Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

Ok, just to make this clear, you're asking for a $50,000 donation and in exchange, a journalist can control their own material? I hope you've got good lawyers. My intutition here is that the contract would fail for total want of consideration. Talk about peppercorns.

Maybe Phillip Adams is a shot. If he's got money to throw around. I'm not sure the freedom to control his own material will be much of a drawcard. Murdoch doesn't seem too plussed about what he writes. His last piece was scarcely even coherent. I liked it but, ya know, if he even has an editor than he/she must have been asleep.

Why can't a person simply set up their own website? What's so good about yours ?

Oh well. If I can convince Ita Buttrose, Melbourne City Council or Penguin Publishing to give me $50, 000 as per the master plan, then I'll make an application. I have little bargaining power at the moment beyond a bit of pluck and a smile but then that's as much as you've got.

Margo: Solomon, If I want to ask for a $50,000 donation, I'll ask for one, OK? Seen any donation buttons on Webdiary yet, Solomon?

By the by, while I ask these questions, I am not contemplating applying for this job.

Firstly, how many positions are available?

1. One

2. What qualification are required/expected?

A great journalist, or a journalist with the potential to be great.

3. How does this affect existing contributors?

No change. This is an experiment, Stuart.

4. What direction does this take WD in?

Citizen journalist - a pro-am model. Gee, Stuart, didn't you read the Media Report transcript?

5. Who pays for it all? (I think I know, and it's a risk you are taking with your own money, but it's probably worth it to see whether the place can survive, Margo.)

Sorry, Stuart, I have to use the no comment answer to that one for now.

6. Would a change in location be necessary?

Webdiary's permanent new home is under development by fellow Webdiarists. When that is ready we will move there.

7. And have you incorporated yet? I think distancing your assets from your liabilities (possibly through a trust/(corporation or partnership) division with losses flowing from the corporation/partnership into the main individual tax return) would be worth putting some time into, especially if things go south, but also in case it takes until the end of the year to start to break even.

I'm not sure. I'd have to run that by my lawyer.

Anyway, have fun.

Margo: You know Stuart, I AM having fun! I'll enjoy it while it lasts, eh? You too. I'm very glad that as a Webdiary columnist you decided to transfer to the independent Webdiary. Thank you.

'I'm not sure. I'd have to run that by my lawyer.'

A tax accountant may be better to run that past, simply due to the fact that they have more specialist knowledge. I'm not saying that incorporating and splitting the liabilities from the assets is necessarily the best option, it depends on circumstance (such as turnover, credit history, a whole lot of other factors), but would be worth considering.

'Citizen journalist - a pro-am model. Gee, Stuart, didn't you read the Media Report transcript? '

I did. However, there is a difference between what we say and what we do, even if just in nuances. And citizen-journalists? Well, if you are not using advertising revenue to stay afloat, rather than relying on readers contributions (not subscriptions, but contributions), then I guess you have one. The issue is whether you can rely on one.

Margo: I will advise all Webdiarists of the financing of Webdiary as soon as I can. I've already promised that, Stuart.

Hey, MK, I suggest a small rewording to to say an all-up payment TO YOU of $50K - just so no-one else makes what we will have to to call "a Wakeling".

Margo: Good idea, David. David Roffey is Webdiary's General Manager, by the way. I forgot to announce it in the jumble of moving. Kerri, can you amend using that strikeout thingo? Webdiarists, I've just appointed Kerri deputy editor of the temporary site.

Deputy ed Kerri: Done.

This is great news. I've been worried that Webdiary would end up just being another group blog. But taking on another professional journalist and injecting some credible reporting into the mix could turn things around.

It's be great to see Webdiary digging up stories or working angles nobody else is game to touch.

And I love the idea of other Webdiary contributors working in by providing story leads, suggesting sources, providing research and contributing artwork.

It might just work.

Margo: You never know... Thanks for dropping by again, Don. Much appreciated. My pleas will never lapse, but you know that...

Margo: "making it respectable and responsible and accountable and trustworthy, and a paper of record."

I concur in those requirements being bottom line. Fundamental to what you have being trying to create with Webdiary and not to be put at risk.

Would one of Webdiary's older members, perhaps retired or near it, be considered? I can think of a few who would probably do the job very well.

