Portland, Tennessee Blog

Personal attacks are one thing but most of the comments below I've read about this topic seem to be about a bad company in town. I don't believe that's a personal issue when we have good people in this city who just want to work for a good company. From my history in this city reading the newspapers I can see some shady things going on that I don't like and for people to bring them about is not wrong. I think a person is obligated to be ethical in business as well as legal, being illegal or unethical is wrong, whether it's business or personal. The problem is illegal business practices get taken to court, being unethical has no punishment other than people realizing what kind of person you really are. I think that is simply what's going on here.

Charlie took it off because the content violated one or more blog "no-nos" which are . . .
1.Anything using curse words
2.Anything that threatens violence
3.Anything that promotes illegal activities
4.Scams
5.Personal attacks on individuals

Personally, I can scroll down right now and find other blantant violations but it's not my call. I am sure that anyone who resorts to personal attacks is probably doing so because they feel they have been wronged . . . and most likely have been . . . but dragging out a personal grudge in a public forum kind of makes the other person "look" like a victim rather than you, which is defeating the purpose of "exposing" them in the first place. (do you get what I'm trying to say?)

I'm not sure what was said by this Cassandra. I'm curious if it has something to do with the rumors that a certain owner of a certain paper has been trying to hurt the reputations of certain ex-employees.

It was mean so they took it off. I don't like John Cook either but that comment just hateful.

Where did Cassandra's comment go?

John you sure have a way to put on a fake face. I've said my peace about you on other blogs and I've taken them down due to threats against me and friends. I'm done with you, done with the progressive, and as far as I'm concerned do not call me. Dont contact me and dont talk about me to anyone else in this town again. You are dead to me and I wish to be the same to you. Bye.

Hi Chuck! I am sorry to hear and read that you have such hard feelings toward the Progressive. Please call me if you would like to talk. You know how to reach me. Your a good person - and your Mom and Dad are very kind people too. Your very blessed to have such caring and loving parents. I'm sorry that you feel the way that you do. Good luck with all your future activies. If I can help you in any way - please call.

Thanks.

John Cook

Whatever happened to the libel lawsuit against the Chronicle from that school board memnber in lafayatte? Wasn't he being sued for $1 million dollars? It's funny how that's how much he sold the paper for!!! I wonder if the paper was sold for "hush money."

I never bought the Progressive on a regular basis, as I, too was dissappointed in all of the personal attacks on the former mayor and others when they first started running here. Without Daniel, I have no reason to read it at all. That's just my choice.

I just found the blog after hearing some people at work talk about it. I can't believe what I'm reading about the Progressive and the type of people they have on staff. I for one will never buy an ad or buy a copy of that trash.

I wouldn't necessarily consider it a "Portland" paper either, but I believe that is probably the third paper that was being referenced earlier. And while we aren't the main focus, they still report on more things about Portland than The Tennessean, and they report a lot of county news that might be of interest to us even if it's not "about" us.

I had no idea they had closed the office permanently. I thought it was only a temporary situation. There is still a lot of activity there.
Anywho . . .

The Newsexaminer did have an office in Portland at one time that was manned. However several months ago they decided to pull whatever staff they had at that location. So although they occasionally report on Portland news I really wouldn't consider them a portland newspaper. The Leader could really step up and start reporting more hard hitting news like the progressive has in the past, however the progressive also needs to realize that just because it's portland news doesn't mean that's ALL we want to read about in this town. Occasional outside news that is of interest to the Portland community would be nice. We may live in Portland but that doesn't mean that's all we care about.

I thought it's whole name was the Gallatin News-Examiner, wasn't it ? Or did they change it ?

It is my understanding that the Portland office of the News-Examiner is only used for storage and is not manned.

Ever since Jane Ellen Stegmeier retired the Examiner has had very little coverage of Portland. I would definitely not consider the Examiner as a "Portland" paper.

The News Examiner - It covers the entire county, but they have an office right here in Portland which lends to their ability to cover topics important to our community.

Three newspapers ?? I know about The Leader and The Progressive....what is the other one here in Portland ?

Greg, you ought to stop by sometime and meet the new Portland editor, Scott Wilson. He lives here in Portland and he and his wife are very nice people. Jake Callis, son of esteemed city councilman Mike Callis, also works for the Progressive. Candy Webb has worked for Sumner County newspapers for years and is a great reporter with an infectious enthusiasm. It is a very experienced crew that is working for the newspaper. Stop by and get to know them for yourself.

