Editors start screaming only after Christie threatens profits

Before-and-after photos of Aleppo by Hannah Karim show the ravages of the Syrian civil war. Despite Syrian immigration to North Jersey dating to the early 1900s, The Record of Woodland Park continues to downplay the death of civilians and Russia's role in the destruction of the country's largest city.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Chris Christie lied repeatedly during his 2009 election campaign about providing more tax relief to homeowners than his Democratic opponent, Gov. Jon Corzine.

And after he took office in January 2010, he began to wage a war against New Jersey's middle and working classes that continues to this day.

Yet, only now are The Record's editors screaming bloody murder because the governor wants to end the requirement for the publication of legal notices in newspapers -- cutting into the profits of Gannett Co. and other publishers.

Chutzah and profits

The story has been on the front page of the Woodland Park daily since Sunday, and an editorial today savages Christie for "a punitive hit on state newspapers," as well as his bid to profit from a book deal while in office:

"The governor's chutzpah is remarkable.... The most unpopular governor in recent memory should not be in a bargaining position for anything -- let alone a deal that benefits not the people of New Jersey, but only the singular constituency of Chris Christie" (18A).

Wednesday's editorial, referring to ending the publication of public notices, said:

"The absence of this revenue stream will deeply affect the bottom line of some -- if not all -- of the publications, including The Record, The Herald News and [Gannett-owned] North Jersey Media Group's portfolio of 30 community publications.

"Stripping hundreds of thousands of revenue dollars from print media companies assuredly affects jobs."

But Gannett and the Borgs, who sold NJMG to the nation's biggest newspaper publisher in July, started downsizing their staffs and reducing local news coverage years ago.

Just last month, Gannett executed plans to cut more than 200 jobs at NJMG, and reduce the number of its weeklies to 30 from 50. 

Promoting HUMC

Also on Page 1 today is another story promoting Hackensack University Medical Center -- a tradition dating to when former NJMG General Counsel Jennifer A. Borg sat on the hospital's board (1A).

HUMC claims to be a non-profit, thus skipping out on $10 million in property taxes in Hackensack, and shifting the burden to home and business owners -- a story The Record has long ignored.

The photo with the hospital story shows a smiling Robert C. Garrett, a co-CEO of Hackensack Meridian Health Network.

In 2012, Garrett was paid $2.72 million, according to NJBIZ.com.

Diabetes special

Today, the Better Living front is calling all diabetics and readers watching their cholesterol.

Food Editor Esther Davidowitz reports a coffee shop and bakery in Rutherford uses "high-quality ingredients," including Valrhona chocolate and Cabot's butter.

Davidowitz doesn't mention how much sugar is used in the "baked treats" at Erie Coffeeshop and Bakery, but I'm sure many readers -- whether they're watching their weight, cholesterol or sugar intake -- won't go near the place.

'Aleppo's destroyers'

A story about Aleppo, Syria, appears on Page 13 of The Record's A-section today, but I can't recall the editorial page condemning Russia's role in the death of innocent civilians during the civil war.

An editorial in The New York Times today appears under this heading:

"Aleppo's Destroyers: 
Assad, Putin, Iran"

"In 2011, President Bashar al-Assad ignored the demands of peaceful protesters and unleashed a terrifying war against his people.

"More than 400,000 Syrians have been killed while millions more have fled.... Mr. Assad could have never prevailed without the support of President Vladimir Putin of Russia.... 

"That is a truth that President-elect Donald Trump, a Putin apologist who is surrounding himself with top aides who are also Kremlin sympathizers, cannot ignore.

"During the presidential campaign, Mr. Trump praised Mr. Putin for being 'a better leader' than President Obama.

"This would be a good time for him to persuade Mr. Putin to end the slaughter.

"Mr. Putin's bloody actions -- the bombing of civilian neighborhoods, the destruction of hospitals, the refusal to allow non-combatants to receive food, fuel and medical supplies -- are all in violation of international law."

