Responding in part to rumors circulating on a Denver website that Village Voice Media is on the brink of collapse, president and COO Scott Tobias talks to Westword's Michael Roberts about how the company's 15 papers are faring. Tobias says the company as a whole remains profitable and any talk of insolvency is hogwash, but concedes that times are tough. "Are we soft?" he asked. "No question. We go as our local mom and pops go, and our local mom and pops are having a hard time." He also talks about the company's new "uberblogger" strategy, which started with Roberts in Denver. One staff member at each paper is now being tasked with writing a handful of blog posts each day and editing and processing blog posts by other staffers and freelancers. Tobias says the focus on daily content is part of a transition "from a print product to a web platform with a print piece."
CL's Atlanta editor Ken Edelstein reports that he laid off two editorial staffers on Monday: Senior editor Scott Freeman and senior writer David Lee Simmons. In addition, the St. Petersburg Times reports that CL's Tampa paper has let go of Lance Goldenberg, who'd been a freelance film critic for the paper for 19 years. In his statement, Tampa editor David Warner said that the hole in film coverage will be filled with staff writers from CL's newly acquired papers in Chicago and Washington.
Baltimore City Paper, Metro Times, Orlando Weekly and the San Antonio Current are as of today exclusively represented by Ruxton for national print advertising, according to a press release. The papers will join their newly-acquired sister paper, the Cleveland Scene, as part of the advertising network owned and operated by Village Voice Media. VVM chief operating officer Scott Tobias says the discussions about joining Ruxton began while VVM and Times-Shamrock were negotiating the sale of the Scene earlier this year. The addition of the four papers means Ruxton has a print presence in 50 American cities, including all of the top 20 markets, with a total weekly print circulation of more than 3.6 million.
Scott Dickensheets, who left the Weekly to become special projects editor at Las Vegas CityLife in February, is once again editor of the Weekly, according to a press release. "We're fortunate to have Scott back in the saddle," says Bruce Spotleson, group publisher for Weekly parent company Greenspun Media Group. "He's one of the most talented journalists in Nevada, and one of the best editors I've ever been associated with."
Scott Jordan is leaving the Lafayette, La., paper at the end of the month to become communications director for the Louisiana Democratic Party. Prior to joining the Independent at its inception, he worked at Gambit Weekly for five years. "This fall's elections, both statewide and national, promise to be historic," Jordan says. "And after 15 years of working as a journalist and editor, I've decided I want to be directly involved in politics in a different role." Kevin Allman, blogging for the Gambit, congratulates Jordan on his new role, and adds: "We hope never to have to write 'Scott Jordan, spokesman for the state Democratic party, did not respond to a request for comment.'"
The Weekly's Scott Foundas will join Jury president Gillian Armstrong, Hong Kong producer Nansun Shi and Iranian director/writer/producer Majid Majidi, and Australian actress Essie Davis in determining the winner of the Sydney Film Prize for new directions in film at the 55th Sydney Film Festival, set to take place June 4-22.
Scott Dickensheets, who had been at the Weekly since 2002, has joined the staff of Las Vegas CityLife as special projects editor. He will oversee features, cover presentation and special projects. The Weekly is an AAN member, and CityLife is applying for membership this year.
The Law Enforcement Intelligence Unit has cut off the Orange County Sheriff's Department because of Sheriff Michael S. Carona's association with various businessmen, including a Las Vegas strip club owner with reputed mob ties now serving time for racketeering, the Los Angeles Times reports. The sheriff's mob ties were first reported last year in two OC Weekly stories by R. Scott Moxley.
The New York Film Festival has added the LA Weekly's Scott Foundas and the Village Voice's J. Hoberman to the roster of critics choosing the 2007 festival slate. They join the Film Society Of Lincoln Center's Richard Pena and Kent Jones and Entertainment Weekly critic Lisa Schwarzbaum on the committee.
Scott Hassenflu will leave the News & Review and the board of the Alternative Weekly Network (AWN) on May 18. In a letter sent yesterday to his AWN colleagues, Hassenflu says his "short term plans" call for "some much needed R & R" and a more active role in a home-furnishings store he co-owns. Hassenflu has served on the AWN board for the past 10 years, and has had a long career in the alternative press, including stints with the Dallas Observer and San Francisco Bay Guardian.
