THE DEMISE OF THE STAR IS HILARIOUS!!! COLUMNIST MIKE HENDRICKS HUMILIATED AS HE LOOKS FOR PR WORK!!!



Let's put the shoe on the other foot . . . Local Dead Tree Media people would never hire TKC but that's okay because I'm getting more hits then most of them and will continue to do so along with other local bloggers . . . When these folks could have used (paid) TKC to garner a bigger crowd, the clique would rather see their newspapers fail then make their newsrooms more diverse. In that sense, their demise is more than deserved.

To wit . . .

E-MAILS FEATURING MIKE HENDRICKS DESPERATELY LOOKING FOR A NEW GIG ARE JUST ABOUT THE GREATEST THING ON THE INTERNET AND MAKE THE STAR NEWSIE SEEM LIKE AN INCREDIBLY ARROGANT D-BAG!!!

Hendricks was so completely ethered by "The Bad Pitch blog" that he seems to show up in the comments begging for the blogger to take the post down.

It's funny but not pretty.

Newspaper people swear up and down that their industry isn't dying but reading Hendricks beg for work because the Newspaper Industry is in "free fall" is proof that things are much worse than the paper of record is letting on . . .

The "Bad Pitch Blog" simply takeS Hendricks apart piece by piece because of his arrogance in seeking a PR job and his clumsy style . . .I found the following passage criticizing his job seeking skills most gully:
"His “sweet talk” doesn’t fool anyone. Hendricks is clearly a guy –here we go – who thinks he walks on water, when in fact he is perilously tiptoeing across a thin sheet of ice . . .

Mike Hendricks does not respect PR, nor does he care for PR folks. Even beyond that, I wonder if Hendricks grasps the usefulness of anything but himself? He does not get the Internet, does not understand what it means to communicate with others, doesn’t play nicely, and as you’ve seen on this page, he’s just bad."
Damn. Dead Tree Media folks looking for work are slowly finding that the public remembers the merciless fashion with which their former monopoly treated the public . . . And the comeuppance is kind of cruel . . . And hilarious.

TO WIT . . . NEWSPAPER PEOPLE NEED TO REMEMBER THAT TKC IS GIVING BLOGGING LESSONS FOR ONLY $499!!!

As always, Hendricks gets a discount but only if he brings his wife who he also included in his horrible job cover e-mail. Natch.

Comments

  1. A $499 fee for what, Tony? I'm a bit confused here? A fee to learn how to create a blog, which isn't fucking hard if one has no job and lives with their Mommy in the basement. Come on, man. Your constant bashing of print media in the area is getting old; it's obvious they hurt your feelings in some way a while back and now you're trying to hurt theirs. Respect the fact that many of those writer's you're bashing have family and are panicking because their owners/bosses simply refuse to adapt in a changing environment or take a cut themselves to ensure that the people they pretend to care about can weather the storm. Honestly, Tony, I do like your blog, but get of the dead tree media kick. You're smarter than that.

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  2. Calm down Mike.

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  3. Take it easy Mike it'snot TKC's Fault you are an insufferable douche. Maybe you can get a gig with Hearne's bloggy thingamajig. Ugh.

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  4. -REMEMBER THAT TKC IS GIVING BLOGGING LESSONS FOR ONLY $499!!-

    Tony, I can't find a valid business license for you or TKC Media. You do realize Kansas City requires anyone who operates a business to have a business license and pay taxes and have zoning clearance?

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  5. Wow. I never had much opinion about Hendricks one way or the other, and always thought it was little mean spirited to pick on him, but after reading the link and comments-I am flabbergasted what an idiot he is.

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  6. TKC I'm sure Hedrick could go-topless (pictures) and that would lead to a lot of hits too.

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  7. Mikes wife got donkey punched by chris crocker8/24/09, 8:49 AM

    Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeave Mike Aloooooone. You bastard, can't you see he is just trying to find a job that doesnt require him asking "Wanna supersize that?".

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  8. Hendricks is an idiot. He screwed many, including me by writing his slanted drivel.

    I have no sympathy.

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  9. Hendricks is an idiot. He screwed many, including me by writing his slanted drivel.

    I have no sympathy.

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  10. I'm not Mike (second posted comment). I read his letter to the PR job and was horrified, too, but I'm not Mike. I'm just asking that Tony look at the bigger picture and focus on other important issues.

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  11. I'm pretty sure that the $499 was a joke...surely I'm not the only one who got it!

