Breaking News : How the Wheels Came off at Reuters

Rating:
Summary: 'Breaking News: How The Wheels Came Off At Reuters'
Review: Much like the company they write on, co-authors Brian Mooney and Barry Simpson seem to have had some grand aims with this project that are never fully realised.

'Breaking News' is essentially a compilation of quotes and opinions from Reuters employees, examining what came unstuck in the downfall of their illustrious company. Initial impressions of the book are remarkably promising; with its novelistic opening chapter throwing us right into the action, and a strong title that is both clever and intriguing. The intention to analyse the major problems that derailed this prominent global corporation are also clearly laid down. However, in the confusion of a haphazard narrative structure and endless historical details that follow - the how emphasis on what really went wrong is never fully explored. What readers receive instead is a well researched (but poorly structured) account of the history and operation of "one of the world's most famous companies" - albeit now for all the wrong reasons.

After the brief opening with a snapshot of Reuters at its grandest in mid 2001 - we are transported back in time to the humble beginnings of the company's founder Paul Julius Reuter. This gives the reader a notion that the downfall of Reuters will then be rationally pursued along a chronological structure up to the troubles of the present day. This is obviously not the only way that the text could be structured, but Mooney and Simpson's deliberate non-linear narrative consequently has the story jumping around sporadically between three centuries.

Brief chapters focussing on specific projects or personalities loosely hold the storyline together, but even the arrangement of chapters is often piecemeal. Perhaps after so much painstaking research, the authors have wanted to cram as much of their material in as possible. The end result is a fairly confusing read, forcing the reader to assemble their own notion of the crucial problems for Reuters from the many presented. This sense of indeterminacy is reflected in the vagueness of chapter headings such as "Shooting for the moon" and "The jewel in the crown".

Mooney and Simpson are both journalists by trade, and come from a position of authority having worked for Reuters themselves. This history of association with the company is very wisely not revealed until their biographies appear inside the back cover. This allows the duo to present their relatively objective dissemination of Reuters without having the audience sceptically aware of their possible bias to events from having been personally involved.

It seems though, that the authors have had difficulty in shaking some of the journalistic tendencies so firmly engrained in their style when writing this book. For example, there is a persisting tendency to sensationalise - found all the way from sub-headings such as "Hired Killer", down to tabloid styled throwaway lines like "the freefall as a tidal wave of panic swept world markets". There is also a fairly contrived attempt throughout to make every heading read like a news article - "The Man Who Rode a Tiger". It seems to be an intentional technique however, and admittedly does break the laborious facts and figures of their report down into more manageable chunks.

An editorial style is adopted to present every topic in a balanced format - frequently providing the standard two views on each point and letting the reader decide. This non-committal approach, while great for the overall objectivity of the text, prevents Mooney and Simpson from ever really telling us what they (in a privileged position of knowledge) would isolate as Reuters major downfalls. Judgement is passed on many occasions, but it comes via an annoyingly large number of quotes from anonymous executives and directors. Comments about senior management such as "you have to wonder whether they communicated at all", and "it was a gruesome way to manage" at times take the text dangerously close to descending into a slander match, but Mooney and Simpson usually manage to steer it onto new material just in time.

'Breaking News' is primarily aimed at a business audience and contains many abbreviations and technical words from the everyday language of the corporate world. Terms such as "forex" and "globex" are sprinkled liberally throughout, and add a sense of authoritativeness to the overall tone of the book. The authors make use of a large number of three letter acronyms (eg. DEC, EBS, NCR) which can slow the pace for readers that are not embedded in the business community. However, Mooney and Simpson considerately include an extensive glossary of all their jargon at the end - opening up their book for consumption by anyone who has an interest in Reuters.

