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Commentary: OK, Boomer, 5 Things To Get Ready For In 2020

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michael
OK, Boomer, 5 Things To Get Ready For In 2020

By Michael Leppert
MichaelLeppert.com

I am not a baby boomer. Not technically. All four of my older siblings are though, which I enjoy pointing out. I am just young enough to say “OK Boomer” to people who need to hear it and am clearly old enough for people to say it to me.

Don’t know what “OK Boomer” means? Then you probably are one. Because I’m a good sport, I’ll clarify it. “OK Boomer” is a catchphrase, sometimes a meme, that younger generations use to dismiss attitudes stereotypically attributed to the baby boomer generation. It is also an expression used toward an older person, say about my age, who just might not be as with it as he should be.

We used to call it the generation gap. Today, it is more often generically referred to as “ageism.” I don’t care for today’s whiny perspective much. I am, and always have been, a believer that older generations certainly have an obligation to teach, but they also have one to learn. And the “ism” part of this one is as snowflakey as just about anything.

2019 was the OK Boomer year. In 2020, it will likely continue.

Here’s a shortlist of exactly how.

1. Climate change. For those of you claiming that it is a hoax, OK Boomer. Seriously, who under the age of 55 actually still needs convinced that our planet’s climate is changing and human behavior is the reason? If you are the one, contact me and I will give you a smidgen of the evidence–assuming you have a truck to haul it away. Let the fantasy of this being someone else’s fault and responsibility to try and fix have it’s funeral in 2020, because trust me, this fantasy is dead.

2. Transit options are a waste. Indianapolis had a setback in the world of transit this week, when Blue Indy, the electric car rental service, announced it would discontinue service in the state capital. Resolving the use of its controversial parking spaces and charging stations will take a while to figure out. However, only a Boomer would use this failure to dissuade us from the next legitimate idea to find a more modern, efficient and sustainable way to move people. Our dependence on car ownership and driving our own cars everywhere we go is getting old. Sort of like fighting better transportation ideas is. Like it or not, Boomer, 2020 will only see growing support for new ideas here.

3. Your iPhone’s flashlight is on, Boomer. Admit it, nine out of 10 times a person is spotted obliviously walking around with their flashlight on, it is someone born before 1980. Now, that includes me and my much younger wife, but I almost never see a young person doing this. I spotted a teenage girl on the sidewalk committing this faux pas yesterday.  Saying “hey Boomer, your flashlight is on,” to her was a holiday treat for me.

4. Gun rules and laws will get stricter. That’s right, Boomer, America is turning a corner on this one. The school shooting generation has grown in number and age, their patience has shrunk, and younger people simply disagree with the thought that more guns make anyone safer. The National Rifle Association ironically seems like a wounded duck, and 2020 will continue this trend. Congress passed a spending bill that will finally fund the study of gun violence, and science will find that a different course is necessary. Science trumps propaganda every time, eventually.

5. Religion is struggling. Data is bringing bad news to all kinds of churches, temples, and mosques: fewer and fewer Americans are active there. While this is a troubling sign for the spiritual health of our nation, only those who lack faith would be overly pessimistic about the future of our individual souls. Boomer, we need you on this one. We need you to encourage your religion to set a better example for the youngsters. No religion I know condones cruelty. The rift caused by the Christianity Today editorial last week is not the greatest recruitment tool.

Baby boomers are most commonly referred to as Americans who were born between 1946 and 1965. Thankfully, it does not include me (barely). Even if it did, I would find the group difficult to defend, as a group. Boomers really need to show more of an interest in tomorrow than yesterday.

But this really isn’t about that sharp definition though. It is more about the state of mind of older people who don’t understand new perspectives on a much longer list than I give you today. OK Boomer, does any of that sound familiar?

FOOTNOTE: Michael Leppert is a public and governmental affairs consultant in Indianapolis and writes his thoughts about politics, government and anything else that strikes him at MichaelLeppert.com.

Newspapers Fact Sheet

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Newspapers Fact Sheet

By Pew Research and Center For Journalism & Media

MORE FACT SHEETS: STATE OF THE NEWS MEDIA

Newspapers are a critical part of the American news landscape, but they have been hit hard as more and more Americans consume news digitally. The industry’s financial fortunes and subscriber base have been in decline since the mid-2000s, and website audience traffic, after some years of growth, has leveled off. Explore the patterns and longitudinal data about U.S. newspapers below.

