The Potato may make a fool of a few people

Just to warn people: when you get to pages ? and ?, please don’t take the articles on those pages seriously. It is April 1, after all.


We call those pages “The Potato,” a spoof on the greatest spoof paper of all – The Onion. Being Portage County, the state’s leading potato producer, The Potato is the perfect name.

While some people may not be fans of The Potato, which is understandable since humor is a fickle matter subject to the type of individual one is, others look forward to our spoofs every year. In fact, one of the articles was actually submitted by a reader.

The rest were written by Gazette staff members. We each have our own pen name – mine being Kent Clark in tribute to the journalist alter-ego of Superman.

We don’t spend much time writing them, as we’re busy enough with the real news, but it is a nice break to write something that doesn’t require too much thought and allows us to show our humorous sides.

Events taking place in Madison were the big topic staff members wanted to poke fun at this year. We tried our best to make fun of both sides of the matter, with one story focusing on Gov. Scooter Valker selling both Portage County and the Capitol building to a pair of out-of-state brothers, and another concentrating on protests by cat “nonlabor” unions.

I strayed away from politics and wrote about E.T. moving to Junction City. I went with the topic after one staff member suggested we write about aliens in Portage County, and another saying an alien would be named E.T.ski if it lived here. We laughed at the suggestion, which was enough to make me run with it.

We even poke fun at the media, which is usually the job of Comedy Central “The Daily Show.” We agree with Jon Stewart that someone needs to keep the media’s coverage, or lack of fair coverage, in check.

I’m a fan of The Onion, as well as that of other spoof news media, as long as people know it’s a joke. We tried our best to keep that fact clear by changing names of real people, like the governor, and making the stories outrageous enough somebody would have to be a real fool to believe them.

Having said that, it’s inevitable we’ll get a few calls or e-mails from people who fall for the joke and believe them to be true. To those people, we apologize. But we hope you have a good chuckle when you realize you’ve been had.

Letter writers contribute to long-lasting history

I’m keeping this week’s column brief. In case you haven’t noticed, we have a lot of letters – more than 20 at last count – and our space is limited.


For some unexplained reason, The Gazette, as well as many other newspapers, receives more letters than usual around times of the full moon. This month, the full moon fell on Feb. 18, which is the date we received many of these letters for publication. I understand hospitals and police officers also deal with more calls than usual around the time of the full moon, so this phenomenon is not limited to people in the newspaper industry. Maybe the full moon puts something in the air that causes people to become more vocal.

Or, maybe it’s because the times are calling for it. From a historical perspective, the events taking place in Madison are extraordinary, and many of this week’s letter writers are offering opinions about them on both sides of the issue. No matter what opinion people may offer, we’re always happy to give people a venue to express opinions as long as they are in the form of a letter that adheres to our policies (poetry, short-fiction and copyrighted material are not allowed).

These policies include not exceeding 500 words (although we occasionally let this slip if the overage isn’t a lot), limiting writers to one letter every four weeks (some people would write weekly if allowed to do so), and meeting our 5 p.m. Monday deadline (people submitting on Tuesday or after aren’t guaranteed a spot).

The Gazette reserves the right to edit, delete or reject letters or portions of letters. I sometimes edit letters for length (if they are too long, I’ll chop out what I feel are the most unnecessary portions to bring them to 500 words), and I’ll change items I know are wrong. Since the letter is the opinion of the writer, and not The Gazette, we limit this fact checking. Readers just need to be aware many of these opinions probably have a counter-opinion that can be backed up with contrary facts.

Letters are important because of the long-lasting historical record that is created when a newspaper is published. One hundred years from now, people using this paper for research may be able to pull a letter to use as evidence to support theories and conclusions they have about certain events.

So, thank you letter writers for contributing to our history. That’s the beauty of our democracy, even with all of its flaws.

