Before I begin this week’s 7 and 7, I must take a moment to address something personally important.
The Times Union is running their annual “Best of the Capital Region” poll, where people are encouraged to vote for their favorite this or most important that. I would request people to vote for my blog as “Best Local Blogger,” except that the category was eliminated from the survey.
Oh well. Kristi Gustafson Barlette would have won it anyway. It kinda helps when you’re an employee of the company that runs the survey, and you can then afterward say, “The Times Union has the best blogger in the Capital Region,” without any hint of duplicity or conflict of interest. But then again, we all know that the survey is nothing more than a marketing attempt by Big Hearst. And God forbid that the readers vote for Olive Garden as “Best Local Italian Restaurant,” oh then Steve Barnes would suggest that we’re all knuckle-dragging troglodytes for gravitating towards chain restaurants.
Don’t care. Proud to be a knuckle-dragging troglodyte.
Ah, the WordPress “name a song, it pops up in your blog” app still works.
Okay, let’s get to the recap, shall we?
First, the lineup from the Times Union’s crew of local independent bloggers.
- Andy Gregory in the Local 518 music blog, “Your Band Doesn’t Matter in the 2018 Times Union Best of Poll.“
- Sara Rose Wheeler’s “Roaring Twenties” blog, “Reconstructing Sara.“
- Fran Rossi Szpylczyn’s “There Will Be Bread” blog, “What do we believe?“
- Nina Marinello’s blog, “To Become a Scientist.“
- Rob Hoffman’s “Hoffman Files” blog, “Improving the world of sports.“
- Jaye McBride’s blog, “#FatPresident.“
- Rabbi Matt Cutler’s “Congregation Gates of Heaven” blog, “Ummm, truth? Aren’t we all a little racist?“
And now let’s scope out the blogroll for some other goodies.
- Daniel Berman’s “FUSSYlittleBLOG” blog, “The Unconsidered.“
- Silvia Lilly’s “DelSo” blog, “What William Kennedy gave me on his 90th birthday.“
- Roger Green’s “Ramblin’ With Roger” blog, “It’s only been a year of the regime?“
- Rob Madeo’s “Keyboard Krumbs” blog, “All The Editor’s Men.“
- Stephanie Snyder’s “The Final Edit” blog, “Empire Service.“
- Carl Johnson’s Albany history blog “Hoxsie!”, “R.S.V.P. to V.R.S.P.; or, the Young Lady Didn’t Invite Him To Skate.“
- Rob Moses’ photography blog, “Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.“
So have a great day everybody, and don’t forget to vote in the Times Union best of poll. Kristi Gustafson Barlette needs your votes so she can be named Best Italian Restaurant in the Capital Region! :p
Chuck The Writer 
KGB’s an Italian restaurant? I did not know that.
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Jango’s Zombie Blog
From The Simpsons episode “Faith Off”:
Doctor Hibbert: “Oh, your playing days are over, my friend, but you can always fall back on your degree in . . . Communications?! Oh, dear lord!”
Lubchenko (injured football player): I know. Is phony major. Lubchenko learn nothing! NOTHING!.
Newspapers have a lot of power. They can inspire courage, intimidate the powerful, and right wrongs an individual alone cannot. Its influence on society cannot be underestimated. To that end, the bloggers chosen by the newspaper should not only reflect its community, but also inspire it to its highest ideals. The Times Union has totally vacated its responsibility regarding its blogs
It is no secret that the tone of American politics and discourse has gone down. It has bottomed out ever since President Obama began his run for president. Like dragging a Confederate flag through a trailer park, his mere existence drew out every racist in America. We need no more evidence of that than the birther movement, which still thrives.
It’s not uncommon to hear Rex Smith or one of his editorial underlings wax poetic about the lowered tone in American politics and the rise of racism and hate speech. Yet, while decrying these on the front page, Rex Smith and Times Union have their greedy little hands out collecting ad revenue from the blog. What makes this truly an exercise in hypocrisy is that while Rex Smith disavows racism and hate speech he’s more than willing to make money off it in the blogs.
One of the newer bloggers in the past year has been Donna McMullen. Let me phrase my words very carefully: Who is this insane hate-filled harpy and where does Rex Smith get off pretending she in any way if furthering political discourse?