Christie will be gone when pension fund goes broke

The air is fragrant in Hackensack, above and below.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Today's front page "ANALYSIS" of the deepening state pension system crisis is good, but Staff Writer John Reitmeyer of The Record could be accused of burying the lead.

Readers who stick with his account -- which begins by saying "Governor Christie is following the well-worn path" of his predecessors by skipping payments -- might be shocked to see what awaits them on the continuation page:

"What all this means is that at some point in the future, according to experts, New Jersey's pension system, currently underfunded by an estimated $52 billion, could become simply too costly to keep afloat" (A-6).

That should have been the first paragraph on A-1 for crying out loud.

Derelict editors

Who was Editor Marty Gottlieb or one of his minions thinking of when they worked on this Page 1 story?

Certainly not public employees or even readers of the Woodland Park daily.

Readers also find out on A-6 the GOP bully basically told another lie: 

"Christie ... recently erroneously lumped [former Governor Jon] Corzine among the list of New Jersey governors who made no pension payments during their tenure."

Taxing readers

Now, Christie is facing a $1 billion budget shortfall, because he has refused, among other things, to impose a tax surcharge on millionaires or raise the low gasoline tax to fund road and mass-transit improvements.

Reitmeyer doesn't cite the conservative's inflexible no-tax policies or his past practice of balancing the budget on the backs of the middle and working classes.

In fact, the reporter doesn't even bother telling readers how many public employees are covered by the state's pension system or who they are.

Are they just bureaucrats in Trenton or are they teachers, police officers and firefighters -- in other words our neighbors?

The story says Christie is cutting his planned $1.58 billion pension contribution back to $696 million and, in the fiscal year that begins July 1, a $2.25 billion pension payment would now be just $681 million.

Christie also says he will "put forward new public worker benefit changes in the next few weeks" (A-6).

If I was a public worker who is already contributing more to my pension thanks to Christie, I'd really be worried.

Breathe deep.

Crash landing

Why was a pea-brained former sports reporter assigned to the story on the untimely demise of New Jersey multimillionaire Lewis Katz, killed in the "fiery crash" of a Gulfstream private jet on Saturday night (A-3)?

Staff Writer John Brennan reports "National Transportation Safety Board officials said it was too soon to discuss the cause of the crash."

They always say that less than two days after a crash, but there are usually only two possible causes: Pilot error or a mechanical problem.

Private-jet travel is one of the privileges of wealth, but Brennan doesn't even say whether it is safer to fly commercial.


The Borgs and Main Street

The Borgs' North Jersey Media Group has never had much affection for Main Street, judging by the abysmal lack of coverage of struggling downtowns in Englewood, Teaneck and other communities.

And Hackensack -- where The Record prospered for more than 110 years -- and its Main Street are still trying to recover from Publisher Stephen A. Borg's decision in 2009 to close the paper's headquarters on River Street, and move to the sticks.

Where money talks

Joan Verdon, the paper's retail reporter, writes almost exclusively about North Jersey's malls and highway retailers -- where the Borgs reap millions of dollars in advertising revenue.

You could think of this as journalism pay to play. Do merchants have to advertise in The Record to get coverage?

But the Business page on Monday carries a feature called "Main Street" that appears to be the editors' attempt to fool readers into thinking otherwise.

Today's piece is about North Jersey's pet-walking and pet-sitting businesses. Another recent "Main Street" feature reported on the maker of custom golf pants.

What a farce.

Teaneck police

The lead story in Local today is an upbeat report on the 100th anniversary of the Teaneck Police Department (L-1).

Staff Writer Jim Norman notes the onetime all-male force "now includes seven women, two of whom are lieutenants and two detectives."

But Norman fails to tell readers about the sordid period when women in the Teaneck department filed sexual-harassment lawsuits against their male superiors, resulting in legal fees and settlements that cost taxpayers many hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Are local assignment Editors Deirdre Sykes and Dan Sforza -- veterans who should be familiar with those suits -- deliberately slanting stories so as not to offend the Teaneck police?