Gazette moves to new home in downtown Stevens Point

The Gazette finally has a new home.
We made the move Thursday, July 8, hours after sending the Friday, July 9, edition to press, and months after finding our new location at 1024 Main St., downtown Stevens Point.
Most of the physical move was completed in hours. Gazette owners and employees were on hand to move computers, files, office supplies, books, old papers and other things from 2800 Church St. to the new location. They worked hard, and because of their efforts and teamwork, it was smooth.
I wish I could say I was there for the bulk of it, but I was in Marshfield, getting braces put on my teeth. I was keeping an appointment I had made two months ago, long before I knew the date of the move.
When I made the appointment, for a Thursday on my day off, I knew we’d be moving on a Thursday sometime during the summer, hopefully, but picking which Thursday was an impossibility. A lot needed to be done prior to the move, and making it happen would require full-work on somebody’s behalf.
Fortunately, former managing editor Gene Kemmeter, one of the founders of The Gazette, retired on June 1. Without the day-to-day responsibility of running the news department, Gene now had the time to devote himself to making sure the move could happen. With help from the other owners, including Norb Tepp, Jim Schuh and Gary Glennon, he worked tirelessly to piece together all the puzzle pieces that needed to be put together to build the road we needed to take to come downtown.
We first became interested in the downtown location in January, after touring the facility, which was once occupied by Pro-Logic. In its history it was the longtime location of the Sports Shop, as well as the distribution center of Point Sporting Goods.
Pro-Logic used a lot of computers, and because it did, the building was networked perfectly for our computer needs. It also had more office space than we had at our old location, something we knew we needed if we were to continue growing.
Regardless of which area has the highest traffic count in Stevens Point – whether it’s downtown, Division Street near the campus, the east side along Highway 10, the south side or the business park next to Crossroads Commons in Plover – downtown Stevens Point is the heart and soul of this community, and it was where The Gazette needed to be.
Settling into our new digs on Friday, and getting back to business, we learned the move hadn’t gone quite as smoothly as we thought it had. Our computer server wasn't hooked up right. The problem took a little time to fix – thank God Computer Magic was able to fix a problem they did not create – and after that was resolved, we learned our e-mail wasn’t fully functional, either.
By Monday, that problem was fixed, and since then the staff has been learning the intricacies of the new place, including a new phone system that has, get this, caller ID and voice mail. Welcome to the 20th century, Gazette.
If you’re reading this when you normally would read this, hopefully on a Friday after you get the paper in the mail, then the move can be considered a success, as we were able to get the paper to press on time, once again, as we have for the past 11 years. If not, blame the weather.
Don’t be afraid to stop in and visit us at our new home. We’re open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Our phone number is still (715) 343-8045, and if you want to e-mail us, send it to me at pcgazette@g2a.net.

Times are a-changin' at The Gazette

“Come writers and critics/Who prophesize with your pen/And keep your eyes wide/The chance won't come again.” – From “Times They Are A-Changin’” by Bob Dylan.
No matter the situation, Bob Dylan has probably written a song with a lyric that applies to it.
Beginning June 1 with the retirement of Gene Kemmeter as the managing editor of The Gazette and continuing until early July through a transition period loaded with a number of changes, “Times They Are A-Changin’,” would most apply to the situation here.
Gene’s retirement is a huge change for The Gazette. For the past 11 years, he has been the face of the paper, which he helped found with several other local media legends, including George Rogers, Jim Schuh and Bill Berry. People calling, e-mailing or stopping in at The Gazette most likely encountered Gene, who was always more than happy to meet those people.
He has also been a silent but major presence at events throughout the community. From Cultural Fest to Riverfront Rendezvous and from both of Portage County’s fairs to the Jazz Festival, Gene was there, camera in one hand and notepad in the other, taking photos and documenting the event for The Gazette.
Gene has also been a top-notch reporter in covering news events, meetings, controversies and anything else the newspaper business has thrown at him for the more than 40 years he’s been in the business. He learned from the best, quoting George Rogers to me constantly in the three years I’ve worked with him, and he has always been more than happy to share what he has learned.
I’ve benefited from this knowledge, as has his son, John, The Gazette’s sports editor. Former employees have also benefited, including Chris Randazzo; Gene’s other son, Mike, who is the news director for a radio station in Appleton; and dozens of interns who have worked here throughout the years.
Following in Gene’s footsteps is daunting, and I hope I can live up to his legendary status as one of the finest journalists this community has ever produced.
Fortunately, I’ve got some good help. In addition to Gene, who still plans on writing and taking photographs during his well-deserved retirement, John Kemmeter will now be working for The Gazette on a full-time basis, rather than just part-time. Making him a full-time employee was an easy decision, as John is one of the finest sports writers in central Wisconsin.
Also helping is Matthew Brown, a 1995 Stevens Point Area Senior High School (SPASH) graduate. Matthew, who recently moved back to Stevens Point after living elsewhere throughout the country, will have the city beat Gene covered, as well as other writing and editing duties as The Gazette’s part-time associate editor.
The Gazette also has three interns this summer: Rose Schneider, a 2008 Pacelli High School graduate majoring in international journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater; Thomasina Johnson, a 2008 SPASH graduate majoring in journalism and French at Miami University of Ohio; and Mandy Glenzer, a 2008 SPASH graduate majoring in photography at Columbia University in Chicago, Ill. The veterans here plan on putting them through The Gazette’s unofficial “School of Journalism” this summer, so when they return to their schools in the fall they’ll be at the top of their classes.
I would be negligent if I didn’t mention The Gazette’s longtime employees: production manager Paula O’Kray, ad salesmen Kevin “Casey” Sullivan and Matt Clucas, circulation manager Ann Leahy, and graphic artist Brett Hiorns. All five have contributed in big ways in making The Gazette one of the best weekly papers in Wisconsin.
Beginning with this issue, on page 4, Brett will draw editorial cartoons for The Gazette. An artist known most for his work with New York Times-bestselling author Patrick Rothfuss of Stevens Point, Brett excels at drawing caricatures, a skill that will serve him well in this endeavor.
One of the biggest changes taking place at The Gazette has nothing to do with personnel, though. On July 1, The Gazette will move from its location at 2800 Church St. to downtown Stevens Point at 1042 Main St., the former ProLogic building.
This new location will better serve our needs, as it’s bigger and better designed. It’s also in a more visible location, right across the street from the library. We’re excited about the move and invite people to stop in and visit us when we’re there.
Also, people may notice the small price increase with this issue of The Gazette. Frankly, it was needed because the single-copy price has been 50 cents since The Gazette started in 1999. Even at 75 cents, we still think you’re getting a good deal.
The times may have changed here at The Gazette, but we are confident we’ll continue to provide a quality product as we have always done.

