Shutting Down and Moving On

This will be the final posting for Medialogue and I am sorry to bring things to a close after only six months as your local media blogger.

However, things are hopping over at KVEC and I'm taking on some new responsibilities, effective January 2. Clear Channel is putting my afternoon talk show on the Internet -- check out http://www.920kvec.com -- and podcasting will start up shortly thereafter.

But the boss is also asking me to maintain a daily blog around my show and oversee a new opinion page where listeners will post their opinions on the issues of the day. It is all rather exciting and gratifying, but I don't see the need to maintain two blogs. So I'm just going to consolidate everything over to the new KVEC blog. I will continue to post items of interest to the local media community and well as my daily rants on the issues of the day.

I want to publicly thank Head Blogger Greg McClure for his vision and continued support of all of us bloggers. Central Coast News Mission fills a major void in covering the issues of the day and I hope people will continue to post and read and debate the issues of the day, Central Coast style.

Happy New Year! Good night -- and good luck!

Dave Congalton

Matt Sterling leaves The Tribune

Word around town is that Matt Sterling, the editor of the Trib's weekly Ticket magazine is saying adios and heading East to take a different newspaper gig. Sterling brought much-needed stability to Ticket during his tenure and was able to add some substance to the previously uneven editorial content.

The Trib has a hiring freeze in place through the end of December, so no replacement has been named yet.

What Happened to Mychele Dee?

Earlier this month, I posted a short note about Mychele Dee and the Clark Center for the Performing Arts in Arroyo Grande. Reliable sources tipped me off that Mychele was stepping down abruptly to care for her ailing mother in Phoenix because the Clark Center had denied her request for a leave of absence.

I have had contact directly with Mychele and with Sandy Lubin, the incoming board president. Sandy has been adamant in his denials of the story, even claiming that the board offered Mychele a leave of absence. Mychele is choosing to remain silent for the moment.

So I pulled the original story from the blog, but not because of any problems with my allegations. In fact, I believe an even larger story about Clark Center politics looms under the surface and several in the local media are beginning to circle with interest.

I have no axe to grind with the Clark. It is a wonderful facility and the people of South County are lucky to have something like this in their backyard. But Mychele Dee was also highly respected among the local media and, to be honest, there's something about what happened to her that doesn't quite pass the smell test.

We'll know more after the holidays. Watch this space.