: A Very Short Introduction – Helen Graham A General History of the Pyrates – Captain Charles Johnson (suspected Nathaniel Mist) Clouds of Witness – Dorothy L. Sayers * The Lonely City – Olivia Laing No Time for Tears – Judy Heath

December: The Unwomanly Face of War – Svetlana Alexievich Gay-Neck - Dhan Gopal Mukerji The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane – Lisa See Get Well Soon – Jennifer Wright The Testament of Mary – Colm Toibin The Roman Way – Edith Hamilton Understood Betsy – Dorothy Canfield Fisher * The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse - Vicente Blasco Ibanez Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH – Robert C. O'Brien SPQR – Mary Beard Ballet Shoes – Noel Streatfeild * Hogfather – Terry Pratchett * The Sorrow of War – Bao Ninh Drowned Hopes – Donald E. Westlake * Selected Essays – Michel de Montaigne Vietnam – Stanley Karnow The Snake, The Crocodile, and the Dog – Elizabeth Peters Guests of the Sheik – Elizabetha Warnok Fernea Stone Butch Blues – Leslie Feinberg Wicked Plants – Amy Stewart Life in a Medieval City – Joseph and Frances Gies Under the Sea Wind – Rachel Carson The Red Virgin and the Vision of Utopia – Mary and Brian Talbot Brat Farrar – Josephine Tey * The Treasure of the Ten Avatars – Don Rosa Escape From Forbidden Valley – Don Rosa Nightwood – Djuna Barnes Here Comes the Sun – Nicole Dennis-Benn Over My Dead Body – Rex Stout *

[alexusonfire]

First snowfall of the year, drinking apple cider/hot chocolate & watching the snow soft fluff w/Ella?🥺💜

Winters in Dallas

Okay look y'all, I know Dallas Texas isn't known for snow, especially in 1870, but what bestie wants, bestie gets! Also fun little background tidbit that'll be relevant here, Christmas became a federal holiday in the US on June 26, 1870! 🎄

Ella Gannett x Reader

You and Ella had been together for a couple of years now (secretly of course), you staying with her under the guise of helping her run the Inn since Mr. Gannett had left

Neither of you could remember a time you'd been so head over heels for someone, and Ella even found herself thanking God sometimes that her husband had run off to California as it now left her completely free to love you (as free as one could be in Texas anyways)

With President Grant having recently announced Christmas as a federal holiday, you were eager to set up the small tree and some modest decorations in yours and Ella's shared quarters, which were located in the far corner of the Inn.

You had gathered some fresh evergreen branches, pinecones, holly berries, bits of colored ribbon and yarn, and the homemade yarn dolls your mother used to decorate your tree with as a child and set to work, hoping to surprise Ella when she was finished with her day

She came home later than usual, a ragtag band of cowboys having rolled in late from the Saloon needing some rooms. She huffed as she plopped down on the chair beside the door, slowly taking her boots off and stretching her legs out. It was then she noticed the small strand of holly intertwined with evergreens on the window sill, and she smiled when she rounded the corner to find you sat on the couch in front of the fireplace and tree with two steaming mugs of apple cider on the table in front of you

She immediately curled into you and placed a quick kiss on your lips before complimenting the decorations and taking a few sips of the cider, the warmth of it and you soothing her worn bones

You idly chatted about your days, she venting about some young hooligans that had come in for lunch and immediately disturbed the peace so badly she had to throw them out, and you giggling over nearly falling off the chair while hanging some knit angels from the rafters (to which Ella gently scolded you about being more careful)

She had gone to refill your cider, and was on her way back when she looked out the window and froze

Ever so cautious of bandits and rogue cowboys, you were up in an instant and headed towards the gun safe when Ella spoke

"It... I think it's snowin' out..."

You paused, not quite understanding what was happening. You had moved to Dallas from Nebraska, where white Christmases were a regular occurrence, and therfore was stumped by Ella's reaction. Sure enough when you moved beside her and looked out the window, large fluffy flakes were slowly gathering on the sill. You looked at Ella with a curious expression, and she kept her eyes locked on the glass as she spoke softly

"I ain't never seen real snow before. Not in all my years have we had it down here in Dallas."

