Here's something you might be interested in.
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A tragedy at Las Pulgas and the mysterious carpenter – Midweek and Weekend Reads
Where would the Reader be without freelance writers?
One day we pounded out 32 apartments in Linda Vista — Boom!
"The Reader has started this series of its best stories from the past 52 years — 2600 cover stories and some remarkable interior features — to help make up for the loss of its physical edition, which was once large enough to hold whole oceans of print."
That is the note we have have added at the end of our Midweek and Weekend Read stories. But one of the untold parts of these stories is that most of the Reader's long-form journalism has come in over the transom or slipped under the door. We seldom have met the authors.
Michael Waterman's story running tomorrow on the tragedy at Las Pulgas is a good example.
Waterman had sent us a story earlier in 1983 about a young surfer who had walked down from Orange County and ended up living with farmers in Santo Tomas, 30 miles south of Ensenada.
Laguna Beach surfer got hungry south of Ensenada
Six months later Waterman sent the Las Pulgas story which runs tomorrow.
The next we heard from Waterman was in 2010, When he submitted a story on a Danish group who had built a compound not far from Las Pugas.
When the Reader went all digital in January this year, Waterman sent a note thanking us for providing the chance for independent journalism.
This week's Weekend Read, to appear on Friday at 2 pm, is more mysterious. The author, who claimed to be San Diego's highest paid carpenter and to have laid over 700 miles of baseboard, is listed as anonymous in the June, 1993 story. Did we ever know his name? Did we write him a check?
It brings up the issue of our freelance writers. We have had some writers in the 50 years who stayed around and a couple who even became employees. But most of them were, in the words of the state of California's EDD (Employment Development Department), independent contractors.
In 2020, led by San Diego's assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, the state decided to go after what was called the gig economy. No more freelancers in any field. The main target seemed to be drivers working for Uber and Lyft. These gig drivers mounted a statewide vote and got exempted from the anti-gig law.
According to the early publicity accompanying the passage of AB5, freelance writers, artists, photographers were exempt.
In summer, 2024, we got a call at the Reader from the EDD saying they wanted to audit our books.
The young woman who audited us said newpapers were not exempt, but our freelancers would be considered freelancers if they proposed their stories and did not get assigned by us. That fit our mode of operation.
Now six months later we have received a notice from the EDD that none of our freelancers are exempt unless they have a business license and a list of other places they write for. Most of our freelancers don't have business licenses. The fine imposed by the state on the Reader is $50K with interest and penalties accruing. We have filed an appeal, which is supposed to be ruled on within two years.
Here's something you might be interested in.
A tragedy at Las Pulgas and the mysterious carpenter – Midweek and Weekend Reads
Where would the Reader be without freelance writers?
A tragedy at Las Pulgas and the mysterious carpenter – Midweek and Weekend Reads
Where would the Reader be without freelance writers?
One day we pounded out 32 apartments in Linda Vista — Boom!
"The Reader has started this series of its best stories from the past 52 years — 2600 cover stories and some remarkable interior features — to help make up for the loss of its physical edition, which was once large enough to hold whole oceans of print."
That is the note we have have added at the end of our Midweek and Weekend Read stories. But one of the untold parts of these stories is that most of the Reader's long-form journalism has come in over the transom or slipped under the door. We seldom have met the authors.
Michael Waterman's story running tomorrow on the tragedy at Las Pulgas is a good example.
Waterman had sent us a story earlier in 1983 about a young surfer who had walked down from Orange County and ended up living with farmers in Santo Tomas, 30 miles south of Ensenada.
Laguna Beach surfer got hungry south of Ensenada
Six months later Waterman sent the Las Pulgas story which runs tomorrow.
The next we heard from Waterman was in 2010, When he submitted a story on a Danish group who had built a compound not far from Las Pugas.
When the Reader went all digital in January this year, Waterman sent a note thanking us for providing the chance for independent journalism.
This week's Weekend Read, to appear on Friday at 2 pm, is more mysterious. The author, who claimed to be San Diego's highest paid carpenter and to have laid over 700 miles of baseboard, is listed as anonymous in the June, 1993 story. Did we ever know his name? Did we write him a check?
It brings up the issue of our freelance writers. We have had some writers in the 50 years who stayed around and a couple who even became employees. But most of them were, in the words of the state of California's EDD (Employment Development Department), independent contractors.
In 2020, led by San Diego's assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, the state decided to go after what was called the gig economy. No more freelancers in any field. The main target seemed to be drivers working for Uber and Lyft. These gig drivers mounted a statewide vote and got exempted from the anti-gig law.
According to the early publicity accompanying the passage of AB5, freelance writers, artists, photographers were exempt.
In summer, 2024, we got a call at the Reader from the EDD saying they wanted to audit our books.
The young woman who audited us said newpapers were not exempt, but our freelancers would be considered freelancers if they proposed their stories and did not get assigned by us. That fit our mode of operation.
Now six months later we have received a notice from the EDD that none of our freelancers are exempt unless they have a business license and a list of other places they write for. Most of our freelancers don't have business licenses. The fine imposed by the state on the Reader is $50K with interest and penalties accruing. We have filed an appeal, which is supposed to be ruled on within two years.