The view from here

The Globe and Mail must be desperate to find additional revenue for their newly designed newspaper. You know, the paper that’s so small that if it’s mailed, there’s no room for a postage stamp? Their new venture is offering the top floor of the Globe building on Toronto’s King Street East for corporate events, bar mitzvahs and gatherings of that newest group, Readers No More.

While the ad say it’s the top floor, the photo shows the roof. I can just imagine the TTC drivers’ Christmas party up there this month trying to keep the barbecue going on a breezy evening after the sun has gone down at 5 p.m. And taking turns keeping warm by standing on the exact spot where editorial writer Tony Keller gets his inspiration for those long-form screeds on climate change.

Next week, the Globe will expand its rental offerings to include chairs from the newsroom for an event to be held in your own home. Please note that all chairs must be returned by noon the next day when staff begins to struggle in before heading out again to find a Starbucks. There will also be newsroom tours. Forget about the view up top, imagine seeing rows of grown people staring at screens. It’ll be way better than Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman in All the President’s Men.

If these new schemes pay off, the Globe has other ideas like paying you five cents for every used paper you bring back for recycling. And there will be a reduced subscription rate if you come in to the office, read the provided paper, and leave it behind. They’re calling the special room where that happens – the library.