Audience

The estimated total U.S. daily newspaper circulation (print and digital combined) in 2018 was 28.6 million for weekday and 30.8 million for Sunday, down 8% and 9%, respectively, from the previous year.

Weekday print circulation decreased 12% and Sunday print circulation decreased 13%.

(Note that in this fact sheet and in the chart below, data through 2014 is from Editor & Publisher, which was published on the website of the News Media Alliance (NMA), known at the time as the Newspaper Association of America (NAA). Since then, the NMA/NAA no longer supplies this data, so the Center determined the year-over-year change in total circulation for those daily U.S. newspapers that report to the Alliance for Audited Media and meet certain criteria, as detailed in the note of the chart below. This percentage change was then applied to the total circulation from the prior year – thus the use of the term “estimated total circulation.”)

 Estimated circulation Of U.S. daily newspapers

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Total circulation of U.S. daily newspapersWeekdaySundayWeekday (estimated)Sunday (estimated)19401950196019701980199020002010020 M40 M60 M80 M

Note: To determine totals for 2015 onward, researchers analyzed the year-over-year change in total weekday and Sunday circulation using AAM data and applied these percent changes to the previous year’s total. Only those daily U.S. newspapers that report to AAM are included. Affiliated publications are not included in the analysis. Weekday circulation only includes those publications reporting a Monday-Friday average. For each year, the comparison is for all newspapers meeting these criteria for the three-month period ending Dec. 31 of the given year. Comparisons are between the three-month averages for the period ending Dec. 31 of the given year and the same period of the previous year.

Source: Editor & Publisher (through 2014); estimate based on Pew Research Center analysis of Alliance for Audited Media data (2015-2018).

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Digital circulation is more difficult to gauge. Three of the highest-circulation daily papers in the U.S. – The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post – have in recent years not fully reported their digital circulation to the Alliance for Audited Media (AAM), the group that audits the circulation figures of many of the largest North American newspapers and other publications. Two of these papers report such digital circulation elsewhere: The New York Times in their financial statements and The Wall Street Journal in reports available on the Dow Jones website. (The Washington Post does not fully report digital circulation in any forum.) But because they may not be counted under the same rules used by AAM, these independently produced figures cannot easily be merged with the AAM data.

Taking these complexities into account, using only the AAM data, digital circulation in 2018 is projected to have risen, with weekday up 6% and Sunday up 8%. According to the independently produced reports from The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, both companies experienced substantial gains in digital circulation in the past year: 27% for the Times and 23% for the Journal, on top of large gains in 2017. If these independently produced figures were included with the AAM data in both 2017 and 2018, weekday digital circulation would have risen by 17%.

The addition of these figures would also change the overall picture for combined print and digital circulation. The digital boost was driven by these two large, national brands would still result in an overall drop in circulation year over year, but a smaller one: Overall weekday circulation would have fallen by 1% in 2018 rather than 8%.

Unique Visitors Of Newspaper Websites

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Average monthly unique visitors to the top 50 U.S. newspapers by circulationQ4 2014Q4 2015Q4 2016Q4 2017Q4 201802.5 M5 M7.5 M10 M12.5 M

Note: For each year, the average traffic for each website for October/November/December was calculated; the data point represents the overall average of those numbers. An analysis is of the top 49 newspapers by average Sunday circulation for Q3 2016, Q3 2017 and Q3 2018, according to Alliance for Audited Media data, with the addition of The Wall Street Journal. For each newspaper, the Comscore entity matching its homepage URL was analyzed.
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, US, Unique Visitors, October-December 2014-2018.

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Gauging digital audience for the entire newspaper industry is difficult since many daily newspapers do not receive enough traffic to their websites to be measured by Comscore, the data source relied on here. Thus, the figures offered above reflect the top 50 U.S. daily newspapers based on circulation. In the fourth quarter of 2018, there was an average of 11.6 million monthly unique visitors (across all devices) for these top 50 newspapers. This is nearly the same as in Q4 2017 (11.5 million) and 2016 (11.7 million); following two years of growth from 2014 to 2016, newspapers’ website traffic has leveled off. (The list of top 50 papers is based on Sunday circulation but also includes The Wall Street Journal, which does not report Sunday circulation to AAM. It also includes The Washington Post and The New York Times, which make the top 50 even though they do not fully report their digital circulation to AAM. For more details and the full list of newspapers, see our methodology.)