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  12. I thought it was a joke, too.

    And this is one of the few times I have seen Tony undersell a link. That was absolutely brutal to read. I felt sorry for Hendricks based on Tony's summary. Not so much after reading the link.

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  13. Wow. Even Tony can be proven right (or as I like to say, even the sun shines on a dog's a$$ once in awhile).

    It was utterly PAINFUL to read Mike's letters, and subsequent comments. Even this 40 year old 'soccer mom' without a degree in English or Journalism (or even PR) cringed at his use of the English language. His arrogance in his letters was very much out of place. He has NOTHING to be arrogant about!

    Tony, you nailed this one dead on.

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  14. Just because you can write something doesn't mean you should. The Bad Pitch Blog shouldn't have used Mike's name, nor should you. Bloggers should have ethics.

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  15. Ethics? In Journalism OR blogging? You are new to this world, aren't you? I'm sure that there are some that have ethics, but the story almost ALWAYS trumps ethics or morals (in local or national media, print, broadcast or internet). IMNSHO, Hendricks is the one with the LEAST amount of ethics in this whole mess.

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  16. And what is the ethical rule you propose, Emily? Never identify the douchebag? Can you explain what value that has?

    I doubt I would've left Hendricks' name in there. I can think of many reasons it was unkind and unnecessary to do so. But I can't think of an ethical "rule" that would prevent a blogger from identifying Hendricks that wouldn't also keep a great deal of important information from being published.

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  17. www.thetoastandtheroast.blogspot.com

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  18. A blogger debate on ethics in blogging.
    A self-masturbatory exercise if there ever was one.

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  19. #1 rule-don't email or post anything to a blog that you wouldn't want the world to read.

    The rule at The Star is if the reporters notebook is out then it is on the record, never once does Hendricks request confidentiality. His arrogance is appalling.

    I cannot believe that I've been agreeing with Tony lately, must be the diet of snake cakes I switched to.

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  20. Correct that to snack cakes. Where is a copy editor when you need one?

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  21. Dear Tony,

    My name is Tom Ryan and we met briefly at the Central Library a few months ago after you participated in a KCPT panel discussion about the future of journalism. I enjoyed your tenacity and vision that evening.

    Your blog entry today, following up on your 20 May 2009 article (http://www.tonyskansascity.com/2009/05/tkc-exclusive-mike-hendricks-is-worst.html )…and your tip to the http://badpitch.blogspot.com/ , two PR critics…Kevin Dugan and Richard and Richard Laermer’s entry about Mike Hendricks of the KC Star, his exchange of personal correspondence with a perspective employer…is rather bad form on your part.

    Very unprofessional on your part to disparage a fellow journalist in this way and then take the time to add ridicule to the embarrassment.

    I think you deserve to be called a journalist, but after this I’m certain that your fellow journalists will probably exercise their keyboard to counter your claim.

    You may know Mike. I do not.

    You may know the “Bad Pitch” gentlemen. I do not.

    FYI…
    Kevin Dugan touts himself as the Director of Communications for FRCH Design Worldwide…He no longer is employed there. I called to speak with him today.

    This morning I called Richard Laermer at his company RLM in NY, www.RLMpr.com at 212.741.5106, spoke to his assistant, but he was not in…

    I think that spirited debate is fantastic. I believe that professionals should nurture camaraderie as we have so much to learn together.

    Your arrogance is very disturbing and I thought you deserved a personal thoughtful response from someone who, on that night when you spoke at the panel, thought you were very innovative, a thoughtful rebel. You exercised bad behavior here, and you should do something to rectify your actions…

    While Mike is doing damage control at his company…you should be doing some of your own, or at least make preparations.

    This is not the way to further your revolutionary fervor and passion for online journalism…my technique would have been to collaborate with Mike rather than attack him. The new linked economy, the Google-way you spoke about, the philosophy and trends that I share, will gain legitimacy and sophistication when we exercise a transition rather than destruction, when we collaborate rather than assassinate, and when we learn from the crusty experienced folks like Mike, even if we disagree with their opinions.

    Like Mike, as you mentioned in your blog, I am “…just another white guy with an opinion”. My work, travels and experiences have taken me to Asia, Central America, Africa, Australia, and around America. Having met many people, I’ve learned that we have so much to share… Your remark made me wince a bit, but it’s a typical label of the unsophisticated world-wide…

    In summary:
    - I recommend you apologize to Mike and post your apology soon.
    - Check out the credentials of the duo who seem to enjoy criticizing PR activities
    - Maintain your edge, but be careful to not self-destruct with writing that could generate litigation, and capitulate your fine efforts thus far.
    - Remember that one day, you too will be older…with a reputation.