Another prominent technique employed by Mooney and Simpson is the highlighting of grabs that appear when drawing out an important point. These 'cut-out quotes' are very effective in sparking interest during a casual flip through the book, and also add to the overall sense of an 'extended news article' format that the authors seem to be aiming for. At times the grabs can frustrate by repeating verbatim the sentence either directly above or below where they are inserted - but this could easily be fixed in subsequent editions with some simple formatting changes. The comments chosen for these grabs are generally fairly negative in nature eg. "It was a right balls-up from the very beginning", however their prominence is not exploited to highlight the major problems of the company. These main points of the evaluation are instead casually immersed within the body of the text, making a clear understanding of Mooney and Simpson's argument difficult to piece together.

Admittedly it would be a arduous task to identify and explain exactly what catalysts were responsible for the downfall for such multifarious organisation as Reuters - but this is the job Mooney and Simpson have indicated they will tackle from the outset. There are a few good reasons they propose such as the cultural divide between UK and US management, the lack of clear strategy from senior directors, and a general indifference to customer needs. However all of these are only offered in passing and are never satisfactorily investigated.

I would like to be more positive about this book because it is an interesting read - but the poor structuring and factually heavy nature of the information presented, make digesting it a considerable intellectual effort. Reading 'Breaking News' will undoubtedly give both professionals and the general public a deeper insight into the complexities of corporations on a global scale. Just don't expect a clear cut explanation of 'how the wheels came off at Reuters'.

Rating:
Summary: 'Breaking News: How The Wheels Came Off At Reuters'
Review: Much like the company they write on, co-authors Brian Mooney and Barry Simpson seem to have had some grand aims with this project that are never fully realised.

`Breaking News' is essentially a compilation of quotes and opinions from Reuters employees, examining what came unstuck in the downfall of their illustrious company. Initial impressions of the book are remarkably promising; with its novelistic opening chapter throwing us right into the action, and a strong title that is both clever and intriguing. The intention to analyse the major problems that derailed this prominent global corporation are also clearly laid down. However, in the confusion of a haphazard narrative structure and endless historical details that follow - the how emphasis on what really went wrong is never fully explored. What readers receive instead is a well researched (but poorly structured) account of the history and operation of "one of the world's most famous companies" - albeit now for all the wrong reasons.

After the brief opening with a snapshot of Reuters at its grandest in mid 2001 - we are transported back in time to the humble beginnings of the company's founder Paul Julius Reuter. This gives the reader a notion that the downfall of Reuters will then be rationally pursued along a chronological structure up to the troubles of the present day. This is obviously not the only way that the text could be structured, but Mooney and Simpson's deliberate non-linear narrative consequently has the story jumping around sporadically between three centuries.

Brief chapters focussing on specific projects or personalities loosely hold the storyline together, but even the arrangement of chapters is often piecemeal. Perhaps after so much painstaking research, the authors have wanted to cram as much of their material in as possible. The end result is a fairly confusing read, forcing the reader to assemble their own notion of the crucial problems for Reuters from the many presented. This sense of indeterminacy is reflected in the vagueness of chapter headings such as "Shooting for the moon" and "The jewel in the crown".

Mooney and Simpson are both journalists by trade, and come from a position of authority having worked for Reuters themselves. This history of association with the company is very wisely not revealed until their biographies appear inside the back cover. This allows the duo to present their relatively objective dissemination of Reuters without having the audience sceptically aware of their possible bias to events from having been personally involved.

It seems though, that the authors have had difficulty in shaking some of the journalistic tendencies so firmly engrained in their style when writing this book. For example, there is a persisting tendency to sensationalise - found all the way from sub-headings such as "Hired Killer", down to tabloid styled throwaway lines like "the freefall as a tidal wave of panic swept world markets". There is also a fairly contrived attempt throughout to make every heading read like a news article - "The Man Who Rode a Tiger". It seems to be an intentional technique however, and admittedly does break the laborious facts and figures of their report down into more manageable chunks.