Margo: Hi Bob. Be considered for what? To volunteer to help build this thing? Network away, Bob. I'm serious about this pro-am concept, you know. I KNOW it can work, because we've been feeling our way through it for the last five years.

"So, in return for a drop in pay, you get ..."

I took a drop in pay from 32+k to 22k in 1989 to move from Skases's Channel Seven news to work on saving wilderness. Damn fine investment. You can't buy that kind of social education. A living wage is one thing. But in my way of thinking, a well lived and giving life is far more profitable...

Gotcha. You're offering a free, year-long ticket on the Titanic.

Margo: No Solomon, a paid ride. Worth $50,000 to the successful applicant.

Ok, Margo, don't mind me, it's just post-exam brain-dead syndrome. I was looking too close for fine print. The part that confused me was "In return, you get..". Should be "As well as..". Otherwise this sounds exciting. You're a business woman! My vote goes to Craig Rowley for citizen-journalist.

Margo: Craig already has a job he loves, Solomon, and he's also one of the independent Webdiary's managment team, after all. When I said "In return" I assumed that journos who earned more than that would be interested in the opportunity. So, in return for a drop in pay, you get ...

Good on'ya Margo for taking this step. If it comes off, excellent. If not, there will be other initiatives to try and then perhaps a time for this one again. If I had to put a bet on, I'd bet you'll find just what you're looking for and it will be the start of great things.

Margo , the point is I'm struggling to understand whether you're offering employment as a journalist, for $50,000, or whether you're requesting payment of $50,000 in exchange for rights to a column. The first plan seems unecessary, since you have so many fans who would be volunteers, and the second plan sounds over-ambitious, unless you've got some really, really eager fans.

Margo: It's an advertisement, Solomon. I'm offering full time work to a journalist for a year. I've already had an expression of interest from someone I'd be proud to appoint as Webdiary's first professional citizen journalist, and we'll talk further I'm sure. I'll see what else comes in, OK?

Ah, my apologies for being so slow this afternoon. A paid ride, in exchange for quitting his/her job. Can't they just do both!? Phillip Adams can whip up articles like he's making eggs for breakfast.

Margo, I commented before you announced that you had someone in mind. I was thinking, as others have, that there would be in the WD community someone suitable for the job, particularly among the wiser "older" heads.

Even if a bit of gonzo was OK, Peter Woodforde - love his stuff and so on the ball.

Others who sprang to mind were Craig, Roger, Russell, Dee etc etc etc. Depending on availability.

I fervently hope WD prospers - we need this desperately. As I get more to grip with various distractions and back into a rythmn with the thesis, I'll help as I can .. being on a DSP is an inhibiter in a number of ways.

Meanwhile, I'll stand up for ethical and honest debate.

David Roffey, a deserving position as GM. My eternal gratitude for you stepping into the breach when Margo most needed it.

I'd say Tim and his mates have been scared off by the fact that a journalist job requires a high level of literacy.

It also helps if you type using both hands.

Oh, dear God. I've become subject matter for Tim Blair. I must be moving up in the world. Hi boys and girls! Especially, you, Caz Hart. For the record, Caz, I only snarl at people I like. That includes you too, sweetcheeks.

Hey youse!

I is not a Gonzo! There only ever was one, and he is seeing Jimi in the next world – don’t be late.

Christ only knows what they’re quaffing, but it would be a heavenly brew is my guess.

My style is fifties/sixties Deep Norf Quonzo (with an “u”).

That is the lingo we speak behind the pineapple curtain, bruvvers.

Kindest regards

Peter “Quonzimodo” Woodforde (c/- la Revoluçion, coming soon to a hot place where you CAN get a drink, near you)

Ed David: hey, Peter, HTML close tags go </b> not <b/> - with Typepad this is a particular problem, because an unclosed tag never closes, so the bold or whatever then runs all the way down the page.

How much interest shown so far?

ed Kerri: Hi, Phil. Margo is having a day off the computer and is not available to reply today.

Some statistics as we start our third week of independence
(all as at 11pm Mon Sep 5):
- New posts since we started (not including Opening Statements): 22
- Comments from readers since start: just under 2000
- Comments added in last 24 hours: 210
- Page views in last week: 32,000
- Page views in last 24 hours: 6,000
- Page views in peak hours today: 620
- Bandwidth usage in Sept just over 1Gb per day

It is clear that a large proportion of our readers and regular commenters have joined us here in the independent Webdiary, and more are doing so every day. Thanks for that. And keep telling us what you want from Webdiary.