    Best wishes….I will continue to read your blog.

    om

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  22. shut up asshat! Bwaaaahahahahaha!!!!!

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  23. We are all tiptoeing across thin ice, Tony. Including you. And I applaud you Tom Ryan for your comments; they were respectful and candid. Want to go to a town hall debate on heath care? Attendees may learn a thing or two.

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  24. The point is this was a private note to a person, not a submission to a blog. Mike did not submit anything to a blog but found a private note posted on a public site. I find something wrong with that.

    It was not ethical of the person to share the e-mail with the Bad Pitch Blog, nor was it for them to publish it with his name.

    It showed bad business ethics all around.

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  25. An apology for what? Throwing Hendricks arrogance back in his face? Will Hendricks be apologizing to all the folks in the PR profession he disparaged? I think it's funny as hell that Hendricks doesn't seems in the least bit sorry he wrote the things he wrote but certainly angered to the point calling an employment lawyer that it's been revealed to the general public what was written. The "honest" Mike. Well my question is what other "phoniness" is Mike Hendricks hiding behind?

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  26. I can sympathize with the sense of violation one might feel seeing the email you sent to one person get published on the internet. But Hendricks' email wasn't exactly a "private note to a person." It was a professional inquiry directed to the designated agent of a business. He wasn't conducting personal business. And the person he emailed was a stranger.

    That he presumed to carry out a professional inquiry in such an intimate and personal manner does not require the recipient to respect the privacy of those intimacies. If Hendricks hadn't violated the norms, there would've been no temptation to forward the email to the Bad Pitch Blog.

    I'm not saying that I agree with her decision to forward it with his name included. I just think if you want to analyze what went wrong here, you should start with Hendricks.

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  27. On the upside...this 'exposure' of Mike Hendricks might result in the deletion of his column in the Star. :)

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  28. This was unusually mean. And wrong. The jerk who revealed this interchange is a lowlife worm for doing this to someone just trying to find work. Of course TKC would not know what that might be like.

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  29. -doing this to someone just trying to find work-


    Personally, I think this person did Hendricks a favor. If he thinks that he can go about "finding work" in such a flippant manner, he needs to act far more professionally, in all forms of his communication. The job market is going to eat Hendricks alive, and he needs to know where his skills are deficient.

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  30. and guess what is going to come up first every tme when and prospective employer googles Mike Hendricks Kansas City? That email exchange.

    That's going to be following him for years.

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  31. Yesterday, I watched a great interview with Sir Ben Kingsley. He stars in a new film called Fifty Dead Men Walking, about the Troubles in Northern Ireland, an IRA mole (a tout), a police agent (which he plays), and the fifty or more men who should be dead but rather walk today because of the mole’s courage.

    Ben talked about the acting profession as it relates to film. While he was trained on the stage and has acted there frequently, his present love is film because as he noted: “In the theater you project…on film, you behave”.

    He also spoke about the immense power and value of collaboration. The theater taught him that acting is not about you, it’s about all those around you. Great acting, he suggested is the ability to pay close attention to the other person with whom you act…

    Today, a local blogger destroyed a journaist's reputation. The blogger is a bit of a revolutionary, who frequently criticizes the local newspaper and has been recently reveling in the decline of printed journalism. The disparaged journalist is rather conservative.

    It occurred to me that the blogger really missed a great business opportunity…to collaborate with a crusty old right wing dude and give great journalistic theatre in the process…kind of a left and right routine…a this side that side repartee. Instead the blogger put a blog bullet through the old journalists reputation.

    Collaborate. Pay attention. Behave.

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  32. Jesus, Tom. You really do listen to too much NPR.

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  33. I am guilty of that, Sophia :-)

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  34. I always thought of Henricks as a benign little suburban columnist. I rarely bothered to read his stuff past the page break. Meh.

    But there's something borderline sociopathic about his utter contempt for the job he applied for.

    "Dear NASCAR: I think yours is a silly sport, driving around in circles wasting fuel and polluting the air for 500 miles to get no where, but I know how to turn left so you should make me a driver."

    Incredible.