Donna McMullen’s political philosophy can be boiled down to: All Liberals are evil, evil! If a liberal was on fire, McMullen wouldn’t piss on them to put them out. I take that back. Actually, I’m fairly certain McMullen would take a squat and piss on a liberal on fire. She’s just that kind of person — brought to us live from the Times Union.
Yes, she gets a lot of comments, which translates into more click-throughs and higher ad rates. That defines Rex Smith’s morality. Disavow on the front page what you make money off of on the back page. That’s how the Metroland stayed in business for decades – supporting women’s rights in articles while taking ads for strip clubs, lingerie shows, and “escort” services. Metroland died a well-deserved death for its hypocrisy — and the Times Union is following right up there.
Let’s take a snapshot at what McMullen has contributed to the Times Union? “The disgustingly dirty Democrats are Rotting” (Jan. 8). Great headline Rex. She just took a piss on the majority of your readers. And this wasn’t a well-thought out William F, Buckly diatribe, it was a knee-jerk pablum-puking demonstration of a women who is filled with hate and bitterness.
In her Nov. 2, blog McMullen writes: “In Hilary’s [sic] case, her close associates either: 1) forget the facts and “cannot recall”, 2) plead the 5th Amendment so not to witness against themselves as it might incriminate them in the case, or 3) mysteriously commit suicide.”
Here, McMullen supports a completely false and ignorant lie, that the Clinton’s are murdering people who disagree with them. It was also the same article in which she posts a meme that continues to label former senator Robert Byrd an active racist up to his death. In fact, as any same person knows, Byrd many times disavowed his racism, which was accepted by the NAACP and the African-American community with whom he worked closely until he retired. Yet, McMullen continues to shovel her racist bullshit down our throats.
When But Rex Smith, Tena Tyler, and Shannon Fromma let her get away with it. God forbid Heather Rusaw-Fazio and Fran Rossi Szpylczyn say the word penis and disrobe a sexual assault as the #metoo movement got started, yeah – can’t have that. But call the Clinton’s murdered? Yep. No problem.
Yeah THANKS REX. That’s is a real contribution to improving the tone of political discourse in the Capital Region. Who is feeding the racism beast? An entire article on it and not one mention of the uptick in racism since Trump’s election (it’s all liberals’ fault) or any of the following:
There is an absolute ignorance and avoidance of any responsibility of Trump’s bigotry, so please, allow me to remind the resident mentally deficient hate-speech monger at the Times Union of Trump’s racism:
• Pardoning Arapio for being convicted of unconstitutionally targeting minorities.
• Saying Judge Curial should be removed because he is an American of Mexican heritage and Trump wants to build a wall.
• Saying neo-Nazi’s, like the one who drive his car into protestors, killing one, are “good people.”
• Trump direct quote: “When Mexico sends its people they’re rapists and some, I assume, are good people.”
• Trump lying about seeing “thousands of Muslims” in New Jersey cheering the fall of the Twin Towers.
• Attacking the Khans, Gold Star Parents.
• Calling the Gold Star wife and mother of Sgt. La David Johnson liars.
• Trump direct quote: “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslins entering the United States.
As far as McMullen herself is concern – any idiot with an asshole can have an opinion, but the Times Union should reach a little deeper and find a qualified, educated, and mentally stable person to represent conservative values. Remember Ted Danz – owner of Family Danz Heating? He had his own blog for a while. I welcomed him, a self-described “Regan Republican.” But after a few blogs he quickly showed himself to be just another knee-jerk reactionary and rather than insult the majority of his customers he wisely decided to end his blog after 8 entries. Apparently, that was easier than moderating his tone and acting like a reasonable adult.
Donan McMullen may want to take note.
Yet, what qualifications does Donna McMullen bring to the table to spread her mentally deranged hate and throughout the Capital Region? According to LinkedIn, she’s the “secretary/treasurer” at McMullen Trucking. Wow. A lot of really heavy political philosophy gets discussed at the trucking company. Even more unbelievable is that this ball of hate and logical fallacies was a “substitute teacher” for 13 years – and her contribution to society before that? An HR staffer at the State Dormitory Authority. Limited experience and a provincial point-of-view. Her hatred is deranged and her religious appeals based on her brand of Conservative Christianity should put her blog in the religion category, except that McMullen is so odious she does not deserve a berth anywhere near sane people of the cloth.