Dumb laborers endorse Christie

Results of the 2009 New Jersey gubernatorial election by municipality. (Wikipedia)

Four years ago, the brutish members of the Laborers International Union endorsed then-Gov. Jon Corzine, who was being challenged by Chris Christie.

Corzine lost, and now the 20,000 members of the union in New Jersey are throwing their support behind Christie's bid for a second term, according to a Page 1 story in The Record today.

Let's hope the union's endorsement is the kiss of death for the GOP bully, who hasn't been able to lower the state's 9.9 percent unemployment rate, the highest since 1977.

You wouldn't know that from the sub-headline:

Job creation earned

backing, leader says

 

 

But the story reports on the jobs created to clean-up and rebuild from Superstorm Sandy, to finish the entertainment-retail complex known as American Dream Meadowlands and other current work.

 

 

 

 

 

An obese Christie looks like Papa Bear in today's A-1 photo with union members or a pig splashing happily in mud.

 

 

 

Accidents 'R' Us

 

Head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes and her deputy, Dan Sforza, needed a large photo of a non-fatal accident to fill the Local news section today (L-1).

 

 

 

 

 

An  SUV driver was Googling where to buy The Record in Hackensack on Tuesday, when he missed Exit 66, rolled over an embankment and landed right-side up.

 

 

 

 

 

The photo caption doesn't say in which direction the driver was going nor that he wouldn't have found any Hackensack news in the paper today or on Tuesday.

 

 

 

 

One-track mind

 

Also on the Local front, Road Warrior John Cichowski continues to ignore the vast majority of commuters, who drive or take mass transit to work, choosing again to focus instead on a small number of bicycle riders.

 

 

 

 

 

 

He writes about "people [who] drive on two wheels to work in Manhattan."

 

 

 

The PATH rail system hasn't been fully restored in the seven weeks since Sandy, but Cichowski is refusing to leave the office to interview any of those commuters.

Editors commit titanic misjudgments

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The Record's editors demonized Jon Corzine during his single term as governor of New Jersey, but now praise Republican Governor Christie as a gift from the political gods.

Does the Italian tragicomedy of errors involving a capsized cruise ship really belong on the front page of a daily North Jersey newspaper -- where desperate editors couldn't produce anything more relevant to readers' lives?


This colossal misjudgment by interim Editor Douglas Clancy is mirrored in the Opinion section today, where another editor publishes three letters apparently meant to repair the reputation of a doctor who was hit by a $1.27 million jury award last week.

Today's Page 1 story in The Record might be of interest if you've taken or are planning a cruise. Otherwise, you'll take one look at the gee-whiz photo of the Costa Concordia on its side, maybe read a few paragraphs and move on in search of news you can use.


Incomprehensible


You won't find it in a second A-1 story, this one trumpeting how The Record and Herald News prompted Governor Christie to order a review of state purchasing laws and "the public contracting process."


Today's piece on government purchasing is just as unfathomable as previous ones.


A third front-page story -- on a new state Prescription Monitoring Program -- gives rare credit to Christie's predecessor, Jon Corzine.


On the Local front, the Road Warrior has morphed into the Death Warrior, with the second piece in a week on driving fatalities, another statistical story he produced from the comfort of his computer (L-1).


Readers will find Englewood and Teaneck items today, but Hackensack news coverage is a shipwreck once again -- thanks to the lazy assignment desk under Editor Deirdre Sykes.


Your Money's Worth Columnist Kevin DeMarrais continues to ignore organics and other food that is raised or grown naturally in the monthly Marketbasket Survey (B-2) and in today's piece on rising food prices (B-1).


More misjudgment


On O-2 in the Opinion section, Letters Editor Charles Saydah praises a frequent letter writer, Arab-American Hani Awadallah, without disclosing Saydah is of Lebanese descent.


