Will someone please explain what the heck is going on in The Economic Times? For those of you not aware, in the past two weeks there has been an exodus of sorts from the country’s largest business newspaper. And the exodus is limited to overpaid editors but some of the papers best reporters, who would rather commit what some of us consider career suicide rather than continue in ET. I can see the grin on Sukumar’s face!
By career suicide, I mean FE – I know some of the guys joining FE are loyalists of the new FE Editor MK Venu, but honestly that paper only exists for the tender adverts, it is not bad or anything but ask yourself (if you are not in PR or in the Indian Express group) when was the last time you read FE for a sustained period of time. I just about manage to glance through it in office. That said, I wish the new team in FE all the best towards achieving the ‘high profile’ that Shekhar Gupta wants, but Mint won the ‘profile’ wars long ago. That said, I just wonder how many people are ‘parking’ themselves to break the ridiculous and anti-employee ‘no-poaching’ pact between BCCl and HTMedia.
Some of the seeds of chaos were sown by the concept of an integrated newsroom but differential pay structures for print and TV. My reporter friends in ET have expressed their displeasure with this over and over and they were just waiting for an uptick in hiring to jump ship. But I laughed this away, a couple of people of people here and there, the scale of this desertion is mind-boggling. But then again, I have to admit a couple of Editors I have worked with saw this coming, along with the plunging ratings – which isn’t surprising when they send a vapid but pretty face to interview the CEO of a company that Robert Noyce founded.
Admittedly the business news space is more robust than general news, but the attendant chaos is limited to the second floor of 7, BSZ Marg and not the third floor. Puzzling, or maybe because ToI staffers aren’t jealous of Times NOW staffers as ET staffers seem to be of ET NOW staffers. Maybe people in ToI just take a look at Arnab’s zeal for war with China and/or Pakistan and thank their lucky stars!
Oh yes, and an apology for not writing over the past few days, I’ve acquired a new Editor and he has been flogging this slightly thinner reporter. And I’ve been enjoying myself quite a bit at work.
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6 comments:
This was bound to happen Mate. But i wonder, why FE will not pick up?I know marketing plays a big role..and perahps FE will never make it to Mint's level.
But where are the options? And isn't it suicidal to stick in a conglomerate like ET, waiting for rewards to come..with slashed salaries and no hope in sight or better commit "career suicide" and earn better. Besides, for ET chaps, except BS, BL and FC what are the options? And if FE is giving you what you deserve why not?
The second thing is ---Who we write for? I guess you must have answered this question and would have asked yourself the same a zillion times. Everyone loves there stories to be read by 7 lakh people..(ET Circulation)...but how many read your byline? i guess 40,000 and less...so FE circulation (20,000) at least caters to some population, who reads your byline.
Having said that a good story will get attention even if it gets published in a monthly magazine. And, here am not talking of general people...am talking of bosses, like yours and me.
Of course some of us have the luxury of working for ourselves and our beliefs and faiths. Unfortunately not all are as lucky as you're :)
Hey K,
Good to know you're back on track, posting on the goings on in newsrooms.
why do you suck up to Sukumar so much? if you really have the "you-know-what", try speaking the truth about him and his and also your old boss who is now HT's editor. your criticism of ET and ToI and ET Now is understandable. since you will never get a job in these organisations, you would might as well condemn them. but if you are hopeful that by sucking up to your old bosses, you will get a job at HT Media, forget it. right now, they have enough people "working for them".
BTW, the new boss you are gloating about is the same guy Sukumar wrote about in his Acute Angle column today. (senior editor, but junior colleague, who no longer works for him). it's so gracious of him that he stopped at "no longer works for me" and didn't say "I kicked him out" or made some other honourable comment that he's so very capable of.
Hello! In what world are you mate?! Saying that "Mint won the ‘profile’ wars long ago" is like saying "Sukumar learnt to select the front page lead long ago"!!
Forget about profile, this newspaper is not worth even making a file in your office library!
If this blog is trying to forsee the future of FE after those higly paid journalists join the newspaper found only in IIMC and ACJ libraries and spome other PSU's, then I must tell you, those big journalists were big because of ET brand. ET gets stories because of its circultation, not because its journalists are great. Few years ago there was a big real estate journalist who earned the name and fame in a very short span of time.He was hired by a newly launched financial daily (I know all you you would have figured out who I am talking about but I would like to maintain the dignity by not mentioning his name. That journalist is nowhere today. No more breaking stories, no more recognition. Similary, If Shekhar wanted to see FE among the top business dailies( Actually there is just one.Others are far behind, then he should have invested in increasing the circulation. FE has failed to provide recognitioin to some of its good journalists and they are doing good work for other organizations. Barring few, even the existing lot of FE journalists was good enough and all shekhar needed to do was hire journalists, not necessarily from ET as they have come at obxious packages. I wish Shekhar understands this mantra before he runs out of the precious cash that the express group has provided him with to make FE like his elder brother IE. Also, FE is editior driven, office politics and what not whereas IE is a reporters' organization.
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