McMullen has an MA in Elementary Ed but somehow never managed to move beyond the “Peggy Hill” level of achievement in substitute teaching. For some reason, that Masters in Elementary education never panned out did it Donna? At least you’re no longer teaching and your exposure to young minds is limited only to those unfortunately souls who may unfortunately cross you path.
As they say though, a fish stinks from the head down, so, who’s in charge of the blogs in the wake of Mike Huber’s absence? Shannon Fromma, who graduated UAlbany in 1999 with a degree in Communications and a minor in Journalism. Her claim to fame for the past 20 years? According to her LinkedIn profile, she’s “author of a money-saving/coupon column, Shopportunist, and copy edit entertainment content and coordinate all of the paper’s print and online calendars.” She reports nothing else in her “long” professional experience. Not. One. Thing. How can Rex Smith stand to be in the same room with this maverick journalist?
Honestfuckingly? The person selecting and overseeing bloggers and wrangling content is a coupon clipper? Was the secretary too busy? Where does anyone get off thinking they’re a “journalist” just because minored in it and “author” a SHOPPING blog. I’m sorry dear, one AUTHORS a book, a blogger expels brain farts, particularly if the topic is sports or, say, shopping. Back in the day, the shopping column was written by interns, retirees or perhaps a high school home economics teacher working on the side — and the fucking secretary coordinated all of the paper’s calendars.
Above Fromma we have Tena Tyler – her LinkedIn profile reveals the training for her vocation includes a BA degree in “Journalism” in 1993 (at least it wasn’t a minor). So, 42 or 45 credit hours 25-30 years ago and that’s it. Nothing else. Her work experience? Working at the same paper she started working at in college before jumping to the Times Union. That’s it. Two jobs since graduation in 1993. Wow. That’s just a frickin’ shitload of awesome experience. And they call Albany a provincial one-horse town. . .
Am I to honestly believe these two people were the most qualified candidates in the United States for these positions? Absolutely no one else was available in the 50 United States with even a slightly more modicum of experience? Is it just a freakin’ coincidence they happen to have already been working at the TU — or am I to believe that parking your ass in a desk for 20 or 25 years and doing almost virtually nothing else are prime employment parameters in the Hearst Corp. HR handbook?
Sitting on your butt in the same place and doing the same thing for decades doesn’t qualify as experience unless you’re testing hemorrhoid cream. If it did, we have a lot of highly experienced state workers and the most efficient state government in world history.
Tyler and Fromma are not just local, they’re provincial and practically personify the term. Their inexperience led directly to the fiascos involving Chuck Miller, Fran, and Teresa. None of that would have happened under Mike Huber, the former TU blog manager, who was more highly educated and experienced. This has nothing to do with gender, but with more education and experience. Does anyone not find it sadly ironic that two women directly in charge of the TU blogs could have treated so callously two female bloggers reporting their own sexual abuse? A teachable moment for the TU was turned into a classic case study for mismanagement and reflecting upon it inspires vomit more than pity.
Am I to believe that the Times Union, a Hearst Newspaper, cannot pull in more educated, more experienced, more widely travelled editors and reporters? Yes. The fact is, the truly talented are leaving journalism. That’s why there is so much shit reporting, crappy writing, and underqualified people producing news and information content today.
The other TU senior staffers are long timers with decades at the paper and absolutely no new blood. All one needs to do is to tune in to WAMC and listen to Alan Chartock’s weekly circle jerk, the Media Project, to hear the entrenched groupthink.
The same people for decades, no outside perspective, editors with limited work experience assigned to positions requiring different skill sets, and reporters doing secretarial work. Absolfuckinglutely brilliant. These are all the classic symptoms of the death-rattle of an industry. The water is circling the drain folks and Rex Smith is the Tidy Bowl man.
At least McMullen is honest in her hatred, which gives her ignorance some kind of integrity, kind of like Hitler. No one but a neo-Nazi respects him, but at least he never backed down from his unhinged and dangerous beliefs. Actually, that’s more like Trump – but I digress . . .
What does that say of those who sit around and promote this hate speech and make money off the ads? Haven’t we all read Rex Smith crying crocodile tears in prose, moaning about the lowered tone of the nation? Yet, he promotes for increased ad click-throughs.
