Technology, the devil.

I was talking to a recent J-school grad who just got her first Real Job at a public relations firm in Boston (owned by some conglomerate based out of California, naturally). She was telling me about her own office, her leather chair and her view overlooking City Hall. Then she said something that really shocked me: The people in the "newsroom," editors included, don't have access to the Internet. Apparently, it's a company-wide policy and an industry standard, something to increase productivity by keeping employees away from sites like this. Or this. But these flacks are writing press releases and "breaking news stories" according to the firm's web site. Don't they need to check facts, find sources and generally stay informed about the world like the rest of us? How can they be cut off from the Internet? As another friend pointed out, even aside from professional concerns, it boosts morale to have a break every so often, to check sports scores or read the news or The Onion. I can't imagine working without the Internet. I had no idea any corporation, much less a PR firm that issues press releases every day, would prohibit employees from using the it. That's like saying they can't use the phone. Or those horseless carriages.
And I thought newspapers were slow to change.