Tyee wins Edward. R. Murrow Award (2 July 2009)

Re: "I'm a bit dazed and of course very proud The Tyee has gained this recognition," said editor David Beers. "We have an incredible team -- creative, dedicated, out to prove that good journalism, rather than fading, is in a time of exciting reinvention.

"Credit for our win goes to every web designer, photographer, illustrator, flash animator, videographer, podcaster, reporter, essayist, editor and advisor who have contributed to the Tyee's flow of offerings since we launched this experiment in November of 2003.

"Huge appreciation, as well, to our business team, our financial backers, and the donors -- including hundreds of readers -- who have given us the resources to do what we love.

"And, all credit, of course, to our readers, who alert us to news we should report, share our stories with others, and reward our efforts with their visits. Without the Tyee community, there's no Tyee." (Tyee Wins Edward R. Murrow Award, July 2 2009)

Re: "And, all credit, of course, to our readers, who alert us to news we should report, share our stories with others, and reward our efforts with their visits. Without the Tyee community, there's no Tyee."

Surely unintentional, but you make your readers sound a bit like girly flounces here. We shrill; you respond to our call. You report; we share your stories with our friends. You sweat, make, effort; we drop by for visits. You flatter; we make you gift baskets -- You'd almost think there wasn't a very lively and intelligent discussion following nearly every post.

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Re: "And, all credit, of course, to our readers, who alert us to news we should report, share our stories with others, and reward our efforts with their visits. Without the Tyee community, there's no Tyee."

A fair response could be this, for instance:

"And we in return would genuinely like to thank the reporters of the Tyee for time-and-time-again bringing back such interesting stories for us to sort through, analyze, and interpret. Without all their exhaustive, persistent, intrepid work and focused pursuit, our legs would surely be getting most of the workout, not our minds."

See, "it sounds like a compliment, but really it's (something of) an insult" (Harry Met Sally). Would make reporters akin to response-ready gophers who spend so much time chasing down stories, they cannot be expected to do -- or offer -- much else, and us citizens, freed up all the bothersome, menial stuff, akin to repose-minded, analytically-grounded, discerning gentlemen, who process all the pro-offered information for higher order purposes.

Link: “Tyee Wins Edward R. Murrow Award” (The Tyee)