Sports writer, Bristol Herald Courier (Va.)

So, what happened with the guy that was let go? What was the situation that was so shady or ridiculous?

 

I'm guessing if it was intended for public consumption, it would have been posted.

 

I'm not going to post on a message board why somebody was let go. But IN MY OPINION, WHICH IS DIFFERENT FROM J. TODD FOSTER, MANAGING EDITOR AT THE BRISTOL HERALD-COURIER, it was very shady and very ridiculous. I would think that a writer who had served 13 years at a newspaper, including through some pretty rough times (heck, I remember one stretch where our seven-person staff was down to five in a very busy season) and the writer always rose to the occasion. I don't know all the circumstances, so like I posted before, I wouldn't write off this job. But I'd be pretty damn careful.

* Edited for J. Todd Foster, managing editor of the Bristol Herald-Courier, who was kind enough to e-mail me.

 

Thank God they are going to be able to fill this one. With MG's company-wide hiring freeze, I would have thought they'd have said no. It's necessary, though. He who gets it will work hard because there's a lot to do, but it's a good gig. My boys at the BHC are a great bunch.

 

Good for Matt... am sure Bristol is getting a quality SE...

 

I don't know much about the details relating to his departure, but Bucky Dent busted his tail and, in my opinion, was one of the top three writers in the region. He's a helluva guy on top of that. He will be missed by those of us at other papers in the area who knew him and enjoyed shooting the bull on occasion. I hope he gets a great opportunity somewhere.

 

Congrats to Tabeek.

 

Second that. Bucky's a good writer, and his dismissal is a disappointing one.

 

This should be a great gig for someone who wants to come in and kick major ass. I've heard great things about their new SE hire, and the staff and the daily product are top-notch for its size -- they have a good track record, win awards are well-respected. They pump out more in-depth features than any paper in the area, cover the hell out of preps, NASCAR, the regional colleges and a wide variety of motor sports, and also do a lot of old-school investigative work and regularly break news. Plus, that whole area is sports-crazy -- pretty ideal for a young, ambitious writer who wants to build up clips fast and make some noise. I mean, having something like Bristol Motor Speedway in your back yard, can't be a bad thing, right?

As for some of the BS anonymous posts above, it might help to buy a clue before you foam at the mouth and spout nonsense. I don't think they've covered VTech and UT since the last football season, so that's a pretty clueless assessment. And from what I heard, they cut those beats for a reason. It's not like Bristol's next door to Blacksburg or Knoxville. And with the state of the industry, it was probably smart to cut them. That's a lot of saved gas, man-power, money and time. Covering UT football from a 100 miles away once a week isn't going to save a paper, while not covering preps will certainly kill it, so it sounds like they made the right move. And as for the person who was "let go," things usually happen for a reason in this world. And I hear the reason was good if you still believe in the validity and truth of the printed word.

 

Indignation is fun, isn't it? Especially when all of your posts are about the same paper. "From what you've heard"? Yeah ... heard ... right.

 

The posted opening at JJobs is for a ...

"Sports Writer With An Emphasis on Writer" ...

http://www.journalismjobs.com/Job_Listing.cfm?JobID=939768

That phrase makes no sense whatsoever.

 

It means they want a writer, not a stenographer who can write only gamers. Maybe you ought to sit this one out, Josh.