Saydah was known in the old days for his homemade hummus recipe and his skills on the dance floor during the newspaper's annual party for loyal employees.


Across the bottom of the opposite page, O-3, Saydah publishes three long letters of praise from Dr. Roger P. Kierce's daughter and wife, and a patient.


Apparently, the letters are designed to repair the doctor's reputation after a jury awarded $1.27 million to plaintiffs in a lawsuit that portrayed him as an abusive boss at St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center.


The decision to publish the letters is shameful. Is the Your Views pages now open to family members and friends of every defendant, whether he is held liable in a lawsuit or found guilty of a crime?


Just shut up


In Better Living, the production editors put Restaurant Reviewer Elisa Ung on a diet of sorts -- the last sentence of her inane column was cut off (F-1 and F-5). LOL. 


Let's hope Ung, whose favorite course is dessert, takes the advice offered by the the article just above her column on how to "avoid gaining weight in the sluggish winter months."

Do all N.J. governors lie?

Image via Wikipedia
Jon Corzine, in suit second from left, in far better days. 

Why doesn't the Page 1 story in The Record today report that either former Gov. Jon Corzine is so incredibly wealthy he didn't notice where $1.2 billion in clients' funds went or he lied to Congress on Thursday?


And why doesn't the Woodland Park daily put all of Governor Christie's lies on the front page -- or at least explore for readers which of his statements are true and which aren't? He's uttered some whoppers.


Didn't Tom Kean Sr. hide a huge deficit when he left office, setting up Democrat Jim Florio for the fall after the latter raised taxes? Don't all governors lie?


I guess interim Editor Doug Clancy and head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes came up empty when looking for North Jersey news to put on Page 1 today.


Why waste the front page on two crime stories -- a shooting at a college in Virginia, and the murder trial of an Elmwood Park woman who has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity?


If The Record and other media exposed the special interests that prevent effective gun control from becoming law, it would certainly go a long way toward cutting down on school and college shootings.


Instead, the media love to practice "body count" journalism.


Readers salute paper


On A-13, a story reports texting while driving is on the rise, but the national survey mistakenly included thousands of Route 80 drivers who were giving the finger to 1 Garret Mountain Plaza, home of The Record, Herald News and North Jersey Media Group.


Hundreds of those fingers were intended for Road Warrior Columnist John Cichowski, who today re-hashes the new crosswalk law instead of exploring commuting problems (L-1).


Staff Writer Stephanie Akin reports strong neighborhood opposition at a hearing on a proposed 19-story acute-care hospital in Hackensack (L-1). She previewed the hearing  in Thursday's paper.


Go for the agita


Twenty dollars worth of under-seasoned, rubbery seafood. Eighteen dollars for an overcooked, dry breast on a naturally raised half chicken. A waitress who refers to extra place settings as "crap."


Restaurant Reviewer Elisa Ung overlooks all of that and more at Osteria La Fiamma in Ridgewood -- calling it good to excellent -- apparently because the desserts more than satisfied her obsession with sweets (Better Living centerfold).


She calls one dessert "lovely." Another is "perfect," and a third is "gigantic," though she doesn't tell readers whether she shoved all of it down her gaping maw.


Except for the roasted vegetables that came with the half chicken, Ung didn't sample any healthy salads or sauteed greens.

Editors ensure seniors stay invisible

Image via Wikipedia

North Jersey is returning to normal a week after a bad nor'easter,
but The Record's editors grew tired of the story in just a few days.

The Record's lazy assignment desk didn't bother actually covering a conference of senior citizens on Friday in Paramus -- and missed an instant poll of the audience.


So, today's paper doesn't report that many of the participants feel they are "invisible" in their communities -- a reflection on the Woodland Park daily as much as it is on politicians and social-service agencies.


