Chicago -
By Steve Rhodes
I was in Los Angeles over the weekend so I’m still catching up on the news I missed back here in Chicago. But I assume every pol is still corrupt, every company is still trying to rip you off, every employer is still abusing you, and mean people without hearts or souls are still trying to crush the beauties and treasures of this city for financial gain and ego gratification. Glad to be back!
Posted on June 30, 2008
By Natasha Julius
You’d better read these reports while you can. It looks like there’s a 50/50 chance we’ll all be treading water by September.
Market Update
Mortgage lending groups this week announced they would no longer accept payment in 10W-40 as no one can afford it. They will still accept payment in corn, however. At least, this month they will.
Posted on June 28, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
I’m flying out to L.A. very early this morning to teach at SPJ’s Citizen Journalists Academy on Saturday, so there won’t be a Papers column today, but stick around for the rest of the site, it’s very good! New posts today in Sports and People, Places & Things in particular. The Weekend Desk Report will appear as always on Saturday and we’ll have fresh material as always on Monday. I may even post some new material here and at Division Street from L.A.’s (relatively) new subway system, who knows.
Posted on June 27, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
As Phil Ponce put it, Barack Obama made a “rare” appearance before Chicago reporters on Wednesday, and he made a challenge to the locals that they failed.
“You will recall that for my entire political career here, basically, I was not the the endorsed candidate of any political organization here. That I didn’t go around wielding a bunch of clout. That my reputation in Springfield was as an independent. And my reputation here was also as somebody who would to try to work with everybody. There is no doubt I had friends and continue to have friends who come out of the more traditional school of Chicago politics but that’s not what launched my political career and that’s not what I’ve ever depended on in order to get elected and I would challenge any Chicago reporter to dispute that basic fact.”
Ooh, ooh! Me! Me!
Posted on June 26, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
Following up on yesterday’s column about Lewis Lazare, young people and the state of the newspaper industry:
* “Lewis Lazare, who reviews ads, passes on vicious industry gossip, and wears a bowtie for a living, thinks the Web is making America stupid. He’s afraid that this will cripple the industry’s ability to sell shit to people,” Whet Moser writes in an excellent examination at Chicagoland. “No, seriously.”
* “I’m pretty sure that this Lazare also thought Elvis and the Beatles were the devil’s music,” my brother wrote to me in an e-mail. “I’m about to be 47 years old and we canceled our newspaper subscription. Why? Not because of the internet . . . because the paper sucked. So, I guess middle-aged men are also stupider than they used to be.”
* “Boy oh boy, [Lewis] Lazare has a bad case of the Andy Rooneys today,” Margaret Lyons wrote at Chicagoist.
* The editor of the Spokesman-Review in Spokane said my column “prompted a discussion this morning . . . should the [Spokesman-Review] do a hot fans contest?”
Posted on June 25, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
I read Lewis Lazare’s column today on a book called The Dumbest Generation with interest because for the last couple of years Lazare has called me up periodically to complain about how dumb young people are these days, and he usually blames the Internet.
Why he calls me, I don’t know. I’ve never met the man.
I also don’t believe today’s generation is dumber than those who came before because they don’t read newspapers. I think newspapers are dumber.
Posted on June 24, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
From our very own White Sox Report:
“Over/Under: 100. The number of times something like this has happened in Jay Mariotti’s career. From the Trib’s live blog:
“‘According to my spies in the press box: Sun-Times hero and fan favorite Jay Mariotti asked for a security presence to safeguard him from his colleagues.'”
Posted on June 23, 2008
By Natasha Julius
This is no time for us to take a vacation. Not when the next Glorious Leader has just been born.
Market Update
Chicago seems to be more Bullish on Gators – no matter how potentially annoying they are – than on Wildcats. Tigers futures therefore have a slight edge over other felines.
Posted on June 21, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
Who has the best coverage of the Crosstown Classic? I think we do!
The Sox wear black ‘n’ white,
The Cubbies wear blue
They have Fookodome,
Ozzie says Fookoyou
Black ‘n white, Cubby blue, Fookodome, Fookoyou
Let’s call the Crosstown off!
– New from the Beachwood Sports Audio Desk
Posted on June 20, 2008
By Steve Rhodes
That’s funny, I consulted a psychic recently who predicted the Sun-Times would do this story. And that it would be inane.
Die already, newspapers. Just die.
Copyright Violation
So now the fist bump is a Michelle Obama “trademark“? Do reporters live under rocks? People have been fist-bumping for, um, you know, years.
Memo to media: Here’s another new thing you probably haven’t seen before.
RIP Solve
Memorials. Tributes.
Posted on June 19, 2008
