Indy Digest: June 1, 2023
The reporters at the local daily will join journalists at other Gannett papers around the country in a walk out next week.
The Desert Sun NewsGuild said today via Twitter:
“On June 5, the day of Gannett’s annual meeting, hundreds of journalists are staging walkouts to send shareholders a message: @Gannett needs new leadership at the top. It’s time to end #GannettGreed. This is not a decision we make lightly, but Gannett has given us no other choice if we want to afford living in the communities (we) cover. … Unfortunately, Gannett has so far ignored the wage proposal we put on the table over *seven months ago*, which provides pay increases that would allow us to afford a reasonable standard of living in the Coachella Valley. We can’t afford to wait any longer to earn a living wage while the cost of everything around us continues to increase—and Mike Reed continues to earn much more than the entire newsroom combined while cutting paper staffs nationwide. It’s unacceptable.”
Gannett CEO Mike Reed, as we have noted in this space before, received almost nearly $3.4 million in total compensation in 2022—and $7.7 million the year before.
The Washington Post, in a story about the nationwide Gannett walkout, offers some more context:
Hundreds of staffers for 24 Gannett newspapers, including the Arizona Republic, Austin American-Statesman and the Palm Beach Post, say they will not report to work for a day or two starting Monday, forfeiting pay and forgoing assignments ranging from city council meetings to high school sports championship games. At some papers, the strikes begin Tuesday.
Their aim, they say, is to call attention to budget cuts and put pressure on shareholders, who are expected to take up the issue of executive pay at a meeting Monday. Demonstrating journalists want shareholders to take a no-confidence vote against CEO Mike Reed, whom they fault for the company’s financial struggles.
In a financial filing, the NewsGuild—the union representing more than 50 Gannett newsrooms—writes that Reed has “failed shareholders,” arguing that other newspaper companies are faring better. …
In a company statement, Gannett said “our leadership is focused on investing in local newsrooms and monetizing our content” during a challenging economic climate. “Our goal is to preserve journalism and serve our communities across the country as we continue to bargain in good faith to finalize contracts that provide equitable wages and benefits for our valued employees.”
Gannett also said it was prepared for the anticipated work stoppage and pledged “no disruption to our content or ability to deliver trusted news.”
Given how the company is handling its “ability to deliver trusted news” in places like Salinas, I’m going to call bullshit on Gannett’s statement.
Members of The Desert Sun NewsGuild have started a strike fund—as there’s a distinct possibility these journalists, at some point, may wind up on strike for longer than a day. You can learn more about the strike fund here.
—Jimmy Boegle
From the Independent
History, Fashionably: The Palm Springs Cultural Center Hosts Designer Aneka Brown’s Third Annual Juneteenth Event
By Cat Makino
May 30th, 2023
The Third Annual Juneteenth Celebration will take place from 2 to 8:30 p.m., Sunday, June 11, at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. The Juneteenth celebration came to Palm Springs through the efforts of fashion designer Aneka Brown, owner of Aneka Brown Designs.
Delighting Different Demographics: Saxophonist Chase Huna Blends Jazz and Pop Both in His New Single and at His Regular Gigs
By Matt King
May 30th, 2023
Chase Huna is a local saxophonist who channels jazz and pop in both his original music and his cover selections. He has released three studio albums of instrumental tunes, and he frequently performs throughout the valley.
The Venue Report, June 2023: Barenaked Ladies, Delfonics, Linda Purl—and More!
By Matt King
May 31st, 2023
While some venues are on a summer hiatus, others continue to bring in a lot of great entertainment.
June Astronomy: Venus and Jupiter Dominate the Skies—and It’s a Great Month to View the Milky Way
By Robert Victor
May 31st, 2023
A preview of the nighttime skies in June 2023.
The Lucky 13: Erik Ebersole, Bassist for Lazuli Bones, Which Just Released New Single ‘44’
By Matt King
May 31st, 2023
Get to better know Erik Ebersole, the bassist for Lazuli Bones (formerly Blue Sun).
The Weekly Independent Comics Page for June 1, 2023!
By Staff
June 1st, 2023
Topics touched upon this week include incorrect pizza orders, Delaware, the Northernmost Plains, loose talk—and a lot more!
Olive Crest’s Pick-A-Purse Event Raises $115,500 for At-Risk Children and Families (Nonprofit Submission)
By Madeline Zuckerman
May 31st, 2023
Close to 400 elegantly attired guests enjoyed an afternoon of fun and shopping for that “must have” designer purse at the annual Olive Crest Pick-A-Purse Luncheon on May 7 at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel in Ontario.