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  35. Here's a question - Tony why did you duck the Chamber of Commerce's "pundit's roundtable" today. For being so sure of yourself on here, you sure looked like a chicken sh*t with your lame excuse of not getting a reminder call.

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  36. Hendricks as a conservative makes me ill....calling Pro Life Advocates MURDERERS of George Tiller.

    THAT makes me ill, not this.

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  37. I couldn't care LESS what pseudo-intellectuals who think that they are smarter and better thinkers than the rest of us think. Where is the 'ignore' button for Tom Ryan?

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  38. add to that Dan Ryan

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  39. I'll leave the debate on the ethics of humiliating Hendricks to others.

    But as someone in public relations who has dealt with Hendricks on occasion I must confess to a certain sense of glee to see him skewered so effectively.

    Speaking from my own experience, you were lucky to get Hendricks on a day when he was merely condescending. The rest of the time he was downright rude (or worse) as if he was president of the Junior League adressing some streetwalker.

    So tell us, Mikey, who's trying hard not to bump his head on the steering wheel while giving head now?

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  40. The real douche in all of this is the PR flack from the firm he applied to that forwarded the message to the badpitch blog. That person deserves as much scorn as anyone in this.

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  41. yeah you guys are right hendrix is a jerk compared to tony who is a real prince and the savior of modern journalism! you guys need to wake up and see that linking to the star is the future of journalism not actually writing for it! tony is courageous enough to post credible sources day after day, he doesn't need to do actual reporting because that is a thing of the past. he is respectful and truthful and anyone who comments otherwise is probably just hendricks himself! no homo!

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  42. The real douche in all of this is the PR flack from the firm he applied to that forwarded the message to the badpitch blog. That person deserves as much scorn as anyone in this.

    Not exactly. If anyone expects me to have sympathy for Hendricks obviously struggling with his shifting place in the world, I'm not going to turn that sympathetic capacity off for the person who was the unfair object of his insecure derision. The PR "flack" at least had the decency to direct her ire at the person disrespecting her. Hendricks took his frustration and directed it at an innocent stranger. Hendricks tried to make shit roll downhill, but he misjudged the geography. Pretty sure that makes him the bigger douche by any measure that isn't about preserving his white male fancy pants columnist privilege.

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  43. -Where is the 'ignore' button for Tom Ryan?-

    Agreed. Shouldn't he be off somewhere getting the suede elbow patches on his tweed jacket resurfaced?

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  44. -Where is the 'ignore' button for Tom Ryan?-

    Agreed. Shouldn't he be off somewhere getting the suede elbow patches on his tweed jacket resurfaced?

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  45. Repost of what I wrote over at the other blog site. Thanks for covering it Tony, but once again, you don't impress me when you wish the Printed Press ill. It makes you look like the last sentence I paste in here.

    -0-
    Radioman KC said...

    I read all of this both here and on TKC. I have a few observations, if you don't mind.

    Sophia gave very good advice. Time for Mike to move on, accept his licks.

    I think Tom Ryan wrote a thoughtful piece over on TKC and the anonymouse over there who calls me an asshat, called him one too.

    That simply goes to show what Mark said... wise words that the presence of social media shouldn't give professionals an excuse to break traditional confidences and behave badly.

    This blog/internet message form has a lot of maturing to do. Perhaps that's what happens when amateurs can afford layout software and a mimeograph machine. There are no guarantees of quality work. But we've all been encouraged by mommie to post our scribbles on the refrigerator, even if it did take only five minutes of coloring to complete.

    I agree Mike's material should not have been posted by anyone here or around town. It was a breach. He should have been allowed to learn privately after that pointless ego debate with Ogden that there's a big difference between what HE does and what THEY do. Clearly he was still in column mode, not job application mode. It's a big transition.

    Yup, ego aside, he's not suited for PR. They're into PC and putting on a happy face plus an occasional damage control project. He's into selling papers with pithy, tell all talk. As a journalist for some twenty years, I will vouch that PR flacks (that's what working media call them) are not well respected. Not for any particular reason but that the working journalists have the audience and the PR people want a piece of it without paying for it.

    We'll not go into how many reporters now get their 'news' from PR releases... but I felt the same way until I spent fifteen minutes thinking about getting into PR.

    "Effective Public Relations" and a few PRSA meetings taught me that public relations, practiced well, is an honorable industry. Reporters should read the book and go to a PRSA meeting just to see what the enemy is like.

    But news people never have enough time to go find those kinds of things out.