Not one of the 132 participants groused about Social Security payments, Medicare premiums and lousy lunches at senior centers or told nursing-home horror stories -- which is all you hear about in The Record's spotty coverage of the elderly.


In fact, they asked about inter-generational programs and housing, courses to improve their driving skills and a list of politicians based on how they stand on senior issues -- not party affiliation -- among other suggestions and demands.


And they said they stay in North Jersey because they are "familiar with the area" and love having all that Manhattan has to offer on their suburban doorstep.


Screw old people


Head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes missed all of this -- just as she has ignored the concerns of the elderly for years. 


Interim Editor Doug Clancy leads the paper today with the resignation of former New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine as head of something called MF Global Holdings Ltd. Presumably, "MF" doesn't stand for "mother fuckers."


Is there anything in this Page 1 story to suggest Corzine defrauded investors? 


A week after a brutal nor'easter knocked out power to 175,000 customers, Clancy continues to downplay the damage, relegating a couple's death to A-8, and bouncing Bergen County stories off of the front page again.


More election stories


Election coverage again dominates the Local news section, Sykes' pride and joy. Utilities report more than 20,000 customers still were without power on Friday.


However, Better Living hasn't let down readers. Today's cover story by Staff Writer Virginia Rohan lists essentials that should be restocked for the "next time we're left in the dark."


On Friday, the weekly Hackensack Chronicle, a sister publication of The Record, reported on its front page that a proposed 19-story hospital would be built "at the corner of Prospect and Summit avenues in Hackensack."


Those streets run parallel.


Blame the victim


Also on Friday, on the front of The Record's Local section, transportation reporter Karen Rouse provided all the grisly details surrounding the September 2010 death of Caesar Muloki, a 12-year-old Hackensack Middle School student killed by a train, but never names him.


Rouse is doing her best to help NJ Transit blame pedestrians who are killed by trains. In doing so, she takes the focus off the agency's responsibility to make tracks and crossings safer.


Her job as a journalist -- the one her assignment editor won't ask her to do -- is to go into the Hackensack neighborhood where the boy was killed and interview residents who believe the safety of block after block of unfenced track can be improved so another student won't be killed.


That's especially important in Hackensack, where many students walk to and from school, because the city doesn't provide busing.


Meat obsession


On Wednesday, Staff Writer Bill Ervolino celebrated ethnic butchers, but never told readers whether the sausage, meatballs, pork chops and liverwurst he buys were raised with antibiotics, growth hormones and other harmful additives or preserved with nitrites (F-3).


He also goofed when he identified Ray Venezia as a butcher who "oversees the meat departments of North Jersey's Fairway stores."


New York-based Fairway Market has only one store in North Jersey, and it's in Paramus.

Hey, readers, look at our rich politicians

Image via Wikipedia

The Record's food editor is on vacation (Rodeo Drive), and so is food news.

The lead story in The Record today hammers home how wealthy you have to be to run for national or state office -- or at least have filthy rich supporters (A-1).

But has the Woodland Park daily ever identified Governor Christie's rich friends and supporters, as it does for President Obama?

At least Jon Corzine took a salary of $1 when he was governor, imposed a tax surcharge on wealthy residents and found a constitutional way to fund public schools -- three areas where his Republican successor has failed miserably. 

And can you recall any lead stories on campaign-finance reform or editorials bemoaning the corrupt election system? 

No. All those ink-stained wretches would rather spy on "a posh crowd" being wined and dined in Corzine's airy, multimillion dollar perch on Central Park.

Doctor, doctor, Mr. M.D.

With millions of Americans still without health insurance, why are free operations for former professional athletes front-page news today? 

Some days, you can't tell whether Francis Scandale is an editor of a daily newspaper or a jock. 

What a great governor

That A-1 story on free health care for ex-athletes really seems silly after you read an editorial on how our Republican bully of a governor seems intent on denying funds to family planning clinics for low-income women (A-11). Shameful.