Jumps are beneficial to both readers and advertisers

I hope this column doesn’t jump to another page.
It’s very likely it will, though, as our pages just aren’t big enough to contain all the information we at The Gazette like to tell you.
And judging by some of the comments we receive, you’ve definitely noticed our pages aren’t big enough.
“I love your paper, but my only complaint is you have to jump from page to page to read the entire story.”
“Too many jumps.”
“Why don’t you put everything on one page?”
Those are the comments we sometime receive about what we call “jumps” simply because if we can’t fit a story in a given space on a page, we jump it to another page.
Ideally, an 11-inch by 18-inch page should contain enough room for any story, even if it has a picture or two. But by the time ads are placed on a page, as well as small stories and photos that are equally as important as the large stories, the space we have to work with is greatly reduced.
Now, in a perfect newspaper world – which by the way doesn’t exist – we’d have perfect-fitting holes for perfect-fitting stories and jumps wouldn’t be necessary. Unfortunately, it never works that way. The stories are usually too long, or too short, for a given hole, and as a result long stories jump to another page and short stories create a hole that needs to be filled by a jump from another page.
Our layout guy, Brett Hiorns, can fudge with the leading, photo and headline sizes to sometimes fit a story, but his time is limited and quickness is preferred Wednesday night when we’re readying the paper. The printer gets an itch for PDF files at midnight, so it can have the paper ready in the early morning hours on Thursday in order to get it mailed to people by Friday.
As a result, jumps are the norm with The Gazette. And that’s not a bad thing, despite the anti-jump comments we receive.
Why? Prior to the corporatization of many newspapers, jumps were the norm with most newspapers, and for good reason. Because of jumps, the entire story could be told; they weren’t written, or edited, to fit a space. When I read other newspapers, I often think I’m not getting the whole story and that key details are being left out or it’s been written in such a way I only get the bare-bone basics.
At The Gazette, the writers here write until they run out of information to write about. Personally speaking, if I attend an emotional School Board meeting like the one I went to in April following the defeat of the second referendum, and it lasts more than four hours, I’ll take a lot of notes. While I don’t have the time to write about every word that is spoken at the meeting, I’ll make sure my story grabs at the heart of events that transpired at it in order to keep those who were not there informed.
I believe all of our writers – Gene, John, George (a Ringo or Paul would fit nicely here), Jim, Justin, Nick, Bill and all of our contributors – follow this philosophy. They tell the story as it should be told, albeit with a jump or two.
In addition to helping to keep readers better informed, jumps also benefit our advertisers. Because of them, people often look at one page multiple times. Multiple views mean a better chance people will notice any given ad, and since studies have proven people often need to see something three or more times to remember it, an advertiser on a page with jumps should be grateful for such placement.
I understand why people don’t like jumps, though. They can be annoying, especially since we don’t have three hands to navigate them. But, because they help better inform readers, our brains will get bigger, and then through evolution we may be able to grow that third hand.