Friday, February 22, 2008

All The News That's Fit to Print!


A day after the Teamster's Union filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge against the Santa Barbara News-Press, the paper countered by filing one against the union.

The charge claims that fired reporters Dawn Hobbs and Tom Schultz threatened or coerced employees attempting to prepare newspapers for delivery.

Union attorney Ira Gottlieb told The Independent that neither Hobbs or Schultz threatened anybody. "There was no threat, no coercion, no picketing, but apparently a single lawful, mild and amicable interaction between two union supporters and News-Press employees," Gottlieb said. "We expect the NLRB to dismiss this charge promptly."

Does the NLRB ever do anything "promptly?"

* * *

"Citizen McCaw" has its world premiere showing two weeks from today at the Arlington Theater.

My guess is that the 4000 2000 plus seat Arlington wouldn't be large enough to hold everybody in town who has cancelled their subscription to the paper.

Sure wish I had the popcorn concession for the theater that night.

And yes, the L.A. Times is planning to send a reporter to cover the opening of the film.

* * *

And while we're on the subject of movies, there's an article in yesterday's L.A. Times about The Counterfeiters which is one of the best movies that I saw at the recently concluded Santa Barbara Film Fest.

The Austrian film is up for an Oscar this Sunday in the category of "Best Foreign Picture."

* * *

"Where are they now?" department. Rosemary Orozco, who used to do the weather on KEYT morning newscast is now at FOX40 in Sacramento.

Hannah Guzik, formerly a reporter for both the News-Press and the Daily Sound is now a staff reporter for the VC Reporter in Ventura.

And she's not gone yet, but KEYT reporter Regina Ruiz is leaving the station. Her contract wasn't renewed.

* * *

Has the New York Times done John McCain dirt or what?

* * *

Today's last word comes from yesterday's News-Press editorial, which complains about the City's proposal to redesign historic De la Guerra Plaza.

"It's been obvious at city meetings that a driving force behind the changes is the desire to punish the News-Press by removing the parking spaces in the plaza in front of the newspaper's building."

With all the News-Press employees who have been fired or have left at their own volition, doesn't the paper have plenty of room for parking in the lot behind their building?