In head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes' Local section today, tiny Northvale continues to get thorough coverage -- while readers in Hackensack, Teaneck, Englewood and other large communities seem to be on news rationing.

Hawaii Five-0

You won't find any food coverage in Better Living today. According to Twitter,  Food Editor Susan Leigh Sherrill is away researching a recipe that uses macadamia nuts:

susanlsherrill Susan Sherrill

Headed to #Maui on Friday - celebrating my 50th birthday in the 50th state! - any recommendations about where we should eat?

susanlsherrill Susan Sherrill

Now I think I know why Randy Newman sings "I love #LA"!

12 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply 

»

susanlsherrill Susan Sherrill

At #FredSegal in Santa Monica for the truffle burger

14 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply

»

susanlsherrill Susan Sherrill

Beverly Wilshire, Rodeo Drive wow

16 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply
 

»

susanlsherrill Susan Sherrill

Driving around LA - first time here. Just passed Spago + Bouchon!

16 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply

4 May Favorite Retweet Reply

More 'responsible journalism'

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The editors at The Record of Woodland Park love politics, and they want  their readers to love it, too. But most readers are turned off by politics and the telling of so many stories by what the Democrats, Republicans, Tea Baggers or other groups think. 

Still, the lazy, incompetent editors know no shame and don't hesitate to cover Page 1, as they did today, with a story on Jon Corzine's contributions to fellow Democrats, complete with an elaborate graphic. "Corzine closes his wallet" is the headline. Who -- with the exception of Democrats who received his largess -- cares?

Why not devote the paper's resources to reforming a system that allows only the rich to run for office? I guess that wouldn't be the kind of "responsible journalism" espoused by North Jersey Media Group. Apparently, the Borgs like the idea that only rich and powerful people like themselves get elected.

Then, the editors squander more of the front page on a sensational story about pedophile tourists in Thailand, burying the shocking news that protesters in Greece killed three bank employees.

Another story the editors try to minimize quotes a powerful senator saying he won't hold a confirmation hearing for King Chris' nominee to replace the only black justice on the state Supreme Court. Ha, ha, ha.



On the front of Local, Columnist Mike Kelly inadvertently indicts head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes and exposes the weak reporting of the team that was chasing allegations against Hackensack Police Chief Ken Zisa, who has been suspended with pay.


Kelly says a private investigator (working for an attorney who represented a Hackensack police officer) was the source of the allegations that Zisa covered up an accident involving his then-girlfriend, and that he informed the Bergen County prosecutor. Why didn't The Record's reporters get to this investigator first?

Christie and the Borgs -- perfect together

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Isn't this rich? Governor Christie (photo)  has cut aid to towns, schools and mass transit, but is paying his staff hundreds of thousands of dollars more than Jon Corzine did when he was in office, according to a front-page story in The Record of Woodland Park today.

Doesn't that remind you of how Publisher Stephen Borg ordered his editors to create many new jobs with lower salaries or simply to slash veteran workers' pay by as much as $10,000 just months after getting a $3.65 million mortgage from North Jersey Media Group, headed by his father?

Doesn't that remind you of Stephen Borg's stated goal -- a newsroom where no one makes more than $40,000?

Even if you put Christie's explanation in the best light, his staff is being paid $600,000 more than Corzine's, the story says. The Associated Press figure is nearly $2 million more. Would that $600,000 save an after-school program in Englewood or cuts in train service slated for May 1?

Six days after the volcano erupted in Iceland and paralyzed air traffic, the story on stranded North Jerseyans shows up on the front page today. But there is nothing about the disruption of air shipments of food, fish and flowers from Europe.


In Local, there is a photo and a few words about Hackensack's recreation program, which is not being cut, unlike those in other municipalities, but that's it for residents of the former home of The Record and NJMG .I guess clueless head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes and her minions must be spending weeks at a retreat on how to cover local news.

