Category: Media

Natomas Flooded in Media Controversy

This controversy over free publications makes me think of ripping down someone else’s “Vote for me!” student council campaign sign and replacing it with your own:

A Natomas media rivalry has turned ugly, with owners of two local publications each claiming the other has stolen stacks of the competitor’s periodicals from the rack.

In one case, Natomas Journal publisher Will Craig was caught on surveillance tape in August picking up a stack of N Magazines from the South Natomas Community Center, replacing them with his own newspaper and dumping the rival publication in an outside recycling bin…

Craig said he simply was sending a message to the people connected with N Magazine because he believes they have been stripping his racks for 21 months.

I understand, only remotely, that it’s important to the publishers to tell advertisers what their circulation is and where their publication is offered; however, doesn’t getting rid of the rival’s rag artificially increase the number of publications being taken?

At least he’s recycling them.

Attention “Reno 911!” fans

Reno 911
Dangle takes down Big Mike

Starting tonight at 2:00 a.m., CW31 will begin airing reruns of “Reno 911!,” the Comedy Central mockumentary-style show about Reno’s bumbling and offensive fictional sheriffs, starting with the show’s pilot episode from 2003. Reruns don’t currently seem to be airing on Comedy Central, so that’s a pretty good deal right there if you’re looking for some fun comedy viewing to tide you over until fall TV starts. Set your DVRs.

Thank You Note to the Sacramento Bee

ScoopyHere at the ‘Rag, we are quick to take shots at the Bee, but sometimes slow to give credit where credit is due.  So please allow me to take this opportunity to thank the Bee.  For what, you ask?  For having the good taste to pick my name in their drawing for free “Gold Circle” tickets to the Weird Al show.  That’s right, Mrs. Eats and I were right up front for the glory that is Weird Al Yankovic.  Thank you to Scoopy and all the folks at the number one news source in Sacramento.

The concert was, to put it mildly, badass.  Weird Al went for almost 2 1/2 hours, covering recent hits, old favorites and everything in between.  Sitting next to us were two kids, neither more than 9 years old, who told us that this was their first rock concert.  The Mrs. and I were very excited to explain to the kids how things work, like the fact that “rock” concerts don’t always start on time.  Thirty years from now, these men will be talking about how their first concert ever was Weird Al, and I hope they think fondly of “super cool” old people that sat next to them and showed them the ropes.

By the way, we managed to get out of the fair mere minutes before they broke out the riot gear.  Thanks Bee.

CBS13 acts out Minneapolis airport shenanigans

Some can’t miss video this morning from CBS13.com (the show) on CBS13.com (the website): Chris Burrous and Jeff James acting out an – ahem – interaction at the Minneapolis airport that has been in the news recently, featuring a national politician. SFW, but you will want to burn your eyeballs after viewing…

Chicken Little 2.0

Local blog, Flippers in Trouble, received a mention recently in a Forbes.com article about the best places to flip a home.

Watching asking prices drop on flipper properties–those bought and sold within two years, according to real estate agents–has become a sport in the Sacramento real estate blogosphere. By filtering official Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data, the blog Flippers In Trouble tracks every area flipper–those who bought a home in the last two years–and reports who is trying to sell his property for less than he paid.

So, uh, I guess congratulations are in order? After 1 or 2 or 1,348 listings don’t you sort of get the picture that folks are having a hard time flipping properties? It’s a down market, we get it. I wonder if sacbee.com sponsors this Web site because they love them some piling on about the housing market.

UPDATE: Turns out we aren’t the only ones with the market cornered on snark. The folks over at Sacramento Land(ing) are having some fun with this post, too. Nice work, guys.

Breton backpedals on hate crime case

First, I should point out that these are my views. I’m sure others share them, but none of us Sac Rag contributors should ever be construed to be speaking for the rest.

I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m enjoying watching the Bee squirm after their Slavic Evangelical accusations in the Singh case have all but dried up. But there is squirming going on. Witness Marcos Breton today… Continue reading “Breton backpedals on hate crime case”

Approaching Graswich critical mass

When longtime Bee columnist R.E. Graswich left his post, you assume it was for greener pastures. And now I realize it was for a greener pasture, a verdant meadow, and a lilac-filled prarie as well… First it was Sac Mag, and SacMag.com, and then more recently it was The Scoop on CBS13. And then on Friday afternoon I heard him doing the afternoon news on KFBK with Kitty O’Neal. Will you soon be able to order up Graswich in any fashion that suits you? A Graswich flavor at Vic’s perhaps? A Graswich roll at Kru? Graswich On Demand?

Maybe R.E. can comment here about what would be in his scoop at Vic’s…

Vote Early, Vote Often

Yes, it’s that time of year again.  No, not Big Fun time.  No, not triple digit weather time.  No, not time to change your Brita filter.  It’s time to vote in the Sacramento News & Review’s “Best of Sacramento.”  Now normally, we’d stop there and let you all vote away to your heart’s content, but we’d like to make one quick request of you.  You see, there’s this website called The Sac Rag, and it would be really cool if you voted for it for “Best Local Website” and “Best Local Blog.”  It’s not much that we ask of you, just a little click on your little mouse.  Just think of it as checking “Yes” on a note that we slipped you that read: “Do you like me, check ‘yes’ or ‘no’?” 

Thank you for your support.

Don’t “Call Curtis”!

Ouch indeed… Sam McManis blogs today about Curtis Carroll, a West Sac resident whose number is one digit away from the main line at CBS13/CW31.

he has recorded the following outgoing message on his home-answering machine:

If you thought you reached Channel 13 or Channel 31, home of adolescent anchoring, juvenile journalism and the worst newscast in the state, you didn’t. You got that number wrong. If you got the right number, leave a message. Thanks.

Why don’t you just tell me the name of the reporter you’d like to scream obscenities at…

UPDATED AGAIN: Important Follow Up Story…

UPDATED 4:00 pm:  If you weren’t able to hear the live broadcast of “Insight” featuring writers from the Sac Rag today, you can check out the archived audio here.  Listen especially closely for the moment when sac-eats’s and Stickie’s breathing peaks and their hearts stop as Jeffrey Callison says, “I did a search on The Sac Rag and came across the following piece about me…”   You can almost hear Stickie and sac-eats thinking to themselves, “What stupid thing did we say about this fine gentleman that we’re now going to regret for the rest of our lives?”  It’s what live radio is all about.   

The Sac Rag was featured on “Insight,” the local topics show hosted by Jeffrey Callison on KXJZ. 

Insight-90.9 KXJZ, 2-3pm

August 1- “The Writers of The Sac Rag”