EX-NEWSWEEK CHIEF NAMED NEW PUBLISHER OF THE INQUIRER AND DAILY NEWS
The new owners of The Inquirer have selected Gregory J. Osberg, former president and worldwide publisher of Newsweek and Newsweek.com, to be the publisher and chief executive officer of the paper’s parent company. A native of Paoli and a graduate of Conestoga High School, Osberg, 52, most recently was president and chief executive of Buzzwire Inc., a mobile-media company that provides content and video for mobile phones. He has previous experience running an Internet-based recruitment service. Osberg called himself a “change agent” and saw his role, in part, to challenge the company to more fully embrace the opportunities offered by the digital world. His appointment underscores the stated desire of the new ownership group to position the company to take advantage of the growing reliance on the Internet as a source of news and a place of commerce. His personal goal for the company, he said, is to position it as the most successful local media company in the country. “Someone has to be the first regional media company to figure out the successful model,” he said, referring to the challenge of moving a fading print product to a digital world which, at the moment, has proved less lucrative. “Why can’t it be us in Philadelphia?” [via PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER]
HUNTER BUSTED FOR LURING BEAR INTO GUN SIGHTS WITH DONUTS
Charles W. Olsen Jr., 39, of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, was found guilty today of illegally killing a 707-pound bear over bait during the 2009 hunting seasons, and ordered to pay fines and restitution of $6,800, plus court costs, according to Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officer (WCO) Vic Rosa, of Wyoming County. The origins of the case began when Luzerne County WCO Cory Bentzoni became suspicious when he saw a truck loaded with pastries from a local store traveling along Route 309 in Dallas, Luzerne County. “It was about one week from the opening of the statewide bear season, and I thought that something illegal might be underway,” WCO Bentzoni said. “Being that we were so close to bear season, seeing that person drive by with an unusual amount of pastries was like watching an individual go down a row of parked vehicles testing each handle to see if it would open. Something just didn’t seem right. However, as ‘possession of pastries’ is not an unlawful offense, there was no probable cause that would have permitted me to pull him over and question him, so I did the only thing I could; I wrote down the truck’s license plate number, found that it was registered to Olsen and then instructed all Game Commission personnel operating bear check stations throughout the region to notify me if Olsen brought a bear into one of the check stations.” [via PR NEWSIRE]
WAITRESS ON WORKERS COMP BUSTED FOR MOONLIGHTING AS A STRIPPER
A Quakertown waitress who told her employer she hurt her back on the job and could no longer work was apparently not in so much pain that she couldn’t shake her money maker. Christina Gamble, 43, of 2 Braxton Court, Quakertown was arrested today on workers compensation fraud charges after authorities discovered she was working as a stripper at C.R. Fanny’s Gentlemen’s Club and Sports Bar in Wilson while collecting benefits. Gamble told her employer on Nov. 9, 2007, that she slipped and fell during her shift, hurting her back, and quit before her shift ended. Her former employer, Red Robin, submitted an accident report to its insurance carrier three days later, according to the Attorney General’s Office. A year later, in November 2008, after a workers compensation judge awarded her benefits, Gamble allegedly told her doctor she could not work, and that standing and changing positions were difficult. Eight days later, Gamble was observed by private investigators working as an exotic dancer in Wilson, the Attorney General’s Office. [via THE MORNING CALL]