Idaho Radio News Etc.

Neither of these are directly tied to the Idaho Statesman – but are interesting McClatchy items:

• The United States Olympic Committee is trying to stop Statesman sister The Olympian from getting a trademark on… well… its own name. McClatchy filed a trademark in 2006 – but last month the USOC filed an objection. They have a Congressional mandate that gives them control over a slew of Olympic-related trademarks, of which “Olympian” is one. But McClatchy says there’s a carve-out for businesses related to the Olympic Mountains in Western Washington. Pretty bizarre story — and it seems odd that the USOC would try to stop a well-established newspaper from trademarking its own name. The USOC says it could cause confusion… but you’d have to be pretty dumb to think The Olympian newspaper was named for the Games.
• The Charlotte, NC News & Observer has hatched a new scheme: Any employee who sells a subscription will get a $50 kickback. That’s right, another attempt by a newspaper to try and fix its past instead of focusing on the future. McClatchy Watch has the memo… and a great quip comparing this scheme to Amway.