    Good luck Mike. I think apologies are due all the way around, and I hope some bloggers and some commenters might have learned that hatefulness isn't mankind's best practice. It's just petty, cowardly, and usually hypocritical.

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  46. 8:27:
    Whether or not Tony is an ass or if you like him or not, has no bearing on whether Hendricks is one as well. It's entirely possible they are both asses in different ways.

    No pity for Hendricks at ALL in this...TKC simply linked/reported on it, and admitted what many of us commenters have admitted as well....would you like some bacon with that egg on your face, Mike?

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  47. christina and sophia who is the bigger ass hat ? girl on girl action I demand photos tony would luv it this is a joke blog after all bring it on anonymice

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  48. I like some that TKC writes. But, its sad that such a supporter of KC is so happy that the KC Star is in trouble. Good to hear that TKC is happy an institution is struggling. Try lending constructive criticism, as opposed to your tired rants. HBO cancelled Dennis Miller, maybe this town will cancel you too?

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  49. Kept the same post up all day at the top, tkc.Lazy, or did you have some other agenda?

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  50. TKC=Lazy.....what are you gonna do when Funk is out? You'll have nothing else to talk about.

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  51. If the KC Star hadn't turned into such a joke over the past 2 years, I would totally support it. But its decline brings invites this type of 'abuse'.

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  52. Fuck Mike and the pencil he rode in on.

    He's eating up my pay raises and now I have to take a week of unpaid "furlough" because he's still at the Star.

    Shouldn't he be jobless and working on a master's from Phoenix University?

    What a Fargin' Coc'nsucker.

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  53. Joe Smith is Tony

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  54. Tony wishes he was as bright as me. Sparkling too.

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  55. I cannot believe all the old school douchebags on here (oh the irony) trying to dictate to bloggers how they should blog. Step aside. WHY should anyone collaborate with Hendricks? Did Kevin Keitzman and his crew collaborate with old school Don Fortune back during Sports Radio Wars? No dumbass, Keitzman took Fortune to school. How? By connecting to a younger generation. Don retired. Perhaps Mike should take a hint. Young dogs come up, old dogs go down. Been that way forever. The only thing learned here today is that Hendricks is just as much of a douche as some have been hinting. It's not our fault he's the one who confirmed it.

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  56. All you jerks rejoicing over Mike Hendricks mishap should think about how they would like to be in his place? Your lack of empathy or concern for fairness reveals your lack of basic humanity. Wait till this kind of thing happens to you.With your personalities, I bet no one will care about you either.

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  57. Sophia, there's plenty of douchiness to go around. Set aside Hendricks' trifecta of douchedom--whether it was Brandy Ernzen at Ogden Publications who outed his email, or one of her co-workers--someone in that office is a douche too. Even though she "addressed" it herself, she or someone with access to the email felt insecure enough about their great career in PR to have to spite him publicly.

    Then again, leave it to Hendricks to stoop even lower and try to get revenge on Enzren by calling her out on the badpitch blog. Checkmate, uh, I mean, Douchemate!

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  58. It's called Karma JoCoOb. Google it if you're unfamiliar with the term.

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  59. Why is it such a big deal (for some of you)when a wise ass is exposed as a wise ass?

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  60. Those of you looking for an Ignore button, kindly rejoin the Snipster and pull your petty shit over at kansas city dot comm, or wherever those poltical threads are. Give yourself kudos and points or smiley faces over THERE as usual. I know, you come over here in hopes of using Tony's blog. I've learned that comments don't really garner many hits, so I just come over here to do good works.

    Someone said most anonymice are hateful just to run off those who use their names. I'm starting to see how that observation has some merit. The other thing I've noticed is that the hateful people usually only write a couple lnsulting lines, never say their names, and always direct it at people who spend a little time and effort in writing an essay.

    I can only assume that the mice want to keep the internet dumbed down to where they can play without putting in any effort.

    Oh well, this old, has been worn out jobless guy needs to log off and go to work.

    Glad the new people are here, its made this room way more fun. But it's also taking the shine off the guy who writes the LONGEST posts. That'd be the guy in the basement.

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  61. -immense power and value of collaboration-

    Methinks that if I were to collaborate with this dude, I would wind up doing 80% of the work while he gets 80% of the credit.

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  62. ATTENTION!!!!! Clean up on aisle four Mike!!!!

