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Hi Corrin, I was shocked and a little saddened when I looked at my copy of the Clarion this week and saw that the newspaper had been sold. I have been an admirer of yours and a regular subscriber to the Clarion for many years. I agree with the stand you have taken on most local issues and especially so on the Newman Development plan. This community needs people like you and the others who are not afraid to speak out against big box development in our town. Keep up the good work! With no newspaper to keep me posted, I'll be watching the website regularly. By the way, I just looked at the website to see what comments had already been posted and found that page was not available. I assume that means you have been overwhelmed with comments. Russell Laidlaw
Last November I was in Geneseo to handle some estate matters. I had
made it 6 months as the novice Editor of the monthly, all volunteer
Discover Conesus newspaper. After the estate meeting I took the
time to introduce myself to the PooBahs of the two local papers. Mark
Gillespie was out of the office at the Livingston County News.
So I chatted with the keeper of the front desk, updated my subscription,
caused a few chuckles, and left a copy of Discover Conesus.
As I walked along Main Street, I saw my mission as half complete.
The LCN offices had been neat, orderly, competently staffed.
Very business like. Pretty much what I had expected. As I stood outside
39 Main Street, I was preparing myself to be met by Vincent Price,
or maybe Sherlock Holmes as I studied the architecture of the building.
I should have been thinking more along the lines of Jerry Garcia working
the counter of a Key West bait shop. The moment I opened the door
the chaos struck me. Boxes in the hall way, files scattered up the
stairs, neon signs in need of repair leaning against the wall. I was
reminded of my own home. And felt the comfort that comes from such
thoughts. There was no receptionist. I had to start wandering to find
a person. I saw a fellow in a white shirt, glasses wedged up on his
forehead, tapping away on a keyboard at a computer in a high ceilinged
room that might have once been called a parlor. The caricature by
Tom Fox was right on target. There was no mistaking Corrin Strong.
I approached a little cautiously, never wanting to stop a man at work.
"What can I do for ya?" were the first words I heard from Corrin.
I gave him my spiel, making sure he knew I was a Clarion subscriber,
and set a copy of Discover Conesus on the corner of his cluttered
desk. As he set his glasses to his nose, he asked what qualifications
I had to be an Editor, and I explained my resume was short; I could
read, owned a dictionary, and hadn't run fast enough. He had a hint
of a grin as he flipped through our paper, asking questions about
who we used as a printer, what our circulation was, subscription costs,
ad rates, how we handled layout, etc. I answered all truthfully. Newspapers
have their sources, and he could check us out with a couple of phone
calls. He flipped through a few more times, and stopped at the masthead
and pointed a finger to a name asking "Isn't this also Jean Bommelje?"
I smiled knowing we were sharing an inside joke, and mentioned that
I was still studying up on First Amendment Law, and issues of libel.
His grin was becoming more obvious. As his glasses went back to the
top of his head and his fingers back to the keyboard, he asked if
he could keep the paper, and with my "Yes" , he went back to
work saying "Give me a call if I can help you out." Scott MacFarlane |
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