I had a new part-time writer scheduled to cover a high school volleyball game for me tonight. I met with him last week and he seemed to be eager. But when he didn’t show up to pick up his press credential, I assumed he had flaked out on me. I tried to call him, and after a couple of hours’ worth of busy signals, I got a hold of him.
Why had he not covered the game? Did he have a flat tire? Was there a legitimate emergency? NOOOOO. He was promoted earlier in the day, and was so excited about that that he just didn’t feel like covering the game. HE DIDN’T FEEL LIKE IT. As if that weren’t bad enough, he was genuinely surprised that I expected him to call me if he had decided to not cover the game.
Then he really made me angry.
He began trying to bargain for a better rate of pay! Can you believe that? We pay 40 bucks a story, and he insisted on 50 bucks (and yes, I know that’s not a living wage – it’s not really supposed to me, either). I don’t know where he got the idea that I want to give MORE money to people who don’t fulfill their promises. And it’s not like he’s a proven sportswriter who might be able to back up such a demand with good clips – he’s a complete novice who works at a title company. He promised three stories a week if I’d give him more money; I told him that I can find people who will write three times a week for the regular rate. But he wouldn’t stop. Finally, I told him that this probably wasn’t going to work out and thanked him for his interest.
What a fucking jackass. I’m not going to put up with that.