And then it clicked, you finally understanding why she was so mesmerized. You smiled widely and gently took the mugs from her, placing them down before taking her hand and leading her out the back door onto the porch. You watched as she hesitantly held out her hand, catching some of the flakes in her palm before stepping out from under the awning completely, letting the light snow gather on her hair and shoulders as she laughed gleefully, doing little twirls and holding her tongue out to the sky

You somehow fall even more in love with her in that moment, watching childlike wonder take over her at something you realized you'd always taken for granted

A brief shiver ran through her, and when you realized she wasn't wearing shoes you quickly ushered her back inside, not wanting her to catch ill. You bundled yourselves back up in the blanket, Ella tucked neatly into your side with her head on your shoulder, giggling and kissing. You spent the remainder of the evening watching the light flurries and finishing off the cider, more than content in eachother's arms

[bigyack-com]

Why the Success of The New York Times May Be Bad News for Journalism

The first time I met A.G. Sulzberger, the publisher of The New York Times, I tried to hire him.That was back in the heady days of digital media in 2014, and I was at BuzzFeed News, one of a handful of start-ups preparing to sweep aside dying legacy outlets like the Times.Times stock was still sputtering, and the company had sold off everything but its furniture to keep paying for journalism.Mr. Sulzberger, then the heir apparent to lead the Times, politely declined my offer. And today, after eight years as BuzzFeed editor in chief, I find myself in his employ as the new media columnist.I’m stepping into the space opened a decade ago by David Carr, the late columnist who chronicled an explosion of new online outlets. My focus will probably be the opposite: The consolidation of everything from movies to news, as the media industry gets hollowed out by the same rich-get-richer, winner-take-all forces that have reshaped businesses from airlines to pharmaceuticals.And the story of consolidation in media is a story about the Times itself.The gulf between the Times and the rest of the industry is vast and keeps growing: The company now has more digital subscribers than The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and the 250 local Gannett papers combined, according to the most recent data. And the Times employs 1,700 journalists — a huge number in an industry where total employment nationally has fallen to somewhere between 20,000 and 38,000.The Times so dominates the news business that it has absorbed many of the people who once threatened it: The former top editors of Gawker, Recode, and Quartz are all at the Times, as are many of the reporters who first made Politico a must-read in Washington.I spent my whole career competing against the Times, so coming to work here feels a bit like giving in. And I worry that the success of the Times is crowding out the competition.“The New York Times is going to basically be a monopoly,’’ predicted Jim VandeHei, the founder of Axios, which started in 2016 with plans to sell digital subscriptions but has yet to do so. “The Times will get bigger and the niche will get nichier, and nothing else will survive.”Janice Min, the editor who created Us Weekly and reinvented The Hollywood Reporter, said the Times’s broadening content mix poses a formidable obstacle for other digital subscription businesses.“Because we’re talking about the publishing business, it’s all still kind of sad, but in this parallel universe people talk about The New York Times in the way people in Hollywood talk about Netflix,” Ms. Min said. “It’s the tail that wags the dog, and it’s also the dog.”The rise of the Times from wounded giant to reigning colossus has been as breathtaking as that of any start-up. As recently as 2014, print advertising was collapsing and the idea that subscribers would pay enough to support the company’s expensive global news gathering seemed like a pipe dream.