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PEORIA, IL -- The Peoria Journal Star, once a proud newspaper run by competent people, is now managed by idiots. Today's fiasco is a small but important outrage!
I pay a year in advance for the PJS to be delivered daily. I also pay in advance for USA Today, to be delivered by the PJS carrier weekdays, and the New York Times to be delivered on Sunday. It's a nice mix of media to keep up with the crazy world.
Until now, problems with delivery have been rare. Then our carrier ended up in a hospital, and the cheapskates at the PJS apparently didn't hire a replacement. Instead our neighborhood began calling the call center to report no paper. Some got the papers late, others including me didn't get them at all or got then a day late.
When I complained to the managers, whose emails I have, someone cancelled my subscription as of Oct. 12, even though my account has a credit of almost $100.
How stupid is that? How evil? It's retaliation, of course, because I complained about not getting my newspapers that I have already paid for. It's really a form of fraud. If I shoplifted something that cost as much as these papers I would be prosecuted.
The subscription cannot be restarted Oct. 15, I was told. What kind of bureaucracy runs that place?
I got form letters when I complained about this, oh, and an apology from Dennis Anderson, the managing editor. Nothing else. Nobody was sent to my house, a five minute drive from the PJS, to deliver the papers I have already paid for.
So -- what's to be done? I can read a neighbor's paper, if it is delivered. It's almost 10 am and so far has not arrived, she said.
I can go buy the papers and send the PJS the bill. I can shame them with this blog post, which I hope some tech person will send to Twitter, etc.
I will ask a friend to post it to the Facebook page for PJS retirees and other social media.
So this is the way the PJS idiots treat a loyal subscriber, and PJS retiree. Outrageous! No wonder the number of subscribers are way down.
And Gatehouse wants to run USA Today, now. Heaven help us.
UPDATE -- It's after 11 am and the Sunday New York Times landed on my driveway, but not the PJS. My neighbor just got her PJS, and we will share it. Note to managers: you are depriving yourselves of money. Also the PJS cancelled my digital subscription, which I never read, while complaining that they want more digital readers. Idiots!
-- Elaine Hopkins
UPDATE OCT. 18: A week has passed. The PJS and USA Today landed on my porch on Tuesday, but since then -- Wed. and Thus. papers on my driveway, late, and today, Friday, it's 11 am, no papers. My neighbor doesn't have hers either.
Now it's nearly 5 pm, and no papers. Here's the email I sent to PJStar managers:
Hello PJStar managers -- this is the second day this week that the PJStar didn't deliver the USA Today, and the lst day no PJStar appeared.
So -- I bought a USA Today at Krogers. The bill is attached. Send me a check.
And I want either the Friday PJ Star delivered tomorrow, with the Saturday PJStar or a credit. I would prefer the newspaper, and No I Still Wont read it on line. Nor will thousands of other subscribers including my neighbors who are as mad and dismayed as I am with your terrible business practices.
Stay tuned for the Facebook page of mad subscribers who can't get their papers delivered (maybe advertiser anger will cause some action or get the attention of your hedge fund owners), and check out my blog, address below.
-- Elaine Hopkins
UPDATE: October 19. No paper delivered today, then in early afternoon the Friday and Saturday papers and the USA Today appeared on my driveway, followed by a "distribution manager" with the same papers. He was nice, explained the PJS has reorganized the routes and doesn't have enough people to deliver the papers. I sent him to our neighbors, who also wanted the papers.
What will happen on Sunday?
-- Elaine Hopkins
Tuesday Oct. 22: The PJS failed again. No paper today and no USA Today either yesterday or today. It's time for a Facebook page about this situation.
Wed. Oct 23. PJS and USA Today came yesterday at 3:30 pm. Today, it's 9 am and no papers have appeared. Complaints can be made at the PJS Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/journalstar/
Click on 'post.' and look to the column on the right.
--Elaine Hopkins
Sat. Oct. 26: No paper today. The papers arrived late on Wed. Oct 23, arrived on Thus. and Friday (on time) then nothing today. A neighbor didn't get her Friday paper so I am going to share it with her. Crazy. Does only the squeaking wheel get the grease?
-- EH.
Nov. 4: Papers are coming, but late. I have to file a complaint to be sure to get one.
-- E.H.