REAL TALK: THE NEW PUBLIC NEWS
As of this week, the long-gone Public News is back in the racks. We won't ponder on the folly of launching a newspaper into the current publishing environment (though if we did, it would be pretty much Mike McGruff's insights read verbatim), and will consider that separate and unrelated to our inquest of her editorial.We are of the commonly held view that Houston, as perfect as she is, contains among her few flaws a lack of indigenous publishing, comment, promotion and critique (this has been on a lot of lips lately, in private conversation, a recent Lomax Houston Press column and even Houstonist's post on the PN's return).
In his inaugural column, publisher Ken Petty states with no uncertainty his thoughts on the state of music coverage in this town:
It’s always fun to see what these guys think is important to cover. The one thing that I recall is the continual glaring and almost intentional omissions of notice that there is even a music scene in Houston. One writer, who will remain nameless, but we shall call him ‘One Lova Nomax’, continues to cover things that no one really gives a rat’s asterisk about.So, as it is with us and others, local music is more than a little important to the Public News' publisher. So is it with sharp vision that they tackle their first local artist feature, an interview with members of Savage Evolution?
Great local bands are being birthed and are dying out with out much more than a mere mention of their existence in the newsweekly paper’s entertainment section. One of them, since 2004, decided that Harris County was not for them and they won’t distribute their product here anymore.
Absolutely not.
Though the piece is unattributed, its hard not to suspect that it was penned by the author of the accompanying sidebar, Connie Parker, the Promotions Director for the Houston Band Coalition. The ham-handed incorporation of the Coalition into both pieces is beyond snikerable; whether they are local or not, having a PR person write about the bands they rep is not the hallmark of serious editorialship. A band listing a Clear Lake club as their “favorite Houston venue” and holding down a monthly gig at Rocbar is anything but underground rock and roll, and it begs the question does the PN know that the meaning of the word ‘Alternative’ has shifted radically since they last published?
Locals like Jana Hunter, Spain Colored Orange, Indian Jewelry and the Fatal Flying Guilloteens are slowly gaining national attention but are still virtual unknowns where they live; did none of these blindly innovative acts merit more exposure than a band opening up for Winger next month?
The Public News is back, but not yet back on its feet. We’re not looking to push them down. We hope that they turn it around, ditch the spokesmenship and take a harder look at what’s really going on here. You can diss on local coverage all you want Public News, but show you’re not part of the problem first.
PS - What the hell is with the cover?
Labels: Fatal Flying Guilloteens, Indian Jewelry, Jana Hunter, Spain Colored Orange
10 Comments:
When glanced through the New PN all I thought was "Wow, this does not bode well." I mean if it's your first issue (even if it's only web based) you'd think they would put some work into it so that it would hook readers. Instead, what I see is something that is on the level of a high school newspaper.
I'm with you; I'm hoping they get their act together but if this first issue is any indicator [and given that the Free Press basically covers the old PN beat], it looks pretty bleak for the publisher.
Awe Joey, tell 'em how you really feel!
You sound more like a jilted lover than an honest critic. Did they not cover your band? Are you afraid that, as the PN got better, they may actually discover that your band isn't that great after all? You know that the Houston Press awards were about popularity and not talent. You actually were awarded for being a pawn of a corporate paper. Gathering for them, readers. Nice sell out, Sparky!
So in order for you to feel good about yourself, you have to put down someone else's work? Gee, that would make me feel really good about myself too!
Sad.
Dear Anonymous -
Please grow some and use your name when you post here. Also, do you happen to have a ten year old copy of QUARK we can borrow?
-THE EDITORS
Dear Anonymous,
Dumbass, contrary to what you may think the Houston Press Music Awards are not about popularity at all. They are about scoring free booze at the Rice hotel.
Clearly, you do not have your priorities straight.
Boy, this is some awful stuff. The first thing I noticed was the glaring typo on the front page - the possessive is spelled "its" not "it's"!
Also, they make the claim that "The Public News Returns", then you go to their Wikipedia entry and it says they have nothing to do with the old Public News. Lame.
Well- they never made it back on the racks and they have a failed about to make about a half dozen launch dates.
I took a fat dump in Ken Petty's mouth. He asked me to. Actually, he begged.
shut up ken.
Ken Petty is a joke. Big talk, no action, less drive.
Wishing a paper to happen won't make it happen.
Hi, My name is Carl, and for the one and only issue of the new Public News, I was the Music Editor. To answer a previous poster's comment of "While it largely remains to be seen whether the ''new' Public News is an exercise in fraud or an exercise in delusion, my money so far is on the latter."
... It absolutely was an exercise in fraud. I busted my ass for Ken Petty's new paper, and now, several months later, he still hasn't paid me one dime of the money I earned. I made a HUGE mistake in putting a halt to all the other freelance work I was doing to devote my full time and effort to help make the new PN a success. Boy did I get bent over and reamed...
All I can legally prove is the $240 from issue one, but I did work for weeks on issues that had yet to come out (and are apparently never going to come out). He owes me in excess of $1000, and the last time I heard from him, he begged me to be merciful, as Jesus was, and then told me that he would "prove his intentions were honorable." That was in September, and it's now January.
Where Ken failed, in my eyes, primarily was to pin his financial hopes (and PN's immediate future) on selling enough ads to A: Pay for printing and B: Pay the people that put the darn thing out. Ken failed to come into the venture with solid financial backing, planning or experience.
The numerous failed launches of issue number one did far less damage to the paper's reputation than the even more numerous failed launches of issue number two. Ken, you can only burn paid advertisers - and staff members you keep promising to pay - so many times before they lose faith in you.
The advertisers wisely took their ad dollars else where, and I wisely left PN regretting I'd ever gotten involved in such an embarrassing venture.
Where Ken did succeed is making it even more likely that the next great music publication idea that comes along in Houston is almost certain to fail because of his shady dealings with advertisers and the unpaid staff.
Well, the ordeal wasn't all bad for me. It was getting ripped off by PN that inspired me to require payment upfront from freelance writing clients now, and it has worked amazingly well, so well that I now work exclusively on my own directly with music artists with no editors or publishers in the way.
Thanks for the Public embarrassment, Ken Petty.
Carl Cunningham...
Your former music editor
PS... As far as I know, he's still a candidate for a 2008 bid for the 150th District seat of the Texas House of Representatives. I hope he loses, but his track record proves he'd make a perfect politician.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home