Op/Ed no longer in on-line edition of Omaha World Herald?

[Paul W. Schleck]

Unless I'm missing something, the Opinion and Editorial sections of the
online edition of the OWH at Omaha.com have been removed, including the
columns and Public Pulse (letters to the editor).

I sent off the following feedback. No reply yet as of today.

Subject: Op/Ed no longer in on-line edition?
Date: Tue, 6 Feb 2007 10:57:40 -0600 (CST)

I can't seem to find Opinion or Editorial from any menu at the new
Omaha.com site. Am I correct in presuming that they have been removed
from on-line access? If so, that's a shame. However, I do understand
if it was necessary to do this to comply with contractual obligations
concerning syndicated columnists, AP wire stories, etc. You may even
have had concerns about public distribution of the work of your
nationally famous, award-winning, political cartoonist Jeff Koterba.

Are there any future plans to allow home subscribers to the printed
Omaha World Herald, like myself, login accounts to access op/ed and
syndicated columns on-line, as is done by the NY Times for their "Times
Select" columns?

--
Paul W. Schleck
***@novia.net
http://www.novia.net/~pschleck/
Finger ***@novia.net for PGP Public Key

[Jim Redelfs]

Post by Paul W. Schleck
Unless I'm missing something

You're not.

Post by Paul W. Schleck
the Opinion and Editorial sections of the
online edition of the OWH at Omaha.com have been removed

They have.

They "improved" their web site to the point where I may remove it from my
bookmarks bar. The big "winners" now are Metro Scene and Lifestyles. <gag>
Weeks/months earlier, they removed the Nation/World section.

Of course, I can always get the slanted, leftist, commie version of that scene
from CBS, NBS, ABS, CNNBS, PMSNBC, yadda, yadda. (Thank God for Fox.)

Then there's the offer where, if you subscribe to the OWH paper rag, you get
greater on-line access. That's fine. I just wish they'd let me pay for
enhanced on-line access and forgo the "pleasure" of removing the day-old (my
laziness) paper copy from the mailbox then, after moving it out of my way the
entire week, hauling it to the curb every Monday morning.

Methinks they built their new press facility a few years too late. Any bets
they'll have to build another? Rent out the current ("new") one for storage?

Then again, I suppose there will always be a need to wrap fish and line bird
cages. [meow, hiss, scratch]

[Paul W. Schleck]

Post by Jim Redelfs

Post by Paul W. Schleck
Unless I'm missing something

You're not.

Post by Paul W. Schleck
the Opinion and Editorial sections of the
online edition of the OWH at Omaha.com have been removed

They have.
They "improved" their web site to the point where I may remove it from my
bookmarks bar. The big "winners" now are Metro Scene and Lifestyles. <gag>
Weeks/months earlier, they removed the Nation/World section.
Of course, I can always get the slanted, leftist, commie version of that scene
from CBS, NBS, ABS, CNNBS, PMSNBC, yadda, yadda. (Thank God for Fox.)

I'll give the OWH credit for carrying the excellent columns of
intelligent, pragmatic, conservatives such as Kathleen Parker, Robert
J. Samuelson, and Jonah Goldberg. I liked to use the Omaha.com site to
pass them along to friends and family. But, perhaps that's the problem.
As each domestic local newspaper goes behind a subscription wall, those
remaining out in the open find themselves carrying a disproportionate
number of "freeloaders."

Post by Jim Redelfs
Then there's the offer where, if you subscribe to the OWH paper rag, you get
greater on-line access. That's fine. I just wish they'd let me pay for
enhanced on-line access and forgo the "pleasure" of removing the day-old (my
laziness) paper copy from the mailbox then, after moving it out of my way the
entire week, hauling it to the curb every Monday morning.

Our household subscribes to the Saturday and Sunday editions only.
Frankly, that's about the only time that we can sit down with a printed
copy of the paper. It's also useful to have around for store ads and
classifieds. We don't have any birds to line cages for at home, so most
of it goes out in the recycling bin each week. More paper would just
mean more recycling.

I find that I'm better off reading either a shared printed copy of the
weekday editions, or viewing them on-line. I, too, would appreciate
some sort of on-line subscription.

[...]

--
Paul W. Schleck
***@novia.net
http://www.novia.net/~pschleck/
Finger ***@novia.net for PGP Public Key

[Mike Riddle]

Post by Paul W. Schleck
I'll give the OWH credit for carrying the excellent columns of
intelligent, pragmatic, conservatives such as Kathleen Parker, Robert
J. Samuelson, and Jonah Goldberg. I liked to use the Omaha.com site to
pass them along to friends and family. But, perhaps that's the problem.
As each domestic local newspaper goes behind a subscription wall, those
remaining out in the open find themselves carrying a disproportionate
number of "freeloaders."

They're also available linked through Drudge, or at townhall.com,
jewishworldreview.com, or nro online. It's not like having read it in
the OWH it can't be found.