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  63. I posted this on Bad Pitch Blog too, but I gotta wonder why nobody is talking about the fact that this was really unethical behavior on the part of the person who leaked Mike's name.

    Yes, Mike was an arrogant jerk, and his pitch was lousy, BUT he was applying for a job (however ineptly). That's confidential. Period.

    IMO, it's a gross violation of professional ethics to publicize a job seeker's inquiry, no matter how big an asshat he is.

    I'm not faulting the bloggers here. They don't have any obligation to keep the info confidential.

    The person who forwarded the email, however, did have that professional obligation and violated it. In most companies, that'd be grounds for termination. No question.

    Mike's douchbaggery doesn't relieve Brandy of her obligation to behave professionally.

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  64. Mark,

    I think it's because Mike's email really stretches the definition of job inquiry. He went out of his way to say that he wasn't applying for the job. The purpose of keeping job seeker's information confidential is to encourage people to apply without worrying about consequences at their existing positions.

    Plenty of commentors seem certain that there's been some violation of employment law. that's not my gig, I wouldn't know. But I would be surprised if the mere fact that someone is looking for employment is something the hiring company has a legal duty to keep confidential. (Just as the mere existence of an attorney client relationship is not privileged, only the communications within). I can see it as a good practical rule, but not as a sensible legal duty.

    I've also seen people say they wouldn't apply at this company because of the lady's actions. That strikes me as silly. I wouldn't look at this situation and think - here's a woman who will willy nilly publicize my job search. The key to avoiding publicity is pretty obvious - don't be such an awesome and insulting jerk. If I were hiring, I'd be happy that people who couldn't figure that much out were self-selecting out of the process.

    It was unwise for her to forward the email with identifying info intact, but it would be a shame if she were terminated for it.

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  65. Sophia,

    Like you, I have no clue about the legal dimension of this. It certainly seems plausible that some legal boudary may have been breached, depending on the specifics of the job solicitation.

    But, I think it's a mistake to write off Mike's inquiry. Either he was sincerely and cluelessly inquiring about the job, or he was writing to Ogden in order to insult them. I think the latter explanation stretches credulity.

    In his second email, he writes that he was trying to break through the usual artifice. His attempt failed miserably. Nevertheless, I think his initial inquiry was sincere. Insulting, inept arrogant and clueless, but sincere.

    If my interpretation is correct, standard business ethics dictate that it be kept confidential. So does the PRSA code of conduct, by the way, which states that PR pros must keep confidences.

    I'm pretty sure that any HR person publicizing the name of a job seeker gets fired at 99% of companies in the US. I don't see why Brandy (or whoever leaked Mike's email) should be any different.

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  66. I think it was unethical for the PR firm's representative to send this email to a blog, but as far as caring about Mike Hendricks' feelings, I won't even go near there. This is a person who said everyone who opposes abortion is responsible for George Tiller's murder. What a santimonious judgmental windbag...it's really hard to feel sorry for him.

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  67. who cares.....really.

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  68. You do know that his wife wrote that email and sent it in for him don't you?

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  69. Radioman, why don't you post under your real name, you long-winded moron.

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  70. Wow, Radioman's right, this has sucked all the oxygen out of the room. I finally read all the stuff and comments on Bad Pitch as well as the comments here, and while Hendricks' letter was just awful and now will follow him forever, there does appear to be a confidentiality breach. I work in health care, where confidentiality rules, and is part of the relationship between a health care provider and a client. I'm not sure I'd want to apply to a place that had leaked someone else's cover letter onto the WWW. Mine might be next.

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  71. Ethics shmethics. To the people decrying a violation of Hendricks privacy; Did you stop reading the email the second you realized it was intended to be private? Of course not. You read it, sucked up all the dirty details, then proceeded to give Ethics 101 class. If privacy and ethics were so sacred, why read the email? Why keep the email alive by waxing philisophical. As for Hendricks working with Tony or any blogger, please put the crack pipe down. Hendricks believes bloggers and apparently PR people are beneath him. I agree with the earlier comment that said this was a round about favor to Hendricks. In a tough job market overstocked with out of work writers, it might behoove Hendricks to drop the smug 30 year veteran routine and try a little humility.

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  72. Frankly, I don't deny people their egos. Ya be in the media long enough and you get used to the egos, the theatrical tantrums and ya don't take emotional flash fires seriously, because they go out as fast as they flare up.

