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Not to pat ourselves on the back-but, hey, you patted us there first.
Our thanks to the roughly 100 readers who returned our annual surveys, over the July 4th weekend–and thanks for all the plaudits and high ratings. Despite the fact that we presented you with a confusing five-point rating system, you gave us, on average, the highest rating or second-to-highest score. Of the comments we received, we especially appreciated the following laurel thrown to us by one time-pressed reader: “It’s there and to the point.”
Of course, we were most interested in your criticism. The most common complaint we received–eight in all–was about our calendar. Mainly, you told us that it is too short or doesn’t contain enough information about key events.
We plead guilty, but we are in a bind. It’s only feasible to print three pages, so calendar items often get sacrificed to accommodate more stories and more job ads. The former is what we’re here for, the latter is essential to the financial well-being of our organization. Still, we will try to figure out a way to find more space. More on the complaints: Tied for first place was a call for “more articles.” The next most common complaint–from a total of seven–was, happily, some version of “fine at as it is” or “stay as you are.”
A half dozen readers did take serious issue with our tone, charging us with being “biased,” “glib” or “chatty.” “A little less Rudy-bashing. We get the point,” noted one reader. Another critic bemoaned our “gossipy, all-the-left, all-the-time tone.”
And then there was criticism from inside the house. City Limits senior editor Robin Epstein took issue with last week’s Weekly and its use of the phrase: “a dose of government housing support rarely seen outside of Appalachian shanty towns.” Having done her share of reporting in rural Kentucky, Epstein writes, “Coal company shacks? Yes. Section 8 housing? OK. But Appalachian shanty towns? I don’t think so.
Please don’t think you have to wait another year to tell us what you think-or to tell us what we should cover. Give us a call at 212-479-3344. Or e-mail us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you.