Allowing McMullen a platform in the Times Union is like the Times Union throwing a bee hived into your house then selling ads to exterminators and then selling you the paper with ads so you can hire an exterminator to kill the bees the TU threw in your house.
So Rex, Tena, and whateverthehellwhatshernameisnoonecares, a journalist commits passionately to the truth. A journalist would not be a hypocritical bag of shit who decries the lowered “tone” in America on the front page while hustling it on the side in your blogs for ad revenue. A journalist WOULD NOT further victimize two female bloggers over their reporting of their own sexual abuse by shutting down their blogs over complete and totally indefensible bullshit.
THAT is what journalism should be. I don’t know what the fuck you three think you’re doing.
As for Ms. McMullen, Dorothy Parker had a great line about horticulture that seems appropriate right now, but courtesy forbids me for sharing it. Now while, everyone goes looking for it, today’s list of shame contains 38 TU blogs that as of yesterday have gone at least 3 months without being updated, including two that are about a year old, and two that date back to 2016.
So, Ms Fromma, what exactly have you been doing with your time, because it has nothing to do with overseeing the blogs.
1. Don Rittner 11/17/2017
2. Television 9/15/2017
3. 518 Music 5/16/2017
4. Tony Iadicicco 5/1/2017
5. Albany Improv 12/27/2016
6. The Buzz: Business news 5/18/2017
7. This is College!? 10/12/2017
8. Schools 8/2/2017
9. Chronicles of a Vincentian Volunteer 8/22/2017
10. TU Student News Desk 7/23/2017
11. Beer Nut 3/23/2017
12. Dowd on Drinks 12/15/2016
13. Holistic Health 10/24/2017
14. The Pulse 9/26/2017
15. Home Restoration 4/27/2017
16. Michael Huber 9/20/2017
17. Hearst Media Center 9/19/2017
18. Hot Topics 3/14/2017
19. Carl Strock 3/13/2017
20. The Observation Deck 2/1/2017
21. Ken Screven 1/20/2017
22. The Schenectady Blog 10/5/2017
23. Troy 5/31/2017
24. The Colonie blog 3/21/2017
25. The Guilderland blog 9/14/2016
26. Bethlehem NY 9/14/2016
27. Susanne Marie Poulette 10/19/2017
28. A Good Enough Life 8/6/2017
29. The Davenport Chronicles 3/3/2017
30. Reece T. Williams 1/29/2017
31. Birding with Richard Guthrie 6/7/2017
32. Talking Horses 9/6/2017
33. Youth Sports 8/24/2017
34. Boxing in the Capital Region 6/16/2017
35. Bowling 5/9/2017
36. Soccer as Life 4/24/2017
37. House of Hoops 2/23/2017
38. College Football 1/7/2017
For the record, I do not believe that a coupon clipper has the experience or breadth of experience to understand the subtleties of Donna McMullen’s political hate.
It is no surprise that newspapers are a dying media. Within the next 20 years what few remaining will likely be either shuttered or completely online. As a result, there is a vast exodus of talent for other fields that is being filled by underqualified individuals who likely would never rise beyond a copy runner when print newspapers were a major part of the media. Another unfortunate result is that in order to make up for lost revenue the Hearst Corp. has to make a deal with the devil.
Well, we already suspect Hearst did that, but let me elaborate.
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Thanks, Chuck! To be fair, the TU’s staff has long been deserving of raises & a contract. So, they’ve lost staff over recent years, and the ones left are charged with taking up the slack. But, it’s pretty clear that the “Best Of” poll really isn’t interested in discovering the best of but to give advertisers a little extra juice. Example: Which credit union will be “the best” over the past decade?
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Ha, in my case it may as well be First Mattress Savings and Loan, along with Tin Can in the Ground National Bank.
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The blog section is a remnant of a push to make online newspapers ultra-local. These ideas included creating microsites for each town, anointing “citizen journalists” to participate in news gathering, and yes, blogs. Lots of blogs. More than a decade later it’s all gone from the TU, except for the blog section, which I expected would have been shut down by now.
It’s funny that they allow it to exist. I don’t like a lot of what I see there, but it’s amusing to have this little corner of the paper where anarchy rules the day.
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