I too have wondered about why there are so few of us blogging about Oakland. I think a big part of the reason is that many bloggers living in Oakland prefer to focus on national issues. I’m sure there are dozens of political bloggers living in Oakland, but they’re too wrapped up in the presidential race, national political scandals, etc.

That said, it’s a big depressing how few political and metro blogs we have in comparison to other cities. Hopefully that will eventually change.

But citing the Chauncey Bailey Project doesn’t exactly help Martin Reynolds’s case that the Trib is doing ambitious work. Any paper that aspires to serious investigative journalism wouldn’t have waited until Bailey was killed before digging into an alleged crime family that worked in Oakland for 30 years. For example, the Yusuf Bey family’s security company didn’t have a license to do business in the state, yet its employees patrolled the lobby of the Oakland Mariott, which until recently was just around the corner from the Trib’s newsroom, every day. How this and countless allegations of sexual abuse, fraud, murder, and torture could have failed to merit a Tribune investigation until late last year still mystifies me.

But again, it’s not like the Trib has the resources to do it. They’re broke, understaffed, demoralized, etc. It’s not their fault.

Trib staff: “is it about eight reporters in the newsroom these days?”
Incorrect. It’s a little less than twice that including columnists.

“Reporters get paid next to nothing (last time I checked, starting salaries were under $30K)

Incorrect. Starting salaries are around $40,000 with benefits and many make more than that.

“They almost never do anything more ambitious than cover the city council meetings, crime, and local sports.

Ridiculous. I don’t even know where to start on this one, Thompson is so off base.
Just for example, the Tribune undertook a groundbreaking Not Just a Number project last year to highlight the causes of crime in the community, particularly looking at homicide. This Online and print project was submitted for the Pulitzer Prize last year and won what is regarded as the Online Pulitzers called the ONA awards. The Tribune was up against CNN and other major news organizations and took two awards.

Take a look:
http://journalists.org/2007conference/archives/000887.php

We have also taken a lead role in the Chauncey Bailey Project, which is examining the death of Oakland journalist Chauncey Bailey. The investigation is being done out of the Tribune offices with journalists and organizations from across the Bay Area participating.
http://www.chaunceybaileyproject.org/

In addition, the Tribune has lots of multimedia features and was the first newspapers in the Bay Area and nation to train its reporters and editors on how to produce multimedia. We began this effort more than two years ago before many were even considering it.
http://www.ibabuzz.com/multimedia/

There are so many other stories, blogs and projects we’re doing and have done, Thompson’s assertions show he doesn’t read the paper or look at the Web site. You can’t make judgments about the quality of the journalism is you don’t actually READ/View it.

“It’s as lean an operation as you will find.
That is true. We are lean, but we still do great journalism.

And still, Singleton’s MediaNews group recently announced 1,100 layoffs in its Bay Area papers.
Not quite Chris. Buyouts have been offered, but there will not be 1,100 layoffs. That is the number of employees the organizations has not the number who will be let go. There will be a reduction in staff across the entire Bay Area News Group, not just the editorial division. But we are hopeful those voluntary buyouts will avert layoffs, and it remains to be seen just how this will impact the Tribune.

“According to Singleton’s most recent SEC filing, his profit margin was 2.5 percent. That’s nothing, and getting worse every year. (Historically, most newspapers have earned double-digit profit margins, sometimes hovering around 25 percent.)”

I don’t know what Dean’s filing said. But true, back in the day, papers did make those kinds of profits.

This post illustrates the need for accurate information, and the damage that can be done when people run off at the fingertips about things they don’t know. The rest of Thompson’s post has merit, and raises some interesting questions.

I am happy forums like this exist so the record can be set straight.
Best, Martin G. Reynolds
Oakland Tribune managing editor

Take the Trib, for instance. The Oakland Tribune is typical of owner Dean Singleton’s business model; they have a bare-bones staff (is it about eight reporters in the newsroom these days?) that get paid next to nothing (last time I checked, starting salaries were under $30K) and almost never do anything more ambitious than cover the city council meetings, crime, and local sports. It’s as lean an operation as you will find. And still, Singleton’s MediaNews group recently announced 1,100 layoffs in its Bay Area papers. According to Singleton’s most recent SEC filing, his profit margin was 2.5 percent. That’s nothing, and getting worse every year. (Historically, most newspapers have earned double-digit profit margins, sometimes hovering around 25 percent.)

So even the most no-frills business model, which includes a lot of lucrative suburban papers, is trending down to nothing. He’s cutting to the bone, and he’s still barely breaking even. (see this Romenesko item for a more thorough analysis of Singleton’s problems: http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=123&aid=137993)

Now, take the Chron. In the eight years since the Hearst company bought the paper, the Chron has lost about $300 million. That’s not a declining profit margin, which most newspapers are worried about; that’s a flat-out loss. The Chonicle is bleeding money, which is historically unprecedented, especially for the dominant newspaper of a major metropolitan area. See this excellent post for more details: http://newsosaur.blogspot.com/2007/05/staff-cuts-wont-cure-sf-chron-woes.html.

