To: Rich Green, VP, content
Save the Millburn Item
Gannett has laid off the reporters at the Item, founded in 1888, while keeping ad reps. Tell them we need our local news!
Why is this important?
As of Nov. 15, The Item will be a shell of its former self. Gannett bought North Jersey Media Group and recently announced who's staying: Ad reps for the Item--- and no reporters.
I left The Montclair Times this past June, just before the buy-out. Gannett, which also owns The Item, intends to keep the shell of a paper called The Item, and continue selling ads to unsuspecting businessmen, but has already gutted the paper. Other local weeklies will remain. Several of my colleagues at TMT remain. The message is clear: Millburn will be happy with news of towns 10 miles away. Right?
And why? Because Gannet cares about "clicks." Because Millburn, unlike Montclair, doesn't have shootings and drug deals. Gannett is keeping a "local news team." Just not here. They think we won't notice.
What does Millburn have? A committed community who cares deeply about this town. When Millburn High School threatened to end the Millburnaires two years ago, people came from far and wide to a Board of Ed meeting to protest.
Millburn has the honor of just having been named the number one hottest real estate market in the state by the Star-Ledger (Sunday, Oct. 9). Number one. Montclair is number seven.
Gannett is deliberately trying to mislead readers. This is not a "digital restructuring," this is a sham. Gannett has done this in other markets before, and when people complained, said: "there's no news."
We don't want "phoned in" news. We don't want to read about Verona and Montclair in the Item.
Let Gannett know that local news needs to stay local.
I left The Montclair Times this past June, just before the buy-out. Gannett, which also owns The Item, intends to keep the shell of a paper called The Item, and continue selling ads to unsuspecting businessmen, but has already gutted the paper. Other local weeklies will remain. Several of my colleagues at TMT remain. The message is clear: Millburn will be happy with news of towns 10 miles away. Right?
And why? Because Gannet cares about "clicks." Because Millburn, unlike Montclair, doesn't have shootings and drug deals. Gannett is keeping a "local news team." Just not here. They think we won't notice.
What does Millburn have? A committed community who cares deeply about this town. When Millburn High School threatened to end the Millburnaires two years ago, people came from far and wide to a Board of Ed meeting to protest.
Millburn has the honor of just having been named the number one hottest real estate market in the state by the Star-Ledger (Sunday, Oct. 9). Number one. Montclair is number seven.
Gannett is deliberately trying to mislead readers. This is not a "digital restructuring," this is a sham. Gannett has done this in other markets before, and when people complained, said: "there's no news."
We don't want "phoned in" news. We don't want to read about Verona and Montclair in the Item.
Let Gannett know that local news needs to stay local.