This news writing looks like diarrhea

On Monday night, about 200 commuters stood in a long, snaking line to reach buses leaving from Platform 212 of the midtown Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan.

Meanwhile, other NJ Transit buses left the terminal with plenty of empty seats.

Readers of The Record's front page choked on long first paragraphs in two staff-written stories today -- the equivalent of diarrhea.

The presence of Editor Marty Gottlieb and Alan Finder, former veterans of The New York Times, doesn't seem to make much of a difference.

Look at today's stories about a pastoral statement from the leader of North Jersey Catholics, and Governor Christie's comments on Paterson.

The lead paragraph of the first story is a whopping 50 words long.

The first paragraph of the Christie story is only 38 words long, but it's constructed awkwardly and filled with unnecessary details. 

The third major story is from The Associated Press. It's 35 words long, but broken down into three easily digestible sentences.

The first 12 words would have made a perfect lead paragraph for the Christie story:

"Governor Christie on Monday scolded Paterson leaders for 'disgracefully' managing city finances."

But some genius on the local-news assignment desk decided readers had to know two things immediately:

That Christie was speaking at a press conference, as well as what question he was responding to -- so readers choke on another 26 words.

High school journalists could do better.

Weak copy desk

The copy editor who handled the story next probably also choked on the first paragraph, but he or she knows enough to just spell-check the story, write a headline and move on to the next file. 

The Record has one of the weakest copy desks in the industry, and it has gotten weaker under Production Editor Liz Houlton, known far and wide as the "Queen of Errors."

For more than a decade, copy editors have been forbidden to edit stories.

God forbid they should second guess head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes and her crew of incompetent sub-editors.

The resulting stories are poorly written and edited, bore readers to tears and appear with crucial details missing.

Transit follies

The lead story on the Local front today reports that NJ Transit is scrambling to reroute buses after county officials placed a weight limit on a bridge between Hackensack and Teaneck (L-1).

But The Record continues to ignore problems facing North Jersey commuters who ride home on NJ Transit buses from the midtown Manhattan bus terminal.

After 7 on Monday night, an estimated 200 commuters stood on a line that snaked along the upper level of the terminal and up escalators to board buses leaving for Hackensack and Cresskill from Platform 212.

One man said the line had grown longer in the past two weeks, but he didn't know why. There were long lines to other platforms, but none longer than the line to 212.

Meanwhile, other NJ Transit buses on express routes left the terminal with empty seats, such as the No. 165T to Hackensack from Platform 232.

Copping out

Hackensack readers continue to wait for Sykes to pull her head out of her massively padded asshole and assign a story that has nothing to do with former Police Chief Ken Zisa and the city's Police Department.

On Monday's front page, Staff Writer Stephanie Akin delivered an "expose" on a Hudson Street police substation that appears to be little used.

But that has been the case for many months. Another police substation on Anderson Street also appears to be underutilized.

Why is this story running now? Why is it so long?

Is it more evidence the Hackensack reporter rarely visits the city she is supposed to cover, because Sykes has Akin constantly putting out fires elsewhere? 

Shocking error

On Monday's L-1, the headline and text were incorrect in calling the Chevrolet Volt an "electric car."

The Volt is a plug-in hybrid that uses a gasoline-powered generator to charge its batteries. It has a range of about 35 miles on electric power.