    Even the world's beloved John Lennon grew tired of fans, made the comment once in his soft brit accent, "Hello, face!" to a fan. So what? I think it was worthy of discussion because we need a lot more than first semester Ethics in the local blogosphere, and here in particular.

    And the readers and writers of these comment alleys need it the most. Oddly enough, with all the discussion about ethics, treating people well... they keep it up. Its either over their heads or there not in it or the exchange, just for the bullying part.

    This is why I'd delete mean spirited comments, were I tony. But then he'd have to delete a lot of his own stuff too, and I don't see that happening.

    There'll be a time when the Rush's and the O'Reilly's in retrospect, wont have anymore fans than GWB and Ollie North. History will be unkind to them because their hateful words will linger long after the issues they demagogued will have faded.

    Moreover, hatefulness always seems to look even worse in the cold light of day.

    History will not be kind to GWB nor to his supporters. I think readers who don't even like what I write think those who call me names discredit themselves much more than they do me.

    I grew up in a generation where tolerance was highly valued, other than maybe for Nixon'LBJ's 'dirty little war'. My own view's been that put down comics, like those in Married with Children have made overt insults somehow acceptable, if it's for a laugh. yet many people who engage in it will be quick to chastize OTHERS for not being PC.

    That shows a kneejerk reaction, not an ability to apply ethics to situations. The demagogues like that. They don't want the sheep to think. They just want the sheep to follow.

    Hendricks isn't the issue. The issue is professional ethics. And I DO hold bloggers responsible for releasing information that should be confidential.

    I remember years ago, late 70s, discussing this with Joe Pennington, a guy who worked across the street from me. We were covering a city hall meeting, discussing ethics during a lull. He said he would not have kept D-Day's date and landing spots confidential had he learned of it from Eisenhouwer's staff. We argued about it. US media DID keep it quiet. but he woudln't have.

    He did end up working for Jack Anderson for a time a couple years later... a guy who needed investigators with no ethics to dig for him. I didn't cry too much when what's his name died...after outing Vickie Plume. Anderson, you might remember, released the Pentagon Papers.

    ANyway Joe believed 'right to know', first, American security second. I didn't agree with him.

    PS... to the guy who thinks I should use my own name. This IS my own name. Why don't you start a blog, pour yourself into it, build up an identy and use it. You'll value your blogname as much as your own. Perhaps Sophie will learn this too, one day, now that she's on the other side.

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  73. The most amazing thing about this whole freaking thread? Somebody in this world thinks Mike Hendricks is a conservative.

    Bwaaaa-hhhhaaaaaaa-hhhhaaaaaa!

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  74. Reading stuff that shouldn't be out in public view is like gossiping. It's tough to take the principled stand and just stop, say no, and walk away. Especially if you are presented with an especially juicy bit of gossip. Your point is well taken, Midtown Miscreant. My good sense was overcome by my urge to participate. There would be less gossip if there were fewer listeners.

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  75. Wow...75 comments and virtually no one talked about TKC's point, chastizing his 'dead tree media'.

    Has nothing to do with the printed press or even blogging. Tony completely missed what the Hendricks story was all about!

    I can't help but wonder if he thinks his site's been hijacked by his readers! People are skating right on by today's messages!

    Will he learn from this?

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  76. radioman I didn't read your 8:25 or 10:36 comments.

    Shut the fuck up. How many times do people have to tell you you have innane points, and you're way too long winded.

    You take up way too much space with your comments. Shut the fuck up.

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  77. You protest way too much, Mickey. Admit it. You love it. Telling me to STFU somehow empowers you, even tho this isn't your blog and you really haven't contributed much of anything in here and I just wave you away like a stubborn gadfly that won't go bother someone at the next table.

    You're funny as hell, in a pathetic sort of way. No ideas, just still whining about other posters after digging through a 3 day old message, down 75 comments. How many other whines did you write above this one?


    I'm sure Tony would like to think he has a more engaged readership but apparently except for us other bloggers, fifty city hall bureocrats, and a few bored reporters still working, he doesn't.

    Maybe we're overhyping our readerships. I bet there aren't 500 regular readers to this blog. Maybe 500 combined in ALL of em!

    Individual hits aren't individual people. It's just us same people, hitting 20 times because local TV sucks and the kids are in bed!

    But hey. It could be worse. We could be in the bars, buying overpriced drinks from the Snipster.

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  78. Radio Unemployed. Sorry Tony doesn't thank you. Do you want an award?

    ReplyDelete

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