AAN News
Alt-Weeklies Start a Portland-to-Portland 'Food Fight'
On the heels of Epicurious.com calling Portland, Maine, "the new Portland, Oregon," Portland Mercury food writer Patrick Alan Coleman decided that he "quite like[d] the idea of a cross-country Portland food rivalry," and baited the Mainers with a blog post detailing why the West Coast Portland is the real deal for foodies. Portland Phoenix editor Jeff Inglis has fired back with his point-by-point rebuttal, noting the superiority of Maine's beer, ingredients, mushrooms and bartenders.
The Portland Mercury | Portland Phoenix |
12-17-2008 9:01 am |
Industry News
The Stranger and Ace Hotel Launch 'Trainsetters' Programnew
In collaboration with Travel Portland and Amtrak Cascades, Ace Hotel and
The Stranger have launched Trainsetters -- a program that encourages
train travel from Seattle to Portland and supports Portland's independent
shops this holiday season. The program is aimed at an emerging travel market: younger travelers who are sick of the hassle and high costs of driving
and air travel, and who prefer the train's practical and aesthetic benefits. Trainsetters will be promoted via design collaborations between The Stranger and Ace Hotel, including postcards, posters and custom coffee sleeves on the train, ads in The Stranger, and also on the web at www.trainsetters.com.
The Stranger Press Release (pdf) |
11-25-2008 9:58 am |
Press Releases
Ex-Portland Mercury Editor Charged with Stealing McCain Lawn Signsnew
Phil Busse, the former Mercury managing editor and one-time Portland mayoral candidate, was charged with misdemeanor theft for stealing McCain campaign lawn signs in Minnesota. Busse was in the state for a visiting professorship at St. Olaf College, and admitted his deeds in a Huffington Post blog last Thursday titled "Confessions of a Lawn Sign Stealer." He has since resigned from St. Olaf, the Oregonian reports. "I have no problems with taking personal responsibility for stupid actions," says Busse, who faces up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. "I certainly regret I took down the signs."
The Oregonian |
11-06-2008 8:42 am |
Industry News
'Project Runway' Winner is a Former Portland Mercury Graphic Designernew
The Portland Mercury |
10-24-2008 1:54 pm |
Honors & Achievements
Portland's Rival Alt-Weeklies Team Up in Court and Win Shield Casenew
On Feb. 1, someone named "Ronald" posted a comment about a local businessman named Terry Beard on
both the Portland Mercury and Willamette Week websites. Ronald's message "was Greek to me," the Mercury's Amy Ruiz writes, "but Terry Beard sure didn't appreciate it." He took both papers to court to get them to reveal the anonymous commenter's IP address. The papers' attorneys fought the motion, arguing that Oregon's Media Shield Law protects the information. The plaintiff's lawyer countered by contending that the shield law only applies to news gathering, not the passive reception of information. On Monday, Judge James E. Redman sided with the papers, and agreed that the IP address was protected under the state shield law. However, he noted that "if the comment had been totally unrelated to the blog post," then the shield law might not have applied.
The Portland Mercury |
10-02-2008 9:17 am |
Legal News
Index Newspapers & DesertNet Unveil New Content Management System
The company that owns The Stranger and Portland Mercury announces the release today of Foundation, "a highly customizable, fully integrated
content-management system for alt-weeklies." The new system, which was developed in partnership with DesertNet, includes dynamic calendars, city guides, user profiles, and extensive editorial tools. "With its customizable layouts and
components, Foundation will reduce alt-weeklies' reliance on
expensive web development," the Index Newspaper press release says.
(FULL STORY)
Index Newspapers Press Release |
05-22-2008 8:35 am |
Press Releases
Portland Official to Reporter: 'I Think You're Despicable'new
Portland's city auditor Gary Blackmer (pictured), angry about his treatment in a story in the Portland Mercury, approached reporter Matt Davis in City Hall, called him "despicable," and threw in a "fuck you" for good measure, according to the Mercury. Blackmer's beef comes down to the question of whether or not he provided comment for Davis' story on racial profiling by the city's cops. The story noted that Blackmer "declined to comment," yet he and a colleague both seem to think they provided enough comment by quoting from an earlier report. "To say [they] declined comment is fair, and I would challenge them to state publicly, here, why they did not," Davis writes. The Willamette Week's Ian Gillingham thinks that Blackmer's explosion was inspired by the newly released film The Bucket List, "in which two geezers start doing all the things they want to do before they die."
