Ever since Lee Abrams began memoing his future co-workers all over the Tribune Company with his ideas on Innovation!, I've been getting emails that skewer his ideas as less than innovative and his background in radio as not especially predictive of prime innovation. Here's an example that came in after Abrams' latest missive yesterday:

As a 35-year veteran of radio, I observe this:

You know how radio sucks and has sucked for decades? The wacky morning zoo people? The Howard Stern wannabees? The tight playlists?
The no-talent sports talk guys?

This is what the Trib's new innovation guy did for a living.

He did come up with some good ideas. But you gotta believe he was at least partially responsible for the s**t.

Get ready for the Los Angeles Times Morning Zoo. With wacky editors putting wacky stories on the new wacky page one.

Get ready for Metro Maniacs in the Morning. The Business Bimbos! And sports. Think of what we can do with a hockey puck and a horse!!!!!

Lord help us all.

Jeff Prescott,
La Jolla

While we're on the subject, my un-profound biases are that innovation is essential to the success of any business, especially the news business these days. Smart innovation by smart, informed people is good. Innovation for the sake of innovating is usually not smart.