Thanks to all who dropped us a note to let us know you’re delighted to have both crossword puzzles now in the TV book. Quite a few of you wrote to say thanks for returning the old puzzle — and I think this is the first time I’ve ever been told I brought balance to someone’s life.
And others thanked me for not ditching the new puzzle from the New York Times. I appreciate the feedback, and I’m glad everyone is satisfied with the outcome.
Over the past month or so, I’ve gotten a few emails from readers who said they sent me a “friend request” on Facebook and wondered why I hadn’t accepted it. Two of them pointed out that they are already Facebook friends with a few other Eagle newsroom staffers, and they weren’t sure why there were differences among Eagle news staff in the connections they make on social media networks.
So let me talk a little bit about our social media guidelines as a newsroom, and mine individually.
Earlier this week, the newsroom staff had a great lunchtime discussion about how our personal and professional lives intersect on social media networks. We updated the newsroom’s ethics policy over the summer and added a social media section for the first time, and one thing is already clear — it needs to be more specific to give our staff more guidance in how to use networks like Facebook, Twitter or MySpace without compromising our credibility as a journalists (and, by extension, The Eagle’s).
Earlier this month, Mashable.com quoted a study in which more than half of employers surveyed block social media sites on work computers. At The Eagle, I believe that connecting to these networks, especially within our community, is an increasingly important part of our job. I encourage our staff to be engaged in digital community conversations as part of their job. And to do it with the same sound ethical guidelines we’ve adhered to in the print business for many decades.
The use of social media is evolving so rapidly, though, that stories are abundant of people who have harmed their careers and their employers’ reputations by exercising poor judgment in Tweets, blog posts or Facebook updates. Being a news organization just adds an extra few layers of complication, and we don’t yet have all the answers on how to handle every situation that can arise. Our guidelines and practices will change as we make mistakes, or discover ethical dilemmas we hadn’t anticipated.
In our discussion last week, I told our staff that I won’t issue rules on who they should or should not invite or accept as Facebook friends. Common sense should guide decisions for journalists who use Facebook as a mix of personal friends/family and professional connections. It’s common for journalists to have professional acquaintances connected to them on Facebook. I view it as a great compliment to our staff that readers and sources in the community want to have connections to our staff on social networks — they see our writers, editors, visual journalists, etc., as approachable, or they wouldn’t want to connect to them.
Some of us are, frankly, unsure how far to go in opening the doors of our Facebook pages. We’re figuring it out as we go, and, at least for me, practices change over time as use of the social network grows. It’s not that there are hoards of people banging at my Facebook door by any means. And I don’t have earth-shattering posts on my Facebook page (and I don’t update it often enough — I’m working on it). But I do have family members there, and my vacation photos, and conversations with close friends.
So a month or two ago I decided that I was not going to connect with people on Facebook if I don’t know them. It’s not meant as a slight to anyone. I just consider it something of an extension of my personal space, and I want to make sure that I know who the people are who are stopping by. At the same time, I’m not willing to suggest to Eagle staff members with their practice should be. That needs to be a personal decision. I do, though, ask that they be aware of the implications of people they might accept or invite as friends, and the potential for those connections to reflect on them in their role as a journalist.
Twitter is a much more open space, in my view, and I follow people there whom I have never met in person.
We’ll be working on a more specific social media policy in the coming weeks. If you wonder what other companies — both inside and outside the media business — have established for policies, Mashable points to a great directory of policies at Social Media Governance.
Sharon in Asheville, NC, writes that she’s closing her furniture/consignment store and found an old photograph marked, “Uncle Floyd Fultz and Family.” She thought the family might want to have it. It’s stamped F.A. Wesely Studio in Wichita. Obituary archives indicate Floyd Fultz passed away in 1956. If you’re a surviving family member and would like to have the photo, drop me an email at schisenhall@wichitaeagle.com and I’ll put you in touch with Sharon.
Fultz family photo
A reader asks via email which news sources I read in the morning to get started for the day. It varies by day, and by my schedule — whether I have an early meeting, or time to scan several news sites over coffee. And I do scan more than I read in the morning.
It should go without saying that I start with Kansas.com. I also like to check in on NPR, and I scan Mashable and TechCrunch once or twice through the day. I also keep an eye on local conversations via Twitter. If I’m having lunch at my desk, I might take a few minutes to look at some news industry sites, especially sites that focus on online news strategies. I try to take a few minutes to scan sites of the national broadcast networks and cable TV stations.
