We have newsroom cakes (mostly for goodbyes.) We have newsroom pizza (mostly for election nights.) We have newsrooms sending each other food when big news breaks (mostly pizza, but the tradition is evolving.)
And now, it looks like we have newsroom CMS piñata smashings.
ProPublica's Jessica Huseman shared an image on Twitter last week.
Our design team is beating the crap out of a piñata labeled w our old CMS to celebrate @ProPublica's redesign pic.twitter.com/4UhdfP9YxT
— Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) August 31, 2017
In January, the Dallas Morning News held a smashing, too, after the audience team spent six months 90 days updating their old and new CMS.
"After a long summer living in both worlds — one of which was a lot clunkier, slower and more difficult to manage — we were over it," Amanda Wilkins, audience editor. "The entire summer, we were joking about how we wanted to give the old CMS (Escenic Content Studio) a Viking funeral or an "Office Space"–style beatdown. I'm not sure who came up with the pinata idea, but we fell in love with it."
We keep the piñata head in the audience team area of the newsroom as a warning and tribute. pic.twitter.com/W6qbJS2nRU
— Hannah Wise (@hwise29) September 4, 2017
Hannah Wise of CBC News said her newsroom did the same thing a few years ago. Wise made the piñata and colleague Marissa Nelson brought the candy.
From Sept 2013. It was the red error bar that drove everyone bananas. Filled with candy of course. @JessicaHuseman @ProPublica pic.twitter.com/iuUD94wxqz
— Hannah Wise (@hannahjwise) September 4, 2017
"I don't remember whose idea the pinata was but I do remember nobody thought it was a bad idea," CBC's Spencer Walsh said.
A veteran producer who had some history with the old CMS got the first whack at the piñata made to look like the "red bars of death" that showed up anytime the system crashed.
"I don't believe it survived a second whack."
Ah the end of our old CMS MT @yatesey: @marissanelson blindfolds @scottutting before he attacks the 'red bar' pinata pic.twitter.com/DGSuCLVqXs
— Marissa Nelson (@marissanelson) September 30, 2013
@marissanelson @yatesey @scottutting Before…1/3 pic.twitter.com/knkxtAktLU
— Hannah Wise (@hannahjwise) September 30, 2013