More News
• The state of Arizona has decided it needs to put the brakes on new growth—because there’s just not enough water. The New York Times reports: “Arizona has determined that there is not enough groundwater for all of the housing construction that has already been approved in the Phoenix area, and will stop developers from building some new subdivisions, a sign of looming trouble in the West and other places where overuse, drought and climate change are straining water supplies. The decision by state officials very likely means the beginning of the end to the explosive development that has made the Phoenix area the fastest growing metropolitan region in the country. … The announcement of a groundwater shortage, what the state calls ‘unmet demand’ for water over the next hundred years, means Arizona would no longer give developers in areas of Maricopa County new permits to construct homes that rely on wells for water.”
• ProPublica has assembled an interactive guide to rights the U.S. Supreme Court could possibly take away. ProPublica’s explanation of the project: “To get a better sense of which rights may be at risk—in whole or in part — ProPublica scoured judicial opinions, academic articles and public remarks by sitting justices. Some justices, like Clarence Thomas, have had decades-long careers and lengthy paper trails. By contrast, Ketanji Brown Jackson, the newest justice, has almost no prior record. We found dozens of rights that at least one sitting justice has questioned. … You can explore these rights and the objections levied against them. We include federal legislation that’s been introduced to protect a given right, as well as lawsuits active in lower courts that could become vehicles for the justices to revisit existing rights in the future.”
• I have a one-word response to this story from Vice: YIKES! The headline: “AI-Controlled Drone Goes Rogue, Kills Human Operator in USAF Simulated Test.” A tidbit: “’We were training it in simulation to identify and target a surface-to-air missile (SAM) threat. And then the operator would say yes, kill that threat. The system started realizing that while they did identify the threat at times the human operator would tell it not to kill that threat, but it got its points by killing that threat. So what did it do? It killed the operator. It killed the operator because that person was keeping it from accomplishing its objective,’ (Col. Tucker ‘Cinco’) Hamilton said, according to the blog post. He continued to elaborate, saying, ‘We trained the system–”Hey don’t kill the operator–that’s bad. You’re gonna lose points if you do that.” So what does it start doing? It starts destroying the communication tower that the operator uses to communicate with the drone to stop it from killing the target.’”
• After that freaky news item, let’s turn things toward the positive. First: Congratulations to Rancho Mirage High School teacher Marie Stevenson for being named one of the four Riverside County 2024 Teachers of the Year. The Press-Enterprise says: “The four teachers, chosen from nearly 20,000 educators, will represent the county at the 2024 California State Teacher of the Year competition later this year. … Stevenson, who has taught for 16 years, works to help students feel ‘like they can “do math,”’ which … is inspired by her own experiences as ‘the confused student who was afraid to participate in math class.’ Stevenson is a department head, curriculum representative for the district, and also posts math videos on her YouTube channel.”
• Next: Congratulations to Joe Wallace, CEO of the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership. From a news release: “The Coachella Valley Economic Partnership announced that … Joe Wallace has been named one of the of top 50 Economic Developers in North America in 2023—the only one in California and one of three in the Western states. Recipients will be presented with their award at Consultant Connect’s ECONOMIX event in Atlanta, Ga., on Thursday, Nov. 30. … Consultant Connect, a consulting agency designed to bridge the gap between economic developers and site consultants, recently announced its 2023 list of North America’s Top 50 Economic Developers. The economic development professionals selected for this list were nominated by their colleagues in both the economic development and site location consulting industries for excellent practices, innovation and success in building the communities they serve.”
• A positive update to some news we mentioned in our most recent restaurant news column: Rooster and the Pig, at 356 S. Indian Canyon Drive, in Palm Springs, will be re-opening today, June 1, following a four-month closure due to a building-wide electrical issue. An announcement on Facebook said: “The last few months have been a whirlwind of emotions, but more importantly, it’s been full of love and support from all of you! Thank you for all the kind messages, check-ins and acts of kindness. It’s because of you that we’re still here. And we’re looking forward to the ‘Rooster Reboot.'”
• And finally … one of the most interesting local summer events is the Palm Springs International Film Festival’s Shortfest, which will take place June 20-26. The film lineup was released today. From the news release: “The festival will screen 50 curated programs showcasing 299 films including 53 world premieres, 10 international premieres, 33 North American premieres and 18 U.S. premieres. Repeat screenings of the winners will be shown closing night and on June 26. Additionally, a virtual Best of the Festival will run from July 7-13, featuring a collection of ShortFest’s juried award winners available to stream at a packaged price online. More than 6,000 short films from 129 countries were submitted. … ‘We are so thrilled to be bringing such incredible talent to Palm Springs to celebrate film and the craft of short filmmaking,’ said artistic director Lili Rodriguez.”
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