The Portland Mercury |
01-18-2008 9:06 am |
Industry News
Portland Mercury Wins Cross-Town Softball Battlenew
Despite vows by Willamette Week that they'd "beat the living shit" out of their cross-town rivals' softball team, the Merc prevailed for the second year in a row on Sunday, by a score of 11-8. "It was another great Sunday in the world of sports," writes the Mercury's Wm. Steven Humphrey. "The WW has really improved since last year, and made a strong showing with numerous hits and good fielding, but ultimately it was the surgical style of the Mercury that won the day." AAN members: we know that many of you have softball squads hitting the diamond this summer. Feel free to report successes, failures and box scores to jwhiten (at) aan.org.
Portland Mercury |
07-10-2007 12:02 pm |
Industry News
Portland Mercury Organizes 'Civic Clean-Up Squad'new
The Mercury caused quite a stir when they organized a freelance janitorial crew Friday evening to put an end to a Rose Parade tradition: the "reserved" seat. In the City of Roses, people tape off sidewalk spots up to a week in advance of the annual parade, and, according to KOIN-TV, some were even selling their spaces on Craigslist. "If you go to the DMV or the bank, you don't get to tape your spot off in advance and then come back the next day," the Mercury's Matt Davis explains. "It's ridiculous." But as a local TV news reporter says, some folks "really don't care for the idea of messing with tradition." One inexplicably frightened bystander tells KATU-TV that the Merc's peaceful group of tape-and-chalk exterminators had her a little rattled: "It is quite interesting; kind of scary. I was worried for a second what might happen."
Portland Mercury |
06-12-2007 11:40 am |
Industry News
Portland Mercury Incites Local Blog Warnew
When law professor-turned-blogger Jack Bogdanski posted an item about a shooting outside a downtown hip-hop club, the Mercury's Matt Davis accused him of inciting racism, leading to a flame war that spread to other local sites, reports the Oregonian. Bogdanski responded by blocking the alt-weekly's IP address, preventing Mercury employees from posting comments on his site. "It's like a jihad, when these guys (at the Mercury) get going, they just pour it on," Bogdanski tells the Oregonian. To which Davis responds: "Regardless of (Bogdanski's) readership or our readership, I don't think we should be cutting conversation down. It's important that Portland have a conversation about race."
The Oregonian |
01-09-2007 7:01 pm |
Industry News
Merc Softball Team Knocks It Out of the Park
The athletic Portland Mercury crew won first place in the city's "Bar/Restaurant/Media/and Friends" softball league. A recap of this weekend's championship game and photos of the excited staff are available on Blogtown PDX, the Mercury's group blog.
08-28-2006 11:38 am |
Industry News
Tags: The Portland Mercury
Mrs. Congeniality Pukes in Mercury's Kitchennew
Mrs. Portland Mercury contestant Bethany Miller filled her stomach with "colorful, smelly and chunky" food items, chased with ipecac, then visited The Mercury's office in time to hurl in the kitchenette. Her beef: the mocking tone the alt-weekly took about its own contest. "People were really mean, and they didn't
encourage an atmosphere of fun," Miller tells Willamette Week. [Illustration by Carson Ellis.]
Willamette Week |
09-30-2002 1:26 pm |
Industry News
Tags: The Portland Mercury
Staff Doesn't Roll Eyes When Wm.(TM) Steven Humphrey Leaves the Roomnew
The Portland Mercury just turned two, and its editor may sometimes act like a terrible two, Joseph Gallivan writes in the Portland Tribune. William Steven Humphrey's antics range from flinging gunpowder "snaps" around the room to performing obscene acts with the doorknobs at rival Willamette Week, Gallivan writes. "He's mature, and he's a little boy and he's a disgusting pervert all at once," Dan Savage tells Gallivan. "I admire how a fortysomething can use the word
'pee-pee' as much as he does," Mark Zusman, editor of Willamette Week, says.
Portland Tribune |
09-03-2002 9:51 am |
Industry News
Tags: Editorial, The Portland Mercury
Chicago Reader Invests in The Stranger
Tim Keck, publisher of The Stranger in Seattle, has a cash infusion from the Chicago Reader to turn up the heat on his competition. The Reader is now a minority shareholder in Index Newspapers LLC, a company formed early yesterday that now owns and operates The Stranger and The Portland Mercury in Portland, Ore. Keck’s first goal: increase circulation in both markets. “We’ve been bootstrapping it for 10 years,” Keck tells AAN News. “Now we are going to be aggressively growing the business.”
(FULL STORY)
AAN Staff |
05-02-2002 2:07 pm |
Industry News