“We sold off every bit of the company we could sell off to hold our journalism investment as flat as humanly possible,’’ Mr. Sulzberger, who became publisher in 2018, told me in an interview last week. “All the smart people in media thought it was crazy, all our shareholders thought it was financially irresponsible.’’Just a few years later, amid a deepening crisis in American journalism, and a sustained attack from the president of the United States, Times stock has rebounded to nearly triple what it was in 2014 and the newsroom has added 400 employees. The starting salary for most reporters is $104,600.The paper is now quietly shopping for dominance in an adjacent industry: audio. The Times is in exclusive talks to acquire Serial Productions, the breakthrough podcast studio that has attracted more than 300 million downloads.The purchase requires deep pockets: Serial was for sale at a valuation of about $75 million, according to two people who were briefed on the deal, though The Times is expected to pay significantly less. (The Wall Street Journal first reported last month that Serial was for sale.)The deal, along with The Daily, the popular weekday podcast at The Times, could form the basis for an ambitious new paid product — like the company’s Cooking and Crossword apps — that executives believe could become the HBO of podcasts.When I spoke to Mr. Sulzberger last week, I was reminded of other figures in this digital economy who have experienced success at dizzying scale and speed, and still cannot believe it when you mention the word “monopoly.’’He sees plenty of competition for the Times — he cited cable news, though its own future is uncertain. What’s more, he says, Americans will buy more than one news subscription. He believes The Times is not dominating the market so much as creating one.“What I actually think you’re seeing is not a winner take all dynamic — what you’re actually seeing is a rising tide lifts all boats dynamism,” said Mr. Sulzberger (who no doubt would have flourished in that midlevel product job I offered him).His optimism is shared, at least publicly, by the small handful of news organizations that are scraping by on local subscriptions.“The Times has shown the rest of the industry a path to some success,” said Brian McGrory, editor of The Boston Globe, which has attracted more than 100,000 digital subscribers.Times executives say they are also looking for a way to help out their weaker cousins, given the threat that the collapse of local journalism poses to democracy.“But as they say in the airplanes, put your own oxygen mask on first before you start to help others,” said Mark Thompson, the newspaper’s chief executive.Because the Times now overshadows so much of the industry, the cultural and ideological battles that used to break out between news organizations — like whether to say that President Trump lied — now play out inside The Times.And The Times has swallowed so much of what was once called new media that the paper can read as an uneasy competition of dueling traditions: The Style section is a more polished Gawker, while the opinion pages reflect the best and worst of The Atlantic’s provocations. The magazine publishes bold arguments about race and American history, and the campaign coverage channels Politico’s scoopy aggression.I’m proud to be leaving BuzzFeed News as one of a handful of strong, independent newsrooms still standing amid the rubble of consolidation. But I miss the wide open moment 10 years ago, when we were among a wave of new players reimagining what news meant.My job as columnist here will be an exciting and uncomfortable one — covering this new media age from inside one of its titans (though I hope you’ll tell me if I ever get too far inside).And I hope that earlier era of innovation didn’t exist merely to create a farm team and some lessons for the newspaper equivalent of the 1927 Yankees.“The moat is so wide now that I can’t see anyone getting into it,” Josh Tyrangiel, former senior vice president of news at Vice who is now producing television and documentaries, said in an interview. “There’s no new thing coming. And the editor of Buzzfeed News, who was probably the chief insurgent, is now writing this column for you at The New York Times.” Read the full article