Visit Duration Of Newspaper Websites

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Average minutes per visit for the top 50 U.S. newspapers by circulationQ4 2014Q4 2015Q4 2016Q4 2017Q4 20180123

Note: For each year, the average minutes per visit for each website for October/November/December was calculated; the data point represents the overall average of those numbers. The analysis is of the top 49 newspapers by average Sunday circulation for Q3 2016, Q3 2017 and Q3 2018, according to Alliance for Audited Media data, with the addition of The Wall Street Journal. For each newspaper, the Comscore entity matching its homepage URL was analyzed.
Source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, US, Average Minutes Per Visit, October-December 2014-2018.

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Average minutes per visit for the top 50 U.S. daily newspapers, based on circulation, is about 2 1/3 minutes in Q4 2018. This is down 5% from Q4 2017.

Economics

The total estimated advertising revenue for the newspaper industry in 2018 was $14.3 billion, based on the Center’s analysis of financial statements for publicly traded newspaper companies. This is down 13% from 2017. Total estimated circulation revenue was $11.0 billion, compared with $11.2 billion in 2017.

Estimated Advertising And Circulation Revenue Of The Newspaper Industry

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Total revenue of U.S. newspapers (in U.S. dollars)AdvertisingCirculationAdvertising (estimated)Circulation (estimated)196019701980199020002010020 B40 B60 B

Source: News Media Alliance, formerly Newspaper Association of America (through 2012); Pew Research Center analysis of year-end SEC filings of publicly traded newspaper companies (2013-2018).

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

In the chart above, data through 2012 comes from the trade group formerly known as the Newspaper Association of America (NAA), now known as the News Media Alliance (NMA). Data from 2013 onward is based on the Center’s analysis of financial statements from publicly traded U.S. newspaper companies, which now number seven and account for more than 300 U.S. daily newspapers, from large national papers to midsize metro dailies and local papers. From 2013 onward, the year-over-year percentage change in advertising and circulation revenue for these companies is calculated and then applied to the previous year’s revenue totals as reported by the NMA/NAA. In testing this method, changes from 2006 through 2012 generally matched those as reported by the NMA/NAA; for more details, see our 2016 report.

Share Of Newspaper Advertising Revenue Coming From Digital Advertising

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Percent of newspaper companies’ advertising revenue coming from digitaladvertising20112012201320142015201620172018010203040

Source: Pew Research Center analysis of year-end SEC filings for publicly traded newspaper companies that break out digital advertising revenue for each year.

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Digital advertising accounted for 35% of newspaper advertising revenue in 2018, based on this analysis of publicly traded newspaper companies. The portion stood at 31% in 2017 – but at 17% in 2011, the first year it was possible to perform this analysis.

Newsroom investment

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment Statistics, 37,900 people worked as reporters, editors, photographers, or film and video editors in the newspaper industry in 2018. That is down 14% from 2015 and 47% from 2004. Median wages for editors in 2018 were about $49,000, while for reporters, the figure was about $35,000.

Employment In Newspaper Newsrooms

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Total number of newsroom employees in the newspaper sector20042006200820102012201420162018020k40k60k80k

Note: The OES survey is designed to produce estimates by combining data collected over a three-year period. Newsroom employees include news analysts, reporters, and correspondents; editors; photographers; and television, video, and motion picture camera operators and editors.
Source: Pew Research Center analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics data.

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Find out more

This fact sheet was compiled by Senior Researcher Michael Barthel.

Read the methodology.

Find more in-depth explorations of U.S. newspapers by following the links below:

Ivy Tech Plans Express Enrollment Day January 8

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Spring classes at Ivy Tech are just around the corner and the college is planning an Express Enrollment Day to help both new and continuing students get enrolled in the classes they need. The event will be Wednesday, Jan. 8, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the main campus, 3501 N. First Avenue, Evansville.

The free event is designed to assist interested individuals in completing the enrollment process, potentially all in one day, to start classes on Monday, Jan. 13.

The Evansville campus is located at 3501 N First Avenue, Evansville, IN.

At the event students will have the opportunity to:

  • Complete the FAFSA or have their financial aid questions answered.  Also, students can learn more about aid such as grants, scholarships and loans.
  • Complete their FYIvy
  • Determine what assessments may be needed to enroll.
  • Meet with an academic advisor.
  • Register for classes.

Students should bring to Express Enrollment:

  • Government issued ID
  • Tax information for 2017 (Ivy Tech code 009917)
  • SAT/ACT/PSAT scores or High School and/or College Transcripts – if available
  • An idea of what he/she would like to study

Ivy Tech also offers a second spring start, with classes starting March 16.