It’s the same story with the alt-weeklies, one of which, the East Bay Express, I used to write for. The Bay Area is uniquely hostile to local print news coverage. It’s a very, very crowded marketplace, which more specialty publications like the ethnic and neighborhood press springing up every day. The advertising has migrated to the web; Craigslist destroyed classified ads, which accounted for about 25 percent of revenue. All of these are national trends, but it’s happening here, in the heart of Silicon Valley, first and at a much more accelerated pace. Comparing any of these papers to the dominant paper of an isolated, semi-rural town with very little competition (as you noted, the local casino didn’t carry the Times) is really apples and oranges.

In addition, I’m not at all convinced that Bay Area residents care about local news. Why should they? So many of the most desirable readers are transplants from somewhere else, so they have no historic stake in the community they’ve moved to. Many of them are childless tech professionals who won’t read about local schools. Violent crime is almost exclusively black-on-black, so they hardly live in fear for their lives and don’t have a stake in reading about law enforcement, at least until someone breaks into their car for the third time. Why should a bunch of techies, lawyers, and architects want to read picayune local coverage, when the New York Times and whatever bloggers they’ve settled on are free? And better than whatever appears in the local press, which can no longer afford to attract and retain talented writers and reporters?

This is really a long-winded defense of my former editor Steve Buel, who has undertaken the enormous task of taking independent a paper that enjoyed the financial and administrative advantages of chain ownership. Facile jokes about how he’s never heard of the Internet don’t do justice to the ambitious and difficult project he’s embarked upon.

On the city in general: All in all, it’s a great place — weather, location, architecture, recreation, a rich and vibrant ethinic mix, strolling, food, neighborhoods, and much more. All of which contributes to why I live here (even moved in later life from the now overly fashionable suburbs through the tunnel to do so.) The progress in the downtown area in recent years is especially impressive. Oakland, however, suffers from major problems that beg to be addressed, including a severe and growing image/identity problem, which in itself may be Oakland’s historically insurmountbale problem.

On newspapers and news coverage: Sad. The Tribune is a shell of its former self. Yes, it’s due partly to the current state of newspapering and media in general but also a reflection of the history of the Trib itself and the nature of its current ownership (despite Mr. Reynolds’ post above). The Trib today (hint: I was there when it was Eastbay Today), is merely a cog in a media conglomerate that cares little for editorial quality, cultivating a talented news staff, shares and recyles columns and news coverage among other outlets in the chain ,and has little, if any, real clout in the communities it serves. I could go on about this and the “old days” of the Trib — and show more of the codger side — but let me just say this (and you ask for more detail if you’re interested: In the Trib’s heydey — even in my day, which was the twilight of the heydey — the editors, reporters and columnsits who populated the downtown Trib offices and the cophouse, courthbouse and City Hall pressrooms covered this town in the old and true style of hardnosed journalism. It gave a flavor and a feeling to the city — and made a difference. In many ways, it was a tougher town then and in one depressing respect it still is…the CRIME scene. Which brings me to…

Mayor Dellums: And empty suit. (But a good dresser.) As a City Hall reporter, I covered the end of the old Mayor Redding days and the opening years of the Lionel Wilson years, Oakland’s first black mayor. In those days, for my money, the Citiy Council was certainly more interesting and colorful, and probably more effective. But the thing that plagued the city then — and does so now, in frightful similarity to those days — was crime. Addressing — or attacking, in a big way — this problem should be the city’s, the council’s and the MAYOR’s No. 1 priority. It’s the key to improving or resolving many other issues. The city needs a strong, visible and present, determined and dedicated mayor. In other words, a real leader.

OK. That’s “30″ for now, kids. Thanks, especially to the organizer of this site.

I’m not sure why there’s so little Oakland metro blogging. I know of some quasi famous Oakland blogs/bloggers – Kid Oakland who blogs at Daily Kos, and the Oakland chapter of Drinking Liberally (a Democratic party netroots group).

You’ll find plenty of energy and organizing on the local neighborhood email lists. Maxwell Park, Glenview, the Dimond all have lists. In my neighborhood, the Laurel District, 450 people are subscribed to the Yahoo news group. The local councilwoman and her staff keep an eye on the posts and a couple of community action groups use the space to organize their “real world” activities.

There’s very little political reporting though – it’s more like bitching and kvetching. We’re all in our houses or at our jobs, firing off emails over the back fence about stray dogs, rowdy kids, break-ins and graffitti tags. Sometimes the dedicated activists will put together a block party, work party, garden project, or the bigger events we have in the summer (music festival, Solstice festival etc.)

I understand that many have found your blog by googling “recall Dellums.” Now there is an idea I could get behind. He’s a distinguished man and has accomplished good things in his earlier career, but he’s not doing much for this city now. We need a mayor who actually works. (and how about his Clinton endorsement, way to predict the mood of the electorate, Mr. Mayor)

Keep up the good work. I will be bookmarking.

My own blog focuses on “signs of hope” generally for peace in the Middle East, but I have been covering the environment and food for the last four years as well. I do mention Oakland and my life here pretty regularly. Although my blog is more widely read in the Middle East and among people who follow Middle East politics, I assert that I am an Oakland blogger.

We have so much to be proud of here. The reality of this city and the possibilities I see give me hope for urban life in America. I’m always plugging some great group or another and ending with “and they are based in my hometown of Oakland, Ca, for which I am proud.”

Jewish Voice for Peace and the Oakland Institute are two that come to mind.

I will be back. Congratulations on the great Chip Johnson profile.