[floridaprelaw-blog]

Transgender Youth: Oppression Exacerbates Digression

By Matthew Ginsberg, University of South Florida, Class of 2021

February 27, 2020

According to a report from the Public Agenda’s Hidden Common Ground Initiative, most Americans desire substantial changes in health care reform policies, regardless of their political affiliation, to help accommodate citizens that lack the financial means to obtain coverage. With nearly 10% of citizens unable to afford basic health care insurance, lawmakers have made it a locus point of attention to formulate updated bills, that attempt to reduce the stress and anguish of unbearable health care costs for lower class citizens. And while it’s clear that most individuals, especially those struggling to afford their deductibles, seek updated health care policies, it’s ironic that some lawmakers are attempting to neglect and oppress transgender youth, who want the same rights and opportunities as cisgender citizens. In a society that generally supports implementing updated policy to help ensure that all citizens have access to health care, why is the health and well- being of transgender youth being dictated by lawmakers, who in many instances fail to comprehend the complexities of a child, who feels that he or she was placed in the wrong body? With representatives in six states abandoning the support of transgender youth, by attempting to restrict transgender minors from having access to gender reassignment surgeries and treatments before they turn 18 years old, it’s indicative to understand why transgender rights are under attack, and how we can actively protect trans youth. 

Transgender people are one of the most stigmatized and scrutinized social groups in the United States. The oppressive behavior against transgender youth has had serious repercussions- “with one in three transgender students reported attempting suicide, nearly one third falling victim to sexual abuse, and more than half reported feeling depressed for at least two weeks.” While the numbers are staggering to say the least, a study from the American Academy of Pediatrics released data that was even more shocking. In a survey conducted on transgender teens, “more than 50% of transgender males had reported attempting suicide at least one time, while over 30% of transgender females had also attempted or considered suicide at some point in their lifetime.” When you compare these numbers to cisgender teenagers, LGBT youth on average contemplate suicide 3X more often and are significantly more prone to developing mental health issues. And while most citizens are in agreement that we as a society must do everything in our power to protect children, the fact of the matter is that transgender youth continues to be neglected and abandoned. Suicide has become the second leading cause of death among teenagers ages 13- 19 years old, with the majority of cases involving transgender students. Living in the 21st century, where all people want and deserve to be respected and treated equally, why is it that lawmakers are attempting to further isolate and attack a group that wants nothing more than to be themselves? 

Since the beginning of the 2020 legislative session, six states have proposed updated policy that would prohibit transgender minors access to gender reassignment treatments. These states include South Dakota, Florida, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Missouri, and Colorado. And while lawmakers have been debating transgender rights since 2015 on issues like public restroom use and the most effective solutions for student- athletes, this is the first year where states are attempting to make gender reassignment surgery on a minor a misdemeanor or felony offense against the physician. Politicians who support such controversial updates in policy, like Representative Fred Deutsch from South Dakota, believe that “The solution is compassionate care, which ensures that minors bodies will not be catastrophically and irreversibly altered through surgery to their bodies.” This perspective by Representative Deutsch suggests that updated legislation will help to promote commiseration and allow minors more time to mature, before going through life altering treatment. Politicians (like Fred Deutsch) who support updated policy believe that, “prohibiting gender reassignment surgery until the minor is 18 years old will serve as a pause button until the minor is old enough to make informed decisions.” While this belief seems to be consistent among politicians who support updated legislation, the central question still remains: is enacting a “pause button” really the most effective way to help protect trans youth? 

While politicians in favor of updated legislation believe they are advocating for “compassionate care” by prohibiting trans youth from the healthcare they desire, lawmakers who advocate for maintaining set precedent believe that updating policy to prohibit gender reassignment treatments will exacerbate mental health issues. According Pete Thoreson, a politician in Colorado, "For a lot of transgender youth, receiving hormone treatment or other medical care is truly a matter of life and death. By restricting their access to healthcare, politicians are gambling with trans children’s lives.” Although the beliefs of Mr. Thoreson have been controversial among lawmakers, a study by CNN Politics shows clear evidence that children suffering from gender dysmorphia (the belief the gender they identify with does not match their birth assigned gender) are on average 3X more likely to suffer from mental health issues, harming themselves, and attempting suicide at some point in their lifetimes. These statistics show clear indications that while all politicians are attempting to serve in the best interest of the trans- community, prohibiting kids from reassignment treatment until they turn 18 may have significant counter- effects, that jeopardize the well- being of the child. Other politicians, like Cassandra Wright, have advocated strongly against these bills, claiming that “these bills act as bullies against transgender youth; to prohibit gender reassignment surgery is to go against equality for all citizens.” While the controversy on this issue is continuing to rise, it is clear that lawmakers who strongly support continuing to allow transgender minors the opportunity to make their own health- based decisions on treatment understand that it’s not the role of politicians to dictate what the most proactive treatment is for a trans minor.  