 

New Nursing Home Ombudsman for Area 16

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New Nursing Home Ombudsman for Area 16
Joyce will be serving the counties of Gibson, Posey, Perry, Spencer, and Warrick. Joyce was previously an Options Counselor with SWIRCA & More before she retired in the summer of 2019 with 14 years of service.
The Indiana Long-Term Care Ombudsman program advocates for residents of long-term care facilities, which includes nursing facilities and licensed assisted living facilities.
The primary purpose is to promote and protect the RESIDENT RIGHTS guaranteed to residents under federal and state law.
The Ombudsman is resident directed. You can reach Joyce by contacting her by phone or e-mail listed below. Also, please note that the Vanderburgh County Ombudsman continues to be Michelle Motta at VOICES. She can be reached at 812-423-2927 or mmotta@voicesinc.info.

January is Glaucoma Month

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Every New Year, you make a list of things you will do to stay healthy so you can feel your best. But did you realize that feeling your best includes seeing your best, too? January is Glaucoma Awareness Month – the perfect time to spread the word about the disease. So, this year, add learning about glaucoma to your list! Your eyes will thank you for it.

Glaucoma can cause vision loss and blindness which can’t be reversed. Glaucoma causes fluid to build up in your eye, causing pressure that can damage the optic nerve, which transfers visual images to your brain. But, you can save your vision with early detection and treatment.

  1. There are no early symptoms. Glaucoma often has no early warning signs. No pain. No discomfort. No blurry vision. Don’t wait for symptoms to visit your eye doctor!
  2. In the United States, half the people who have glaucoma don’t know they do. Nearly three million Americans have glaucoma. Half don’t know it. Lack of awareness and the absence of symptoms are preventing people from detecting the disease early. You can change that! Find out if you have glaucoma.
  3. There is only one way to know if you have glaucoma. Getting a comprehensive dilated eye exam is the only way to find out if you have glaucoma. During the exam, an eye care professional places drop in your eyes to widen the pupils and look for signs of the disease in the optic nerve.
Now that you’ve got the facts about glaucoma, make a resolution for healthier vision. Schedule a comprehensive dilated eye exam today and encourage your friends and loved ones to do the same!

Katrinka Rynder SWIRCA & More New Board of Directors Member

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Katrinka Rynder is a member of the marketing and admissions team at the Evansville Protestant Home. Her position at the Evansville Protestant Home is her first position in long-term care ever.
It was her dream to work in such a role. Katrinka has a love for the elderly. She feels she has found her forever home at EPH.
Katrinka moved to Evansville less than 5 years ago. Since that time she has emerged herself in the city and all, it has to offer.
She is active in Junior League, ANEW, Southwestern Indiana Chamber of Commerce, Gerontology, and SWIRCA & More.
When she is not out networking or volunteering, she loves to spend time outside hiking, playing golf, or working in her flower gardens.

Gov. Holcomb Public Schedule for January 6

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Below find Gov. Eric J. Holcomb’s public schedule for January 6, 2020.

 

Monday, January 6: 16th Annual Statehouse Prayer Service

WHO:              Gov. Holcomb

Chief Justice Loretta Rush

Speaker of the House Brian Bosma

Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray

DCS Director Terry Stigdon

 

WHAT:            The governor will give remarks.

 

WHEN:            12:00 p.m., Monday, January 6
WHERE:          Indiana Statehouse – South Atrium

200 W. Washington St.

Indianapolis, IN 46204

State Rep. Ron Bacon Retires From House Seat

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State Rep. Ron Bacon Retires From House Seat

Chandler, Ind. (Jan. 3, 2020) – State Rep. Ron Bacon (R-Chandler) announced his retirement as the state representative for House District 75 at the end of his term this year.

Bacon was elected in 2010 and has served House District 75, which includes portions of Warrick, Pike and Spencer counties for the past decade.