There are six crime, court or accident pieces inside Local, including a photo and six paragraphs about a car chase and downed light pole in Paterson. Did editor Jim McGarvey, head of Passaic-Morris coverage, have to shout at a reporter to turn out that stellar piece of work?

This is McGarvey's second period of employment at The Record, and he has failed in every job he has had. Yet he seems to have found his calling -- terrorizing his staff.

Does this story help or hurt?

Image by wallyg via Flickr

I expected more from the Page A-5 "fact checker," especially after reading The Record's A-1 promo today under the heading: 

Christie vs. NJEA:
Who's telling the truth?

Why wasn't the story played out front? And why allow a stubborn foe of mass transit, Staff Writer Tom Davis, to write about the NJ Transit fare hikes, which have been approved for May 1? He's some "transportation reporter."

How much time is a reader expected to spend with that A-5 fact-checker? The third item appears under a heading: "Income tax rates for the rich," but the text merely recaps the governor's and teachers union's positions. Next, "the facts" appear, but we never learn who is telling the truth, as the A-1 promo promised.

The one-year tax surcharge on the Borgs and other wealthy families earning over $400,000 would generate "nearly $1 billion." That would avert a lot of the cuts Governor Christie has imposed on just about everyone but the rich. The extra tax was enacted by Jon Corzine in his last year in office (and will remain in effect until Dec. 31, according to WBGO-FM news).

Staff Writer Ashley Kindergan continues to impress. After excellent follow-up stories on the murder of a teacher Tuesday and Wednesday, she has two municipal stories in Local today -- "the patch" on the front and a tax hike story inside.

She puts the rest of the local staff to shame, including Hackensack reporter Monsy Alvarado. Every edition of The Record raises the question of how clueless head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes and her minions keep their jobs.

Young Borg's big mistakes

Image by Joel Price via Flickr

Mistake that turned

his life upside down

When I first saw this headline on Page 1 of  The Record of Woodland Park today, I thought it would be appropriate to describe mistakes made by Publisher Stephen A. Borg that turned employees' lives upside down.

After he took over from his father, he moved printing of The Record and Herald News to Rockaway Township from Hackensack, sacrificing highly profitable commercial printing and prompting the layoff of more than 50 press workers, not to mention incurring the high cost of fuel and extra wear and tear on the Mercedes delivery trucks burning up Route 80 every day.

 Then, he scattered workers in the Hackensack newsroom to the four winds, depriving editors and reporters of a shared purpose, which you can see in the lousy local news coverage and a front page that chases every sensational story just to sell papers.

Now, the landmark building is nearly empty -- with Chairman Malcolm A. "Mac" Borg making North Jersey Media Group's last stand -- and 150 River St. apparently is unsellable in a down market. Wasn't unloading the underused building and surrounding land the whole point of moving to Woodland Park?

But today's A-1 headline is not about Borg, it's about the poor, lovelorn schmuck who ducked under a rope at Newark airport and triggered a security lock-down -- in other words, much ado about nothing. Is this really front-page news? Even the judge didn't think so, giving the defendant community service and fining him $500.

Governor Christie is on A-1 again today, blasting his predecessor for making a deal that will prevent Christie from laying off unionized state workers before January. So, the governor is pissed at Jon Corzine. How many thousands are pissed at Christie, who is planning a wide range of cuts that would affect working and middle classes, while easing the tax burden on the Borgs and other wealthy families?

So what's on the front of Local? A burned body found under a Route 46 bridge in Little Ferry is the best the lazy, incompetent assignment desk under Deirdre Sykes can do today. Three of the four education stories on L-2 are from Passaic County.

With Staff Writer Joseph Ax writing about Haiti again, there is no Teaneck news. Nor will you find any stories from Hackesnsack, Englewood and a lot of other Bergen County towns.

The front of Buisness shills for the makers of 3-D TVs (photo) with lots of color, upbeat headlines and text full of quotes from executives salivating over the prospect of huge bonuses.