Managed inspiration

Los Angeles Daily Journal Editor David Houston has once again admonished his editorial staff about showing up late to work. LA Observed has his latest memo telling reporters to get to work no later than 9 a.m. and then to email their editors with a summary of whatever they're working on by 9:15:

This daily email is not an option and your failure to send an email on time, or at all, is being noted.

In my experience, reporters react poorly to these sorts of arbitrary guidelines. But Houston says the reason he wants the early email updates - rather than have reporters walk over to their editors and talk in person - is to "spur deeper reporting."

I gave the email program two weeks when LAO first wrote of the morning deadlines. Shall we go for a month?