Publishers Note
Commentary by Scot Giambalvo
The Sincerest Form Of Flattery...
It’s funny how truly “small” Harrisburg can be. Why else in the
world would our impressive daily paper The Patriot-News run a section
cover story so similar to MODE Weekly’s cover story of this past August
2nd?
 I’m
personally flattered that the author thought so highly of our work to pen
such an obvious companion piece. Hey, The Patriot-News enjoyed five
additional sales this past Sunday from our office alone. So, kudos to
them, for sure.
Actually, I chuckled when I read this story.
Not because I immediately thought that The Patriot was plagiarizing yet
another of our fabulous editorial pieces, but because this isn’t the first
time it has happened, and believe it or not, it’s not always The Patriot
on the other end.
As a matter of fact,
 Harrisburg
Magazine recently presented an issue featuring the pets of local
celebrities. Just days after their issue hit the stands, our issue
featuring the euthanasing of pets by the local humane society rolled out.
It definitely looked like we were “bashing” Harrisburg Magazine’s warm and
fuzzy cover story with our gritty, replete with photos of dead animals,
cover story.
Now, this has happened enough times in the past six years of our existence
that we’ve realized it’s not about who’s copying who, it’s about how small
the city of Harrisburg really is.
The trash issue is a big one... really big. It was a matter of time before
the “daily” took a crack at it.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this wasn’t the first time they’ve addressed
the topic. After all, it is news.
I guess this publisher’s note is a bit of a humbling admission of guilt. I
sorely wanted to believe that The Patriot was “stealing” our story again,
but, alas, it’s just a fact of life that there are only so many “good”
story ideas to go around.
So, just to prove that our fellow publications don’t really “borrow” story
ideas, here’s a sneak-peek at our upcoming issues: There’s the
Mechanicsburg Naked Bowling League feature, followed by the $53 Million
Steelton Waterfront Revitalization story, and, of course, the “you saw it
first in MODE” retirement announcement by Mayor Reed complete with
exclusive behind the scenes biography. Got it everybody? :-)
Take care, be well, let me know your thoughts, and enjoy this issue.
Scot Giambalvo |
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