Don’t just sit there ...

Do something! Head out to Los Angeles to sign the petition on TellZell. Then maybe start your own: get your readers to support you and your newspaper.

It's your company, and TellZell reasons that if you want a seat at the table you need to do something. Furthermore, you should take action (even if its simply signing a petition) because its "important to our readers, to community leaders, to everybody who cares about [your area], and democracy and great news and the comics and movie reviews and -- well, everything in the paper."

The business is in dire straits. We all understand that. But you also know that the consolidation and homogenization of news-gathering even during these difficult times isn't working. So if Tribune isn't listening to your creative and innovative solutions, why not at least try for a seat at the table where the decisions are made that effect your financial interests?

So maybe you don't want to get a union going in your newsroom – though we think you should form a guild – you can sign a petition. Okay, you may feel safer doing it anonymously, but share the link with your family, friends, neighbors, community organizations – and hey, don't forget the advertisers. They have a vested interest in the newspaper's survival, too.

And yes, as TellZell warns, a petition may be ignored. But what's to lose? If Tribune ignores tens (hundreds?) of thousands of employees and readers demanding representation at the ESOP table, well then ...