Last week stats corrected after understanding Typepad stats system better - for the geeks like me who care, the week count drops a whole day at midnight San Mateo California time then increments back through the day, meaning at 11pm when read off was only 6 hours into the 7th day - David

Oh boy ... if there ever was a proud moment, it's the moment you posted this item, Margo. The dare, the openness, the trust and the belief. You just affirm so much of WD in writing this.

Read today that in the eyes of Eric Beecher (in Robert Manne's essays Don't Disturb) only those media companies that are a family business, where the owners have an ethical investment in the quality of journalism rather than in shares, have survived as true independent media companies - examples he gives are NY Times, Washington Times, The Guardian....

Bless you, Margo!

This new move sounds very interesting Margo. I hope this is the right place for this comment/query. Could it possibly work that you have individuals donating a set amount weekly/monthly to fund your Webdiary? I'd donate a little and I wonder if there'd be a lot more people into doing that also - enough to keep it well afloat.

Margo: Hi Lester. Webdiary's revenue model is being worked through as we speak. Thanks very much for the idea - I'll make sure the start up team sees it. The team now includes the lawyer who got me through the transition from Fairfax. He agreed today to act as the independent Webdiary's legal adviser. Thank you, Robert.

Oh, I also recommend Melanie Darmody from the Macarthur Chronicle . She's a Murdoch gal but I think she's tops. I've just emailed her to make her aware of the offer.

There is one question from today's Howard Kurtz chat that should be noted in the context of Margo's initiative. First lets hear his answer: We don't have to deal with bureaucracies, just editors. We just get up and go ... How did journalists beat relief workers to New Orleans?

CODA: A Gathering Storm for the Media: Misreporting on hurricane further eroding public's trust of media ... Ham blasts "putrid reporting" of Katrina by the mainstream media.

Dee, I only made the error because Webdiary has been crying poor for a while now and because I have enough faith in Margo, to think that she just might have rich and powerful media friends who would make a lavish donation so that they could be involved in the facilitation of democracy.

It didn't naturally occur to me that she was talking in terms of a pay cut, with greater freedom in return, since I'm not privy to the incomes of "professional journalists". I didn't expect my comments to spawn a "Margo can't write a sentence" Tim Blair wank-fest and so I apologise unreservedly to Webdiary.

Especially Kerri B because she's my favourite. Hi!

Margo: No apology necessary, Solomon. As far as I know I don't have any rich and powerful media friends. However, I do have several Webdiarists who are committed to finding a revenue model I'm comfortable with. That, as you can imagine, requires a lot of imagination! They're working hard on our behalf, and I'm happy with their progress.

What a fabulous idea. I guess I never really appreciated before what the next step in interactive news, as distinct from interactive opinion, might look like.

"Ed David: hey, Peter, HTML close tags go not - with Typepad this is a particular problem, because an unclosed tag never closes, so the bold or whatever then runs all the way down the page"

I don't know how the first line quoting you came out, but hope the bold faded after "tags go" with your left intact.

Keep us informed, lad. and thanx for the note, I've kept using the wrong one since the advice so many moons ago in WD, unil the Lone Ranger spake unto me as in a dream...

XXXXX
Parson Woodforde

Your Eminence Peter Cardinal Woodforde I miss the preview function which was on this software for a short while then disabled. It is helpful to newbies and experts alike for rectifying those annoying unclosed tags, spelling errors and the like. I was even going to experiment with to see if it would work here so that links would automatically open in a new window. I may even be nice and put up an HTML guide for people on my site. I know there is one here but for many it means tracking back through this site.

Solomon my comment was not directed at you but the reaction to this whole topic over at Tim's dunny says a lot about them.

ed Kerri: Hi Dee. Yeah, I miss the preview function too... But all will be supplied on the new site. Now, to your threat to be nice and put up an html guide on your site... If you would like to produce a simple guide for Webdiarists, we'll put it on this site with a link in the right-hand column, credited of course. It would be very useful.

Dee! That's rude!

