Replaced or not?

I think it would be interested to list all of the writers/editors who have been hired by ESPN, Sportsline, SI, Yahoo and whether they were replaced or not.

I'll start the list

Jim Trotter, San Diego Union-Tribune, SI - ???
Jemele Hill, Orlando Sentinel, ESPN - ???
Wright Thompson, KC Star, ESPN - ???
J.A. Adande, LA Times, ESPN - ???
Mike Sando, Tacoma, ESPN - ???
Mike Huguenin, Orlando Sentinel, Yahoo - ???

 

lee jenkins, damon hack, selena roberts, nyt to si
tim brown, la times to yahoo

 

Jeff Passan, The Kansas City Star to Yahoo!

 

Johnny Ludden was not replaced at the San Antonio Express News when he went to Yahoo!

The move came in the midst of buyouts, so they just reorganized and called it a free staff cut.

 

I believe the same can be said of Mike Huguenin in Orlando

 

Unless I'm wrong, David Newton from Columbia, SC to ESPN...never replaced.

 

Looks like most of these papers are looking at this as a chance to re-organize on the cheap, which is kind of sad.

 

I believe The Star replaced Wright Thompson with a non-sports feature writer from Iowa.

 

Um, my guy friend, I took a buyout 15 months ago, as my spouse had an acceptable income and I had come into an inheritance. I was making almost $94,000 at my metro daily sports section (yep, that's a fact), where I'd held a number of beats and elite positions for 20-plus years. I dropped my subscription to that Bad Place, but was in a tire store recently and looked at a copy of the publication from my former employer. Huh, what do yhou know? I saw NO new bylines (to say nothing of any Pulitzer nominees and national APSE multiple placement holders, which, of course, I was). I know of four of us writer-type at That Bad Place who took the buyout at the same time, and were making a collective annual $454,000 _ that's just five of us, counting myself, out of many who fled. I took the buyout as a goodwill gesture to let the miserable old rag hire three rookies for my salary. I am kind to 20-year-olds, having two sons in college, and understanding Dream Street. I wanted their pals to get my old job. But, guess what? Someone else kept that $94,000 of mine and also the other thousands upon thousands!!! You young guys lose!!! Sorry about that. Hmmm, imagine that! And the circulation dropped since 111 of us took the buyout at That Bad Place. And the stock is in the dumper, whew, glad they gave us gas masks before sending us to cover the Athens Olympics. I've remained a stockholder for grins, hoping there'd be another newsroom staff cut, maybe even a massive, machete-driven slashing. But, anyway, to answer your question, none of us were replaced.

Cheerio!

May your 20-year-old, vid-casting, pod-purposeful tribe increase!!

(Us old-timers spend all our time just vid-casting for grins!!! It's kind of fun, and a lot easier than the days of being expected to break 10 stories in 10 days!)


Sign me _ Sucking up all the important freelance, at the big places, for minimal honorarium fees (or even nothing, if I'm in the right mood), simply...because I can.


T-Leaguer

 

"Ask drunk texasleaguer . . . "

 

Replacing bought-out people and replacing people who move on to better jobs are supposed to be two different things. But it's looking more and more like they're not. I'm guessing we end up with a 1-for-2 or 1-for-3 replacement rate. Or worse.

And I really, really enjoyed T-Leaguer's tale, though I'm pissed at all my dead and elderly relatives for keeping an inheritance off the table.

 

I enjoyed t-leaguer's tale too; I was commenting on the rambling, George Carlin/Sam Kinison tirade-like nature of it.

As I said on the Hinton thread: there are fewer and fewer brass rings to grasp for in this business. Big-timers leave for the Web or other opportunities, and their positions are not always filled. So then some youngster who might be at a point when a chance is all that's necessary to take a career to the point where it lasts decades, finds that the great jobs are dwindling.

Major huzzah to those who are taking the opportunity at an espn.com or a yahoo.com when it is available. They're taking the wise route and going someplace where their talent is paid well and where resources mean they will have the chance to cover the major stories without worrying about keeping their writing tight so the desk can get the local prep or slow-pitch scores in.

And sometimes their leaving, while it eliminates their job, might help save some money that keeps a youngster employed and pluging away.