I generally don’t have time to read longer pieces — something from the NY Times or Wall Street Journal — till I get to the couch with my laptop at night.
The problem I noted in an earlier post with printing that is too light on some pages of the print edition should be corrected now. Cindy Trenary, vice president for production at The Eagle, says the shipment of new plates has arrived. This will correct the problem of pages that are not printing with enough ink. Thanks for your patience while we got our plates replaced.
A couple of readers this week commented on printing being too light on some pages of their paper. We’ve got a problem with some of the plates we use on our press — we have a shipment of the wrong plates, and we’re trying to make them work until the new ones arrive. The new printing plates should be in very soon (maybe as you read this) and that will take care of the printing that isn’t dark enough. Sorry for the problems with the print quality in the meantime.
Thanks for the helpful — and very positive — feedback on the redesigned weather page we introduced last week. Several of you suggested some good ideas to tweak the package, including adding a few cities, along with a forecast for wind, and we’re working on getting those changes in place.
Stay tuned to the weather on Kansas.com, too. In time for winter storm season, we’ll soon introduce an expanded radar feature from our partners at WeatherData. More here when we get the radar in place in the next week or so.
Let’s put a merciful end to the email war over crossword puzzles: Starting Oct. 18, you’ll find both the old crossword puzzle we’ve run for years in the TV book, in addition to the New York Times crossword puzzle we recently added.
First, I’m happy that dozens of you care enough to take the time to write and advocate for one puzzle or the other. Some of you really care.
I can’t answer all of your emails individually, but I can address a few points some of you brought up:
* I recognize that the Times puzzle is more difficult than the puzzle that we’ve traditionally run in the Sunday TV section. Both puzzles take up a significant amount of space, and we initially determined there would not be enough space to run both crosswords plus the movie listings. Enough people asked for both puzzles — and readers lobbied hard on either side for either the old crossword or the Times crossword — that we shifted advertising space to make room for both.
* When you prefer one type of puzzle, I think it’s hard to understand sometimes why someone would want anything else. A few readers said they simply don’t believe that anyone could enjoy doing the Times crossword puzzle. But fans of the Times puzzle — some of whom have corresponded with me for several years asking for the puzzle — circled the wagons quickly when they started seeing criticisms of it in the Opinion Line. I got a steady stream of emails that insulted people who wanted the easier crossword back. Peace now?
* Best laugh: Two readers suggested we switched to the Times puzzle as a cost-cutting move. First, I can assure you that the NY Times crossword is not a less-expensive puzzle option. Also, we added four pages to the TV section to get new puzzles and movie listings in.
* Most honest email: One reader said that, frankly, she wants an easy crossword so she can do it quickly, but still feel smart because she did a crossword puzzle.
Bear with us another week. The old puzzle will be back on the 18th.
The new weekly TV book I wrote about last week launches Sunday.
A fun thing about one of the new features, the New York Times Sunday crossword puzzle, is that it’s challenging.
If you’re new to the puzzle, I can give you a small hint that will help you overall and a big hint that will help with this week’s grid.
Spoiler warnings on. No, seriously, don’t read further if you don’t want to know.
So, the small hint is that the name of the week’s puzzle will give you a clue to solving it. For example, this week’s title is “That is Two Say.”
Are you sure you want to know more? OK. Here’s the big clue. “That is Two Say” means that some of the boxes will have two letters in them instead of one.
That’s all you’re getting out of me, but remember that if you get stuck you can find the answer to this week’s puzzle on Page 7J. Don’t worry, I won’t tell if you sneak a peek.
After you’re done with the crossword — or before, if you’re so inclined — check out Hidato on Page 2J. I’ve been playing this since we started looking for new games to offer you and I’ve really enjoyed it. Like Sudoku, the premise is simple, but it takes some thought. To play, all you have to do is fill the grid with consecutive numbers that connect horizontally, vertically or diagonally. The first and last number of the puzzle are circled, and some other numbers are sprinkled throughout to help you along.
Both puzzles are great to play as you’re kicked back in front of the TV waiting for your movie to start. Not sure what to watch? You can plan that with our handy-dandy movie listings that start on Page 4J.
We have a lot of new features packed into TV Week and would love to hear what you think. Drop us a note at editorsdesk@wichitaeagle.com.