An editorial style is adopted to present every topic in a balanced format - frequently providing the standard two views on each point and letting the reader decide. This non-committal approach, while great for the overall objectivity of the text, prevents Mooney and Simpson from ever really telling us what they (in a privileged position of knowledge) would isolate as Reuters major downfalls. Judgement is passed on many occasions, but it comes via an annoyingly large number of quotes from anonymous executives and directors. Comments about senior management such as "you have to wonder whether they communicated at all", and "it was a gruesome way to manage" at times take the text dangerously close to descending into a slander match, but Mooney and Simpson usually manage to steer it onto new material just in time.

`Breaking News' is primarily aimed at a business audience and contains many abbreviations and technical words from the everyday language of the corporate world. Terms such as "forex" and "globex" are sprinkled liberally throughout, and add a sense of authoritativeness to the overall tone of the book. The authors make use of a large number of three letter acronyms (eg. DEC, EBS, NCR) which can slow the pace for readers that are not embedded in the business community. However, Mooney and Simpson considerately include an extensive glossary of all their jargon at the end - opening up their book for consumption by anyone who has an interest in Reuters.

Another prominent technique employed by Mooney and Simpson is the highlighting of grabs that appear when drawing out an important point. These `cut-out quotes' are very effective in sparking interest during a casual flip through the book, and also add to the overall sense of an `extended news article' format that the authors seem to be aiming for. At times the grabs can frustrate by repeating verbatim the sentence either directly above or below where they are inserted - but this could easily be fixed in subsequent editions with some simple formatting changes. The comments chosen for these grabs are generally fairly negative in nature eg. "It was a right balls-up from the very beginning", however their prominence is not exploited to highlight the major problems of the company. These main points of the evaluation are instead casually immersed within the body of the text, making a clear understanding of Mooney and Simpson's argument difficult to piece together.

Admittedly it would be a arduous task to identify and explain exactly what catalysts were responsible for the downfall for such multifarious organisation as Reuters - but this is the job Mooney and Simpson have indicated they will tackle from the outset. There are a few good reasons they propose such as the cultural divide between UK and US management, the lack of clear strategy from senior directors, and a general indifference to customer needs. However all of these are only offered in passing and are never satisfactorily investigated.

I would like to be more positive about this book because it is an interesting read - but the poor structuring and factually heavy nature of the information presented, make digesting it a considerable intellectual effort. Reading `Breaking News' will undoubtedly give both professionals and the general public a deeper insight into the complexities of corporations on a global scale. Just don't expect a clear cut explanation of `how the wheels came off at Reuters'.

Rating:
Summary: The greedy and effete write history?.
Review: Reuters deserves a better researched bio (maybe obituary?)than this piece of "fluff in bellybutton" journalism.
Clearly the greedy and effete insiders (and outsiders) who steered Reuters into an unnecessary and now endangering public offerring are now getting to write a sanitised history.
Former MD G Long is dismissively referred to as 'got nothing'.
In reality, he steered Reuters through near bankruptcy (partly caused by a spendthrift N America under Renfrew)until the Monitor revenue came on flood.
Long always opposed a float as he correctly knew it would cause problems. This was reinforced when the French management were dismissed in the early 70's and amongst other matters of concern it was learnt that a pirated copy of the Reuters shareholder list was circulating in Australia.
Nearly 10+ years later Murdoch enticed Long away and cleared the way for his friend and fellow Aussie,Renfrew to steer Reuter into a public float and great wealth for themselves.
Job's bio is lightly researched and apparent ability despite his imperious manner and blunders to lead a perennial charmed life at Reuters. Was he related to Royalty as once denied internally?.Was his mentor/ "tooth fairy" his former co-worker in Brazil, the only man to ever vanish from Reuters. Was it the same agencies in Latin America who steered UPI into ownership by the Moonies?.
There was a bigger story and more disturbing causal reasons for Reuters demise.

Rating:
Summary: In-breeding
Review: This book shows why in-breeding in the Senior Management ranks doesn't work. David Ure scratching his privates in front of a female customer pretty much sums up the Senior Management attitude during the 90s.