Jozef, public relations is only an evil if you think corporations are intrinsically evil. In that context journalists are the good guys only if you ignore the fact that most derive their income out of advertising revenue.

Are we losing the next generation of idealists? Not if Webdiary has its way!

Edward Wasserman says young people want to do something "active" -- to make things happen instead of reacting to events the way they do in newsrooms: "Students come back from summer PR internships with exciting tales of scanning the next day's papers for stories they helped bring about."

Journalists have enough worries: cutbacks, bloggers, a geriatric audience. But here's one more: They should worry that bright young people who might once have been heading into newsrooms are going into public relations instead. Worse, these people aren't going just for the money. Journalism -- assailed by self-doubt and public mistrust -- is in danger of losing its next generation of idealists to PR.

Is journalism in danger of losing its young idealists to PR?

Craig Gerrard, sadly Andrew Bolt's integrity does not match his wit, style and humour. Hopefully Margo wants neither a Liberal nor a Labor puppet.

Good luck Margo; nice to see you having a dip.

Good luck to you Margo!

I, for one, would love to see your initiative flourish.

Anything which helps to break the stranglehold of the corporate-controlled, self-censoring Mediocracy otherwise known as the Australian Mass Media is a major source of good cheer.

Reading the earlier comments, I'm struck by the contributions of a few sneering nay-sayers. These folk clearly have time on the hands to cheer for the status quo. Weird.

One last thing. If you plan to continue the article/comment model, how about threaded discussion? It makes for much more intelligent sequential discourse, in my opinion.

My computer nearly crashed with an overdose of smugness combined with stupidity on visiting this site and its inhabitants. Anyway, I see you are wanting to pay a journalist. Try to get someone with a sense of wit and style and humour. You won't find anyone matching this description on the left though, so how about Andrew Bolt?

You should be honoured Solomon Wakeling that you've made Tim Blair's blog. Being ignored is far worse. I thought Margo's advert fairly easy to follow and realised she was offering, not wanting the $50K. Blair is a bit rash taking pot shots at the wording though as it opens himself up to plenty of criticism. Far more important is the content matter although correct grammar obviously helps. On that score Blair's blog excells in nastiness as does much of the commentary from readers who appear to delight in knocking rather than offering any sort of constructive dialogue.

Margo,
I must say I found the original ad very easy to read!
I cannot understand what all the fuss is about.
Anyway, good luck, hope this works out. My only concern would be too much too soon. I would think it would be prudent to wait, make sure your revenue stream is working as per your forecasts then go hard.
Cheers

On that score Blair's blog excells in nastiness as does much of the commentary from readers who appear to delight in knocking rather than offering any sort of constructive dialogue.

Gee, I don't know if I can agree with that Michael de Angelos. I was confused by Margo's original post on a job offer at WD. (May I gently correct you and point out 'excels' only has one 'L').

As for Tim Blair, I've only been reading his site for a little while and I think the responses, while cheeky, aren't necessarily knocking.

I have to confess at being surprised by Margo's pay-by-the-word offer especially since she said she was 'penniless' in that ABC radio interview.

In response to Jozef Imrich, I can tell you mate, journalists have been 'worried' about PR people for years. It's certainly not a recent phenomenon.

And as for self-doubt, all the journalists, I've ever met as not suffered from any lack of ego.

I have only belatedly caught up with developments.

I assume, Margo, that your departure from the SMH website has something to do with Mr Scott's professed desire to cater for 30 to 40 % of the Sydney population.

Incidentally, what happened to Antony Loewenstein? Is my impression correct that he disappeared from Webdiary soon after the Israel debate that took place there in December-January and did it have something to do with this debate?

Margo: Hi Arie. I don't know why FF did what it did to me. I hope to find out one day. Re Antony, this is a distressing story which I'll report in detail when I get time. At the moment I'm focused on working with Webdiarists to grow Webdiary into an independent, quality online newspaper which strives for ethical excellence in its journalism and is fully accountable to the Webdiary community.

Hi Margo, As a journey man, drifting aimlessly at the moment. Can I apply?

PF, you're already a star columnist! (PF's smh.com.au archive is here). And you're a member of Webdiary's management team nutting out a way to ensure financial sustainability for Webdiary, no less! When would you find the time? Are you still in Europe on hols? Love Margo