When everybody\u27s a critic: effects of a newspaper\u27s self-improvement program

This case study examined a peer-evaluation program at The Advocate newspaper in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in which employees took turns serving on committees that critiqued each day’s coverage. Their critique reports, containing both negative and positive comments on all elements of the news pages, were distributed to each employee of the news department. The purpose of the study was to examine the content of the critique reports and to determine whether the participants and the editors thought the program improved the newspaper, whether they wanted to continue it and what changes might improve it. The research methods included a survey of the news staff, a content analysis of the critique reports the staff wrote during a ine-year period, and interviews with the editors. Results showed a majority of the staff mildly favored the program, thought it improved the newspaper and wanted to continue it with some revisions. The staff particularly favored more feedback from the top editors. The content analysis indicated that staffers addressed a broad range of journalistic issues and often offered solutions to the problems they pointed out. The editors generally agreed with the findings and planned to continue the program. The findings suggested that other newspapers attempting staffwide critique programs should provide specific training in critique techniques, write detailed guidelines for conducting the critiques, focus on problem areas instead of discussing everything in the news pages, require positive as well as negative comments, encourage critics to offer solutions to problems they find, and ensure management has a strong role to use the critiques to correct repeated problems and to encourage good work

Taking Charge of Maine’s Fiscal Fortunes: Taxes are Only One Piece of the Puzzle

Are Maine’s taxes too high? This question and others continue to plague policymakers and citizens throughout Maine. This article provides the first of two perspectives on how to achieve meaningful tax reform. Josephine LaPlante suggests taking the long view, evaluating carefully the state’s tax structure and the impacts of any tax reforms. She presents a comprehensive framework for considering such changes and argues that taking charge of Maine’s fiscal house includes not only tax reform but also a reassessment of how the state provides public services to meet the needs and preferences of its citizens

Capping Maine’s Income Tax: Neglected Issues and Dimensions

Economist Josephine LaPlante’s commentary discusses Maine’s new income tax cap

School Funding in Maine: The Case for Reform

Reform of Maine’s school funding law has been a vexing issue for educators and politicians alike. It continues to dominate the education issue agenda inAugusta and will be a major focus of attention by the 117th State Legislature. In this article, Josephine LaPlante examines two broad issue areas of educational funding reform that have been the source of much debate and contention: pupil equity and taxpayer equity. Among other things, she offers some alternatives for alleviating the most pressing problems associated with those issues

The Influence of Invasive Species on Fishers’ Satisfactions

Invasives species are prevalent and widespread in North America. Outdoor recreational activities, such as fishing, introduce a point in which humans may interact with invasive species and have to adapt their own behaviors. Bigheaded carp in the Missouri River below Gavin’s Point Dam are a group of invasive fish species that were thought to be negatively relating to recreational fishers’ satisfactions. Using a content analysis and an importance-grid, we conclude that invasive species do not strongly relate to recreational paddlefish fishers’ satisfactions. Paddlefish fishers represent a small sub-set of recreational fishers in Nebraska and South Dakota. The content analysis revealed that only a very small subset of fishers’ are reporting concerns related to bighead carp and an even smaller subset relate to negative sentiments about bigheaded carp. The importance-grid analysis revealed that at both the day-level and the season-level, paddlefish fishers satisfactions are strongly related to harvest of a paddlefish and that factors relating to bigheaded carp and other invasive species is unimportant rather than detrimental. There is no difference in how bigheaded carp factors are classified on the importance grid between method of take, with is contrary to the hypothesis that archery fishers may have stronger positive influence of bigheaded carp towards fishing satisfactions given the additional targets they create. It is likely that bigheaded carp are becoming normalized to the point of leniency in fishers and thus they are not identifying them categorically as invasive species and are shifting their expectations in regard to dealing with their presence. Future studies related to the influence of invasive species on fishers’ satisfactions could consider a non-limited recreational fishery and could focus more on the archery method of take, which has anecdotally been more keen to target species like bigheaded carp. Advisor: Kevin L. Pop

Alien Registration- Laplante, Marie M. (Van Buren, Aroostook County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/32365/thumbnail.jp

Dollars and Sense: Maine State Budgeting at a Crossroads

Dollars and Sense: Maine State Budgeting at a Crossroads provides a bird\u27s eye view and analysis. The value of this approach is the capacity to take an arm\u27s length look at state finances. We hope that the broader perspective will promote viewing expenditure and tax policy issues comprehensively, not as isolated slices of the state budget pie, but rather, as interdependent building blocks of a healthy fiscal system. There is an important limitation to an outside study, however, which is actually the same as its strength: distance from the whys and whens. We do not pretend to understand every policy area as fully as specialists within government, nor to be privy to the same information. Thus, this report will be best used as a working document, to encourage and facilitate directed inquiry, open and thoughtful discussion of issues, and hopefully, decisions that can place Maine on a sound fiscal footing for the 1990\u27s.https://digitalcommons.usm.maine.edu/facbooks/1236/thumbnail.jp

Survival Following Kidney Sparing Management of Upper Urinary Tract Transitional Cell Carcinoma is Adversely Affected By Prior History of Bladder Cancer

Objective: To evaluate oncological outcomes of Kidney Sparing Surgery (KSS) for upper urinary tract transitional cell carcinoma (UUT-TCC). Patients and Methods: We performed a retrospective review of patients who underwent segmental ureterectomy or endoscopic treatment (percutaneous nephroscopy or retrograde ureteroscopy) for UUT-TCC between 1991 and 2006 at our institution. We evaluated recurrence-free and overall survival rates following KSS. There were 40 renal units in 38 patients. Three patients had bilateral synchronous disease. Mean patient age (±SD) was 69.8±12.3 years. Eighteen (47%) patients had a prior history of bladder TCC. Sixteen (40%) segmental ureterectomies and 24 (60%) endoscopic treatments were performed. Six (16%) patients received adjuvant BCG. Grade distribution was 24 (60%) low-grade, 12 (30%) high-grade and 4 (10%) Gx. The mean follow-up was 47 months. Results: Recurrence rate was 32.5%. The three and five-year recurrence-free survivals were 59.5% and 42.4%. Tumor location was predictive for recurrence (p <0.03). The three and five-year overall survivals were 91.6% and 79.8%. Predictive variables for overall survival were tumor grade (p <0.008) and stage (p <0.018) and previous history of bladder TCC. There was a statistically significant correlation (r= 0.3539) between tumor grade and stage (p= 0.027). Conclusions: KSS offers good oncological outcomes in selected patients with UUT-TCC. The tumor biology rather than the surgical approach dictates prognosis. Patients with higher stage and grade disease may be better served with a more aggressive treatment approach.Key Words: Upper Urinary Tract, Transitional Cell Carcinoma, Endoscopic, Kidney Sparing Surgery, Ureteroscopy, Percutaneous, Survival, Recurrenc

Clinical Implications of Vancomycin Heteroresistant and Intermediately Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) has proven to be a major pathogen with the emergence of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) infections and recently with heteroresistant vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus (hVISA) and vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus (VISA) infections. Although vancomycin is traditionally a first-line and relatively effective antibiotic, its continued use is under question because reports of heteroresistance in S. aureus isolates are increasing. Both hVISA and VISA infections are associated with complicated clinical courses and treatment failures. The prevalence, mechanism of resistance, clinical significance, and laboratory detection of hVISA and VISA infections are not conclusive, making it difficult to apply research findings to clinical situations. We provide an evidence-based review of S. aureus isolates expressing heterogenic and reduced susceptibility to vancomycin