[Mike Riddle]

Post by Paul W. Schleck
I can't seem to find Opinion or Editorial from any menu at the new
Omaha.com site. Am I correct in presuming that they have been removed
from on-line access? If so, that's a shame. However, I do understand
if it was necessary to do this to comply with contractual obligations
concerning syndicated columnists, AP wire stories, etc. You may even
have had concerns about public distribution of the work of your
nationally famous, award-winning, political cartoonist Jeff Koterba.

I forwarded your questions to a friend at the OWH. He doesn't have
anything directly to do with the omaha.com but promised to try to get an
answer.

In the meantime, if he tipped me off that if you register and log in,
then click on "E-Edition" down on the right-hand side, you get the
actual graphic page images on the left as well as an option for a text
display on the right. It looks like there's a search box inside the
e-edition but I haven't checked it enough to see how robust it is.
Looks like you need to know what you're looking for, and grabbing the
cartoons may require a exercise in "learning browser options."

But I just now looked for and found the editorial pages from tongiht's
edition of the paper, FWIW.

[Jim Redelfs]

if you register and log in, then click on "E-Edition" down on the
right-hand side, you get the actual graphic page images on the left
as well as an option for a text display on the right.

I suspect one must be an actual PAPER subscriber to get the content you/your
contact mention. I am already a registered on-line user. I signed-in and
clicked on the link you mentioned. I presented a new window with nothing more
than several paragraphs touting what's available IF I subscribe. I wish I
could subscribe to the on-line service and forgo the paper delivery. <sigh>

[Mike Riddle]

Post by Jim Redelfs
I suspect one must be an actual PAPER subscriber to get the content you/your
contact mention. I am already a registered on-line user. I signed-in and
clicked on the link you mentioned. I presented a new window with nothing more
than several paragraphs touting what's available IF I subscribe. I wish I
could subscribe to the on-line service and forgo the paper delivery. <sigh>

Good guess. My friend mentioned that the business model for the
e-edition is to increase print sales.

You might send an email to the webmaster and/or the public pulse
suggesting an e-only subscription!

[Paul W. Schleck]

Post by Mike Riddle

Post by Paul W. Schleck
I can't seem to find Opinion or Editorial from any menu at the new
Omaha.com site. Am I correct in presuming that they have been removed
from on-line access? If so, that's a shame. However, I do understand
if it was necessary to do this to comply with contractual obligations
concerning syndicated columnists, AP wire stories, etc. You may even
have had concerns about public distribution of the work of your
nationally famous, award-winning, political cartoonist Jeff Koterba.

I forwarded your questions to a friend at the OWH. He doesn't have
anything directly to do with the omaha.com but promised to try to get an
answer.
In the meantime, if he tipped me off that if you register and log in,
then click on "E-Edition" down on the right-hand side, you get the
actual graphic page images on the left as well as an option for a text
display on the right. It looks like there's a search box inside the
e-edition but I haven't checked it enough to see how robust it is.
Looks like you need to know what you're looking for, and grabbing the
cartoons may require a exercise in "learning browser options."
But I just now looked for and found the editorial pages from tongiht's
edition of the paper, FWIW.

Thanks, Mike. It doesn't look like the E-Edition of the paper is
terribly well advertised at the web site, requiring a bit of digging to
find where it's hidden. As I'm only a weekend subscriber of the paper
edition, I don't get to log in to see all of it. My old login doesn't
work for full access anymore, and like Jim, I only get a "nag" screen to
sign up for the paper 7 days a week.

--
Paul W. Schleck
***@novia.net
http://www.novia.net/~pschleck/
Finger ***@novia.net for PGP Public Key

[Mike Riddle]

Post by Paul W. Schleck
It doesn't look like the E-Edition of the paper is
terribly well advertised at the web site, requiring a bit of digging to
find where it's hidden.

They clearly have some marketing issues with the e-edition, and I
suspect some flaws in their business model. I think I'll be seeing my
contact at a delayed holiday shindig tonight and I'll see who should at
the OWH should be at the pointy end of your spears.

[Jim Redelfs]

who...at the OWH should be at the pointy end of your spears.

I really should back-off a little. I am, after all, getting what I'm paying
for. (I'm paying NOTHING.)

An on-line (only) subscription option could be touted from an
environment-friendly standpoint. Then again, I'm sure it's all driven by
advertising dollars - or the (potential) lack thereof.

[Mike Riddle]

Post by Jim Redelfs

who...at the OWH should be at the pointy end of your spears.

I really should back-off a little. I am, after all, getting what I'm paying
for. (I'm paying NOTHING.)
An on-line (only) subscription option could be touted from an
environment-friendly standpoint. Then again, I'm sure it's all driven by
advertising dollars - or the (potential) lack thereof.

Well, you have it nailed. Seems that the newspaper industry has no
recognized method of counting e-subscriptions that is accepted by the
Audit Bureau of Circulation. OWH and other papers are trying to work
this out.

In the meantime, the Red Elfs of the world need to keep pinging on the
OWH to give them a reduced rate to e-subscribe without paper delivery
(pun intended).