Major initiatives Bacon has been working over the past 10 years:

·       Health

o   Protecting mothers and their unborn

o   Keeping the dignity of fetal remains

o   Ensuring licensure and regulations for the medical and health fields are updated

o   Combatting the drug epidemic

o   Keeping high school and college students healthy

o   Tackling various mental health issues

o   Expanding health care to telehealth

o   Addressing vaping and e-liquid concerns

·       Safety

o   Keeping Hoosiers safe in any mode of transportation

o   Keeping student-athletes safe

o   Streamlining Emergency Response

o   Roadside maintenance

o   Clarifying and updating hunting and gun laws

·       Environment

o   Protecting Hoosier homes from mine subsidence

o   Promoting a green way to produce energy

o   Tackling local sewage and water issues

o   Standing up to bullying

·       Education

o   Fairness for teachers in evaluations

o   Promoting teacher pay raises

o   Providing teacher scholarships

·       Government

o   Cutting red tape

o   Tax cuts across multiple sectors including business and agriculture

o   Ensuring fiscal responsibility and paying off the state’s debt without accumulating more

o   Bringing broadband to rural Indiana

o   Protecting religious freedom

o   Infrastructure funding for road and bridge improvements

“It has been an honor to serve House District 75 for the past 10 years,” Bacon said. “I will continue serving the great Hoosiers living in my district until the end of my term this year. I have fought allergies for decades and due to my increased sensitivity to mold and mildew, my physicians have recommended I spend less time in the Statehouse, which is a contributing factor to my allergies. I have a passion for public service, so I plan on continuing to serve at the local level.”

Bacon intends to run for a local elected position. This will not be the first local position Bacon has run for as he has been on the county council and was coroner before taking on the state representative position.

Vanderburgh County Recent Booking Records

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https://www.vanderburghsheriff.com/jail-recent-booking-records.aspx

Commentary: America, Through Others’ Eyes

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Commentary: America, Through Others’ Eyes

By John Krull
TheStatehouseFile.com 

PARIS, France – Everyone is polite.

Most people I’ve encountered in Europe over the holiday season don’t ask an American traveling here about the anger, discord, and dysfunction plaguing U.S. politics. Those that do want to talk about it raise the subject gently, almost with hesitation.

Early in my trip, here in Paris, I chatted with a man at a café. His family, like mine, had wandered off to enjoy the Parisian evening while we each nursed after-dinner drinks and waited for the bill.

After we shared a few introductory commiserations, I asked him how the rail strike had affected life here. He said it just made everything harder over the holidays. The streets and sidewalks were more crowded, which meant getting everywhere – particularly by car – became more difficult and took longer.

I asked if the French government and the strikers were going to be able to get together to solve the problem.

He shrugged, then said, “probably not soon.”

There was too much ego involved, he said. Too many people on both sides looking for a victory rather than a solution.

He shrugged again.

Then he asked me, at first gently, about U.S. politics. He wanted to know specifically about the impeachment proceedings and more generally about President Donald Trump.

As he talked, he grew more voluble. He said the U.S. president seemed to be angry all the time, that he started and stopped trade wars and broke agreements without much notice or thought and that he didn’t seem to be willing to work with anyone.

Were things going to settle down again at some point?

This time, I shrugged and said, “probably not soon.”

And for the same reasons that the rail strike won’t be settled quickly.

Too much ego. Too much focus on wins, not solutions.

Then we shrugged at the same time, and chuckled.

Such is life.

On the train from Salzburg to Munich, my wife and I sat next to a couple from Singapore. They had been skiing in the Austrian alps and were headed to Munich to fly home.

We chatted about our children and our lives. Their oldest was studying in London. Our oldest just had wrapped up a semester studying in Scotland.

We traded information about our careers. The husband worked in finance and traveled a great deal in Asia and elsewhere in the Pacific for work.

When he found out I was a columnist who wrote about politics, he lifted an eyebrow. After a bit, he inquired – again, gently – about the American political scene. He asked about the impeachment but, again, more generally about the volatility in U.S. politics.

Were things ever going to settle down?

Once more, I shrugged.

We’re entering an election year, I told him. That’s rarely a time for American political leaders to find ways to come together.

I asked him about how the instability – particularly the president’s on-again, off-again trade war with China – had affected people in his part of the world.

“It’s done a lot of damage – hurt a lot of people,” he said.

No one knows what to expect from the United States now, he explained.

The American economy was the largest in the world, he said. What happens in the United States affects everyone everywhere, he added.

Then he asked, do Americans understand that?

I shrugged again.

Some do.

Others don’t.

The day after that chat on the train, I visited the Nazi concentration camp at Dachau.

I was struck by a bronze plaque at the entrance to the memorial expressing gratitude to the United States for liberating the camp, its prisoners and, by extension, humanity from the grip of Nazi tyranny. The language on the plaque was dignified, but heartfelt.

That’s how the world saw us 75 years ago.

As leaders.

As liberators.

Now?

Not so much.

FOOTNOTE: John Krull is director of Franklin College’s Pulliam School of Journalism and publisher of TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.

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