Phone number for Rochester Democrat & Chronicle Newspaper

June 7, 2012 5:08 PM

I need the phone number for someone at the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle newspaper who can stop the delivery person from putting HUGE ruts in our yard. We keep fixing them and he keeps making new ones. The ruts are contributing to erosion from rain that's causing problems. Low level customer reps and their supervisors keep promising us that someone from management will call and talk to us about it but they never do.
posted by 14580 to Grab Bag (15 answers total)

Why don't you go into their offices and talk to someone in person? Bring pictures of the damage.
posted by HeyAllie at 5:12 PM on June 7, 2012

This is the contact page for executives -- the only people I see straight off the bat that might be helpful are the HR director (can tell you who is in charge of this issue and give you a phone number) or maybe the publisher's office if you're super-frustrated and want to go all the way to the top. Here are their newsroom contacts -- not generally relevant but you might talk to one of the folks in administration, who again would at least be able to give you the name, title and phone number of the person you need to talk with.
posted by brina at 5:21 PM on June 7, 2012

Have you tried speaking to the delivery person directly?
posted by box at 5:23 PM on June 7, 2012

Put a visible obstacle - a rock, trash can, whatever - in the way. Ruts will stop.
posted by zippy at 5:28 PM on June 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

I used to work for Gannett (they own the Dem&Chron) and at least for our paper, customer service was outsourced to another state entirely and our circulation department was run from a regional office. And those employees, while very nice, are handling many issues at once.

Call the Publisher. It might take you a few tries to get directly to him, but keep trying. Anyone else in that office is going to be directed to tell you to call the Customer Service number which will end up sending you to Tulsa or Louisville or wherever the newest Customer Service department is.
posted by ladygypsy at 5:33 PM on June 7, 2012

check your memail.
posted by COD at 6:00 PM on June 7, 2012

You should contact a reporter at a rival newspaper (maybe someone who follows the consumer affairs beat) and explain your problem.
posted by KokuRyu at 6:11 PM on June 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

This sounds like a great job for the local TV station consumer reporter.
posted by Leezie at 6:25 PM on June 7, 2012 [2 favorites]

Does the D&C have a rival newspaper? I don't think they do, unless the City Newspaper counts.

Can you put those sticks up that everyone uses for snowplows in front of where the ruts are being made? That might help solve your problem; cut it off at the pass, so to speak.

You could also think about writing a letter to the editor at the D&C - have you seen the letters they print? I'd be shocked if yours didn't get printed, or at least got you some attention from someone who can help you out there.

Or you could just cancel your subscription. No offense, but that is not exactly the best source of news out there (although I do enjoy the Living section, and the Thumbs Up Thumbs Down on Saturday morning is always a source of amusement when I'm in town).
posted by k8lin at 6:29 PM on June 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

Ask for a circulation district manager.
posted by Occula at 8:01 PM on June 7, 2012

They have a bunch of twitter accounts, I will tweet a link to this thread! You should do the same.
posted by davey_darling at 8:06 PM on June 7, 2012 [2 favorites]

twitter solved a problem for me in minutes after multiple long calls to customer services so seconding that!
posted by Wilder at 11:39 PM on June 7, 2012 [2 favorites]

Would you consider putting up a fence? Although I'd suggest it be a good, strong SOLID fence --- if they've been told not to do this but still keep it up, they're likely to just drive right over thin, decorative fences. Alternatively, try a couple big boulders to block their access.

Just to make sure they can't say it wasn't *their* drivers, have you photographed/filmed them doing this? Whether you send the pictures to them, to a rival paper or to a local TV station, it'd have to be embarrassing to see their truck in the act of gouging holes in someone's lawn.
posted by easily confused at 3:31 AM on June 8, 2012

Put up a sign asking them not to drive there if you can't ask in person.
posted by JJ86 at 5:43 AM on June 8, 2012

Echoing box's answer. Years ago, my grandmother used to have delivery trucks roll onto her lawn when using her driveway to back up/turn around (she lived at the end of a cul-de-sac). One day, she told my uncles, who were teenagers at the time, to roll a big-ass rock over to the corner of the lawn where mis-aimed truck wheels would go. Then she painted a smiley face on the rock. It's been 30 years since a truck drove on her lawn.
posted by dendrochronologizer at 6:22 PM on June 8, 2012 [2 favorites]