Well I want to support good respectable folks. The people at the Portland Leader have been here for years and there is a reason for that. I want to read the news from people that live in my community.

Greg, read both newspapers every week. I do. Portland is very fortunate to be a three newspaper city. How many cities of 10,000 residents have three newspapers covering local news? More kids get their pictures in the paper, more businesses get coverage and nobody dominates the viewpoints distributed through the community. When a newspaper thinks they are the only game in town they get complacent. Knowing you have a competitor across the street that will embarrass you if you don't go to certain meetings or events is great motivation to make sure everything is covered. The game is on every week. Enjoy the rivalry. I did when I worked for The Progressive and I still do even though I'm out of the newspaper business.

I have always wanted to know how many people actually read this blog site. Can anyone give us any stats, because I know a lot of folks don't post on here. Great blog and this a good topic. The topic has given me a new perspective on what newspaper to read or not to read.

I believe I once was a victim of workplace bullying of some kind. My husband and I worked for the same co, he had been employed for them for 2+ yrs and I six months, he accepted a job from another competitior, he worked in the field, and I in the office. He left on good terms and from there after my job was unbearable. I was moved to the very rear of the building in a hole in the wall, far away from everyone and given the task of putting my job description in writting, over and over and over and over and over, prior to I was a contracts coordinator for subcontractors that were awarded contracts from this firm for jobs they did.

I continued to drive all the way to Nashville daily only to be told to change this, change that, describe it better, etc, etc, on my job description. Prior to all this I had an excellent repor with the owner of the co (my boss), monthly raises were given for performance, excellent review at 3mos, on and on. During my time with this co I saw how they treated others when they wanted them to go, office staff were instructed not to speak or have anything to do with the targeted person on company grounds!!! If you were caught doing so you would be subject to termination, (words of the boss/owner) I took the job with this co out of curiosity because of the number of office staff that had come and gone during the 2 yrs my husband had worked there prior to me, (20+ in less than 2 yrs) this is an office staff of aprox 15 people.

When my husband parted with this co my boss and I had a meeting and discussed my intentions/future plans, of which I said I had no plans on leaving that I enjoyed my job, unless he felt there was a conflict of interest since my husband was now employed for another co in the same line of work, his reply was.... he had no issues with any possible conflicts, that I had become a valuable asset to the co and the job I do is by far the best in years of others who have done it. I walked away from the meeting feeling confident I wasn't going to be his next target.......... WRONG!

After 3 continous weeks of describing my job in ultra fine details (like my boss once put it... where even an idiot could understand!) and treated by others like I had the plaque I had had enough and gave my written 3 weeks notice, at that moment I was walked to the front door and told my services were no longer needed.

A valuable lesson was learned....... When curiosity strikes, no matter how good the pay is, take up knitting!

Only the administrator can edit or delete inappropriate comments on this particular thread. If you have any concerns, you should direct them to cfmyers@mindspring.com

I am not endorsing any comments made, but I think it would be hard to sue anyone for reporting about someone being charged with a crime. (especially since the papers do it every single week) However, if a person is vindicated by a judge or jury by being found not guilty, that the person accused should have the right to have that reported as well.

Insofar as calling out a private citizen and/or business owner and publicly accusing them of being a bully, or anything else . . . I'm not as clear on that one. I think it is the general public's business if the bullying rises to the level of breaking the law (labor laws, sexual harrassment, etc.) but otherwise, I think it would be best to simply keep it John or Jane Doe.

Just my opinion.

Chuck if you're opening a strip club, I might be on my way back to town lol

I wasn't going to comment any further on here becuase I had said my peace. However the threatening of sueing for slander comment by someone who doesn't have the guts to post at least a first name is wrong. This is not slander when everybit of it can be proved by documentation and by many witnesses. I can get all of these if needed but I wont. This is also a topic to help portland because many people feel the progressive is not the kind of business we want in town. If we had a strip club opening up in town and we all started boycotting it and saying things about how we dont want those people in town, that is our RIGHT to do so.

I don't know Mr Cook or anyone at the Progressive, but Karma does suck. I remember when I opened up the first few issues of the Progressive and seen how the paper took punches at the personal lives of people in Portland. I guess we now know about some of the people behind the scenes at the Progressive. BTW I wasn't really impressed with this weeks issue of the Progressive. Even though I'm very conservative, I did enjoy reading Daniels column.

Wery well said.....thank you !