While I’ve observed the lenses of both skeptics and optimists of updated legislation, it’s the role of the observer to disregard stereotypical prejudice and look at the statistics presented. Lawmakers who advocate for restricting trans minors access to the health care of their choice are attempting to sway the general public into believing that their position in office gives them the authority to determine when transgender people can have access to the treatment they desperately desire. But, since when did politicians have the right to play the role of medical professionals? Lawmakers in favor of such heinous bills against trans minors access to the treatment of their choice claim that they are doing trans youth a favor by creating a “pause button” that will supposedly give them more time to make an informed decision. But with nearly 1 in 2 transgender males and 1 in 3 transgender females between the ages of 13-19 having experienced suicidal thoughts or actions at some point in their lifetimes, it’s clear that most trans minors do not have the patience to wait 18 years for the opportunity to be themselves. And while it’s easy to judge based on a lack of understanding, we all must accept the reality that there is no statistical analysis that supports how limiting access to treatment will positively impact trans youth. Even celebrities, like Dwayne Wade and Gabrielle Union, have openly spoke about their transgender daughter Zaya Wade, saying in an interview that “Zaya has known she was meant to be a girl since the age of 3 years old. We're just trying to figure out as much information as we can to make sure that we give our child the best opportunity to be, you know, her best self," Wade added. Like Wade and Union, many parents of transgender children have reported that their child knew they were placed in the wrong body before the age of 5 years old. In a society full of judgement and stigma, it’s the responsibility of lawmakers to enact legislation that advocates for the acceptance of all people; not to enact legislation that further isolates and rejects a social group already suffering from a lack of acceptance. Before allowing heteronormativity to direct societal prejudice against the transgender community, it’s time for lawmakers to realize that limiting gender reassignment surgery violates the 14th Amendments Equal Protection Clause that asserts “equal protection of the laws for all citizens.” To restrict access to treatment is to infringe upon equal rights for all citizens, granted by the Founding Fathers. Based on statistical verification on mental health issues, suicide rates, and levels of abuse both physically and psychologically, it’s clear that to advocate for limiting treatment options shows a clear lack of willingness to understand and appreciate transgender individuals, who want nothing more than to be themselves. 

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Andrew, Scottie. “At Least Six States Are Attempting to Restrict Transgender Youth's Access to Treatment.” CNN, Cable News Network, 22 Jan. 2020, m.cnn.com/en/article/h_ae00c634b6fece839093f1805e04414a.

Armour, Nancy. “Dwayne Wade Changes Lives with Support of Transgender Daughter.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 13 Feb. 2020, www.usatoday.com/story/sports/columnist/nancy-armour/2020/02/12/dwyane-wades-support-pride-transgender-child-change-opinions/4739272002/.

Hagen, Cheryl. “Study Shows Shocking Rates of Attempted Suicide Among Trans Teens.” Human Rights Campaign, 12 Sept. 2018, www.hrc.org/blog/new-study-reveals-shocking-rates-of-attempted-suicide-among-trans-adolescen.

Lowenstein, Anna. “Why Transgender People Experience More Mental Health Issues.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 2 Feb. 2020, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-truth-about-exercise-addiction/201612/why-transgender-people-experience-more-mental-health.

Photo Credit: Popp, Corey J. www.dissolve.com 

Rauch, Joseph, et al. “Transgender Mental Health Issues: The Challenges of a Binary World.” Talkspace.gov, 19 July 2017, www.talkspace.com/blog/transgender-mental-health-issues-the-challenges-of-a-binary-world/.

Ryan , Zachary. “The Hidden Common Ground Initiative.” Public Agenda, 4 Jan. 2020, www.publicagenda.org/programs-reports/the-hidden-common-ground-initiative/.

Sanders, Laura. “Transgender Children Are At Greater Risk of Mental Health Problems.” Science News, 3 Dec. 2019, www.sciencenews.org/blog/science-the-public/transgender-children-are-greater-risk-mental-health-problems.

Toomey, Russell B., et al. “Transgender Adolescent Suicide Behavior.” American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Pediatrics, 1 Oct. 2018, pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/142/4/e20174218.

Wax-Thibodeaux, Emily, and Samantha Schmidt. “Republican State Lawmakers Push Bills to Restrict Medical Treatments for Transgender Youths.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 22 Jan. 2020, www.washingtonpost.com/national/republican-state-lawmakers-push-bills-that-restrict-medical-treatments-for-transgender-youth.