Welcome to this week’s Reno News & Review.
I hope everybody saw the results of our Best of Northern Nevada readers’ survey a couple of weeks ago (the August 10 edition). That issue is a massive undertaking, with votes to tally and lots of information for our little editorial team to double-check. And every year, there a few errors that slip through the cracks—outdated addresses and the like. We ran corrections for a couple of errors last week, and there are two more corrections listed on this very page.
Whenever I find out about errors in the paper, it makes my blood boil, teeth grit, stomach toss, and nights go sleepless. We pride ourselves in hosting the largest, longest-running, most accurate readers’ survey in Northern Nevada. I always want that issue to be perfect. I always want every issue to be perfect.
Every year, we hear a lot of sour grapes from local business owners upset about the results in a category they think they should have won, or readers who think a winner or two is undeserving. This year, a lot of that bitterness was directed at the local franchise of a restaurant chain, which ran a big customer promotion to drum up votes.
I’ve got no problem with that. A readers’ survey is a popularity contest, and popularity contests are easier to win with a little campaigning. If you care about our contest, be sure to vote, and encourage your friends, family and customers to vote. Don’t just wait ’til the results are out and then write petty, snobby and mean-spirited comments on the internet—cavalierly insulting local people who work hard at their jobs just because the companies they work for aren’t as cool as yours.
And whenever I see or hear anything about us “rigging” the contest I know the complainant doesn’t actually read our paper. We keep a firm separation between editorial and advertising. Our ad reps don’t know the winners until the issue comes out, and I don’t know who advertises with us.
As I wrote in the issue, there are winners every year that make us roll our eyes, but the results are legit.