By suggesting the thread be deleted, are we condoning squashing the "freedom of speech" of those who have blogged here? As far as I can tell, there is no evidence of slander or defamation in this thread. There is evidence of a criminal history, a great deal of opinion, and representation of how people feel. None of the comments here are written with malicious intent to see somebody fired.

I agree that this blog quite frequently is used as a "slambook." However, blogging represents the mode of communication preferred by many of the younger generation in this century.

I would never condone violating one's freedom of speech and I suspect a deletion of this thread would raise more curious questions for many in this community.

Let's all tread carefully and respectfully, please.

This thread should be deleted.
"admin" should erase these personal attacks.
Why is this not being done?
Does "admin" have a personal agenda in not doing so?
I thought others on here wanted personal attacks deleted?
Is this the type of post that reflect the slogan -
"We hope you will use this blog to exchange ideas to make Portland a better place!" ?

Slander is punishable by law!

Stop this now!

Jeez, Brian, does your arm hurt this morning from patting yourself on the back? Take it easy there, Pal.

I remember well when the Progressive came to town. The paper was filled with personal attacks, and obviously had an agenda to run Mayor Calloway out of office and destroy some other people along the way. I have no respect for a publisher whose version of "reporting the news" is to hurt and embarrass people with details about their lives that the public doesn't need to know.

It's too bad that you are proud of your role in the agenda of the Progressive. I would be ashamed.

There is a lot of discussion here concerning my former employer John.

Chuck, I'm sorry you lost your job and I hope you've collected letters of recommendation from your colleagues and I hope you find employment soon. It is not fun having to look for a job. I know.

My experience working for John Cook was good. We had our differences and I didn't always agree with all of his decisions, but that is what I would say about any of my other bosses.

The newspaper business is a high stress business. I did my internship in the mid-1990's under Steve Rogers at the News-Examiner. He was always walking into the newsroom and screaming his head off at somebody. Rogers could be a bit of a nut, but he ran the best newspaper in the county. He made sure all the city council meetings in the county were covered, including Mitchellville. He made sure people were listening to the police scanners and made sure the newspaper showed up to things. Portland editors for the Examiner Ramona Gilliam and Jane Stegmeier ran circles around the old Portland paper as far as news coverage was concerned.

Like Rogers, Cook is demanding. He has high standards and wants to make sure community news is covered and that the content of The Progressive is better than its two competitors.
While the other two newspapers base the size of their paper by how many ads they sell, Cook's papers determine the size of the paper by the news. Also, in a day when corporate newspapers try to be politically correct and avoid controversy, Cook's papers report the news. It was the Progressive that broke the story of former Mayor Calloway rummaging through city employees desks. It was the Progressive that exposed former Sheriff Vandercook for corruption. Also, Cook not only gave Portland a great new newspaper in 2005, he improved the Progressive's closest competitor.

Please check out the most recent issue of The Progressive. The new team did a wonderful job. It's a great issue and still the best newspaper in town.

Deanna,
I reread Daniel's post after reading your's that suggested he said not to exercise our right to freedom of speech. I did not see that at all in his post. Instead I took it as meaning personal matters such as these should be handled one on one with the person one has the problem with. And if it's a sensitive matter, handle it behind closed doors. Didn't see anything to suggest anything was being 'swept under the rug.' This is an excellent topic for a thread, but as so many threads on here do, someone starts naming names and turns it into a bash fest of he said, she said, i heard, they said, etc. Well the blog is fun, the Progressive is just a paper, neither are the gospel so to speak. I do enjoy this blog, but there's a fine line between discussion and outright slander on here sometimes. I've kind of come to think of it as our little electronic slambook, lol.......

No, I don't think doing a story about it should be done, but I don't see what's wrong with discussing things like this on a blog....but I do understand the need to not burn bridges ( in the case of ex-employers, etc ).....but the rest of us can talk about it. People should know if someone is hard to work for, etc.....it shouldn't be covered up and kept a secret. I sure wish I had known about a boss I had once upon a time...had I known he had a super-ego and was such a jerk, I would have never taken a job with him. Seems those types always get protected and the code of silence always works for them. It's not fun to have to learn these things the hard way.

Did everyone just ignore the part about "In telling your story, please do not use peoples' names or company names. Use a generic name such as Mr. X or Ms. Y. Thanks." That's why these things never work or they end making things worse...

If it was anything to do with public money, yeah, 100 percent behind you. But we're talking about a private business. Like I said, the Ed thing is a different matter, but if a boss at McDonald's is a jerk, does that mean we're supposed to do a story about it?

