THOUSAND OAKS NEWSPAPER TACKLES DUAL TRAGEDIES

With shootings and massive fire striking Thousand Oaks, Calif., within days, the local newspaper --- Thousand Oaks Acorn --- certainly jumped in to tackle coverage of the events in a city that was ranked third safest in the U.S., observed Grumpy Editor.

Under publisher Jim Rule, managing editor John Loesing and editor Kyle Jorrey, it operated much like a major city daily in getting the word out.

 

With a circulation of almost 40,000, serving the communities of  Thousand Oaks, Newbury Park, North Ranch and Westlake Village, the 44-page weekly tabloid did a commendable job in reporting the shooting at Borderline Grill & Bar along with a raging fire, the most destructive in Conejo Valley history, that consumed about 500 homes in its circulation area.

 

For a paper of its size, it has a photo editor and two photographers and eight editorial staff writers, all highly active during the week.

 

Its opinion page last week carried an editorial, "A community in mourning tries to heal."

 

It mentioned, "Never in the history of our community has there been such a terrible one-two punch to the gut:  a mass murder followed by massive destruction from fire.

 

"People need to be heard.  If your life was inconvenienced for a few days, seek out and comfort the neighbor whose life was destroyed during those same few days.

 

"Look for ways to console, to donate and to volunteer --- not just in the immediate aftermath of the horrible past week but throughout the year when recent events are no longer in the headlines or trending on social media.  Those who have suffered great loss will need our help."

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE...

 

PRESS PASSES NOT EASY TO GET.  Amazing about the heavy coverage given to the yanking of CNN's Jim Acosta's White House press pass.  It's been Grumpy Editor's observation that over the years before a press pass is issued, via police department or city hall, as examples, the issuing authority screens the applicant thoroughly and can nix or pull issuance for any reason.

SURPRISE!  MORE NORTH KOREA MISSILE SITES.  There shouldn't be any surprise that tricky North Korea was found --- via satellite imagery --- to have 13 secret missile development sites, making it tougher to formulate an arms control agreement.

 

MACY'S CUTS STAFF.  Macy's, where it's already difficult to locate a store employee for guidance, plans to reduce the amount of merchandise and number of workers while walling off sections of stores, leaving the space vacant.

LONG COLD WINTER AHEAD?  Global warming folks will find it hard to agree, but NASA scientist Martin Mlynczak, declared a long, cold winter could see temperatures across the planet plunge to depressing lows stemming from sunspot activity on the surface of our star dropping so low that it could herald the arrival of a "uniquely grim Ice Age."  Mlynczak at Langley Research Center, warned "our atmosphere is losing heat energy."

JAL SEEKS TO KEEP PILOTS SOBER.   Japan Airlines, facing a problem with pilots showing up for work drunk, introduced a breathalyzer system at foreign airports.  Japan does not set alcohol limits for pilots, so it's up to airlines to keep them sober, reported BBC.

TOSS THE RAZOR BLADES.  Men who have full beards are more attractive than those who are clean-shaven, according to a study published in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology. Researchers asked more than 8,500 women to rate men on their attractiveness as a long-term romantic partner.  Heavy stubble (10 days worth) topped the list, followed by full beards and light stubble, with clean shaven at the bottom.

PIG FEVER SWEEPS CHINA.  An outbreak of African swine fever over the last three months has spread to over half of China's provinces.  China has labelled the epidemic "very serious," reported Asia Times. The virus doesn't affect humans but it is fatal to pigs.