I never would have thought I would have EVER heard a reporter/ journalist say we should not exercise our freedom of speech !! WOW !

Things like this should not be swept under the rug.....makes me wonder why these issues are being defended.

I won't be buying The Progressive anymore, either.

I am so disappointed.

Well Daniel you have always had a way with words. I do believe also the Ed thing is another matter in itself, however if this dan person is just a concerned citizen then they have every right to post what they have found about this person being they will be working in this community and he was never really punished for his crimes. Sorry though, you've moved away and I still live in the town that this man controls the news so it's not a behind closed doors issue to me.

Thanks for clearing up the name issue, quite frankly I never connected Dan and Danielle but then again sometimes I can be a bit blonde.

I think all this has opened up a very large can of worms, reporting is competitive, but these issues are way beyond the competitive edge. This ED guy, I have no use for in our community now knowing the past issues with him. As for John, sure innocent until proven guilty but to continue to keep this person employed only states he is just as guilty especially when all this was done on a company computer. My days of buying the progressive are over, sorry!

Just want to clear the air about a few things. I don't know who is posting the stuff about Ed Cahill, but I notice they are using the name Dan. It is not me and I feel "Dan" is not this person's real name. I'm not arguing the facts here, but just want to make sure I'm not confused with "Dan" whoever he or she may be. Also, I would say that if people on here including some of my former coworkers have such strong feelings, they need to take those to John Cook himself. Did employees feel that John was unfair at times? Yes. At the same time, we have a freedom in this country to work where we want to and we always have the option of quiting. At the end of the day, I think most people care only for the news, not what happens behind closed doors. Every job has good and bad aspects of it and i'm choosing to focus on the good. Karma will take care of the rest for all of us. No, John had nothing to do with me leaving. I left because I was presented with a great opportunity and decided to go with it. John could be unfair about some things but he was also willing to let us work with our own ideas. Journalism is a hard and competitive business and I am pleased to say that we beat our competition both at the local and county level on just about every story over the past three years. I have a feeling some of these stories posted on here are in relation to that. Like I said, I love all my former coworkers. They were hardworking and loyal and many deserved better treatment then what they received. But, I feel problems should be handled with the person in question. This type of stuff only puts a bad light on everything we worked so hard for. I feel the stuff about Ed is a seperate issue and the people of Portland do have the right to decide if past mistakes effect the future. But, I believe the stuff about how we were treated at work should be handled privately.

I don't know if these are the kind of people that I want working and living in our community.

Here is another story for your reading pleasure.
Cahill appears in court; pleads not guilty to charges
By Spencer Wix - TIMES staff writer

Ed Cahill appeared in a special session of criminal court Thursday, February 17, before Judge J.O. Bond, and pled not guilty to 13 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.

Cahill, age 41, of Red Boiling Springs, was indicted two weeks ago by the grand jury for allegedly possessing material depicting a minor engaged in sexual activity.

Cahill turned himself into the Macon County Jail last week and was released on a property bond of $5000 signed by his employer, John Cook.

Since his release District Attorney Tommy Thompson filed a motion to impose conditions upon the defendant's bond to remove surety bondsman and to require certified and secured bond.

The motion, filed on February 15, in the Circuit Court Clerk's office states that, "due to the elapse of time between the seizure of the Defendant's work computer and the indictment of the Defendant by the Grand Jury, and the continued employment of the Defendant, the State had confidence that the Defendant's employer would assure the Defendant's presence in Court."

The motion continued saying "since the posting of the bond, the State has lost confidence in Mr. Cook's ability to secure the Defendant's presence based upon his actions on February 14, 2005, when he attempted to intimidate the prosecuting officers and bragged about how he managed to get his employee out without costing a dime. The State also believes that due to the actions of Mr. Cook, the Grand Jury may need to consider whether or not Mr. Cook has himself committed acts in violation of the laws regarding intimidation of State witnesses. Also, due to the nature and content of the photographic images that are the basis of the charges against the Defendant and the employment of the Defendant as a photographer covering school activities and other local functions involving minors, the State is concerned for the safety of the community and the safety of the Defendant should he return to such functions."

The motion continued to say that conditions be added that would prohibit Cahill from attending any functions within the community involving minors, including but not limited to sporting events, beauty pageants, and other activities where minors are the primary participants.

Cahill remains employed with the Macon County Chronicle.

I found this story about one of the Progressive new employees.

Its an AP Story

Sports editor indicted for child pornography
LAFAYETTE, Tenn. (AP) - The sports editor of the Macon County Chronicle has been charged with downloading sexually explicit images of minors on his computer at work.

Ed Cahill, 41, was indicted by a Macon County grand jury on 13 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. He turned himself in Monday and was released after posting a $5,000 bond.

The indictment alleges that between April and September, Cahill possessed material depicting a minor engaged in sexual activity.

Police say they searched the newspaper's offices in Red Boiling Springs on Sept. 21 and confiscated several floppy disks and the computer at Cahill's desk.

The items were handed over to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's crime lab.

Cahill has worked at the Chronicle for more than a year. Previously he held editing jobs at other Middle Tennessee newspapers and was a correspondent for The Tennessean newspaper in 2000-02.

Contacted by phone at the Chronicle's office in Lafayette, Cahill referred questions about the case to his attorney, Eddie Taylor of Hartsville, Tenn.

Taylor could not be reached for comment.

Mr Cook is a very verbally abusive boss to all his employees. I for one was fired from him back in December and was the start of his "cleaning house project."

You're right - we probably won't lol

Well, that three people all left on the same day all on their own -- is very interesting....and very hard to believe that it was just a co-incidence. There's a story there....and I'm sure we won't read about it in the paper...LOL.

It's too bad that this happened, but what did he do that rises to the level of being a "bully"?
I think this is an interesting topic and has the potential to be helpful for both employers and employees, but so far all I've gotten out of it is that "something" happened and everyone quit or was fired . . . whichever. So far, I haven't "learned" anything from it.

Several people have commented on the Portland Progressive staff.

I just wanted to state that although it was printed in the Progressive 01/23/08 edition that Mr. Cook came in and made all of the staff changes... not true. Mr. Cook hired the new staff after the Publisher, Lisa Gregory & the Sales Rep, Lori Ragland left on their own... and on the same day!

That list is also a good one to apply to those who are seeking the Presidential nomination from us this Feb. 5 th.

I found this list online, and it pretty much describes the major serial bully I knew:

"Tim Field describes in depth the serial bully characteristics. Some of those include,

- convincing, practiced liar who will make up anything to fit the moment, excelling in deception.

- can be vile and vicious in private but innocent and charming in public.

- has plenty of glib, fine words, but no substance; mostly superficial.

- pours out what people want to hear.

- cannot be trusted, fails to fulfill commitments.

- refuses to be specific and does not give straight answers.

- adept at creating conflict, thrives on conflict.

- quick to belittle, undermine, and discredit anyone who calls the bully to account.

- knows-it-all, arrogant and haughty.

- spiritually dead while professing some religious belief or affiliation.

- mean, and petty, stingy and financially untrustworthy.

- greedy, selfish and an emotional vampire.

- convinced of their own superiority and qualities of leadership but exhibits qualities exactly opposite of leadership including immaturity, impulsiveness, aggression, manipulation, distrust and deceitfulness."

The full article is here:
http://www.picayuneitem.com/features/local_story_234125723.html?keyword=topstory

Unfortunately, a web site it references (bullyonline.org) no longer seems to be on the Internet.

This is an interesting web site from the United Kingdom. I found the "Types of Bullies" page interesting. I've definitely known serial bullies.

Not all of the advice is applicable to people in the United States, but one point the person makes is critical: keep a journal and document everything that happens. (Don't leave the journal in the office; bullies frequently look through desk drawers.) Of prime importance is to document HOURS WORKED. Your bully boss may be in violation of the Federal Wage & Hours Laws.

http://www.lifeafteradultbullying.com/index.html

Boycott John Cook, boycott The Portland Progressive

How about a boss that wants you to work 50 plus hours each week, you have to beg for vacation, thinks he owns you because he signs your paycheck. Not to mention degrading you as a person in private and in front of others, plotting fellow employees against each other, lying so often that they can't remember what lie they told in the first place, piling on unreasonable demands that have nothing to do with your job description.

The description given for an adult bully was right on. This person can not accept responsibility for his or her own actions. It should not be tolerated in the workplace. There should be stricter laws in place to week out these individuals.

Well I was starting to like the Portland Progressive after all of the negativity it brought after it first came to town. I thought Daniel did a lot to help change the image of the paper.

All I can say about this subject is CITY HALL!!

This subject could not have came out at a better time. And I'm sure I know who had something to do with this matter. But I will not go around saying any names. So don't ask! Some of us know whats going on here...Don't We.

oh lets see how about it's real reason so many people have left one of the newspapers in town in such a quick amount of time.