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Tim Franklin resigns as Editor of Baltimore Sun

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by heyabbott, Dec 22, 2008.

  1. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    Gets a job at Indiana U School of Journalism.

    Good Luck Tim

    By a Baltimore Sun reporter
    2:12 PM EST, December 22, 2008
    The Baltimore Sun announced this afternoon that its editor, Timothy A. Franklin, will be leaving the newspaper at the end of the year and that J. Montgomery "Monty" Cook would replace him as editor and senior vice president.

    Franklin has taken a position at the Indiana University School of Journalism, the company said.

    Cook joined The Sun in 2004 as a deputy managing editor. He was then promoted to director of content development and led The Baltimore Sun Media Group during the launch of b, the free daily aimed at young adults, and this summer's reinvention of The Sun.

    "Monty Cook is a bold thinker, bringing the kind of leadership The Baltimore Sun and the industry need in this rapidly changing media world," said Timothy E. Ryan, publisher of The Baltimore Sun. "He's a true innovator who will help The Sun grow audiences in print and online."
     
  2. Joe Williams

    Joe Williams Well-Known Member

    He was one of the new breed, one of the young lions who would carry the torch deep into this millennium as a newsroom innovator and leader.

    And what does he do? He gets the f--- out, gets the f--- out NOW!

    It is over. Again.
     
  3. WriteThinking

    WriteThinking Well-Known Member

    Wow, this is surprising, to me, at least.

    It also is probably another indication of how much of the love of and motivation for this work is being lost in all the changes/dilution going on in journalism right now.
     
  4. sportsed

    sportsed Member

    Well, for what's worth, it doesn't seem like he's walking away from the business entirely. Just from the business model that's struggling through it's last days. That he's looking to educate the next wave of journalists speaks volumes to me that there is a future in this business.
     
  5. SF_Express

    SF_Express Active Member

    Yeah, I have mixed feelings about what this means as far as he's personally concerned.

    If he was leaving to sell insurance, that would be one thing. But he obviously still believes in the future of the business.
     
  6. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    The future of the business, with a company in bankruptcy, seems to be a readily definable future.

    I'm surprised the Tribune Co. didn't publicly and overtly meld all its papers into a single identifiable product, a National News paper with large local identities and bureaus.
     
  7. WriteThinking

    WriteThinking Well-Known Member

    For one of the few times, ever, I disagree with SF_Express.

    He's changing to a job in which he won't have to deal with "the business" at all.

    He's gotten out of it, and can now concentrate solely on the journalism part of it, or at least, the teaching of the journalism part of it.

    But teaching, and actually doing reporting/writing/editing work, are not the same thing. The emphasis, approach and important aspects to the jobs are entirely different.

    What Franklin has done is akin to marrying his experience/strengths/talents in a field familiar to him, with a job outside of newspapers/journalism -- just like any former journalist who takes a PR job.

    He will not be in the journalism industry anymore, though. He is in the teaching field. No doubt, that could be a good thing, probably for both professor, and students.

    But still, Franklin is moving out of the journalism industry.
     
  8. SF_Express

    SF_Express Active Member

    Yeah, I can understand that point of view.
     
  9. BYH

    BYH Active Member

    This is not a criticism of Tim, at all. But I wonder how anyone can want to teach journalism these days and encourage college students to get into this racket.

    Or maybe I'm just feeling particularly cynical.
     
  10. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    You're equating newspapers with journalism. Today, Journalism is far more than newspapers. Maybe that's the point that needs teaching and Tim can provide that understanding. Marrying the pathos and ethos of print journalism with TV and internet journalistic outlets would be a helluva job.
     
  11. WriteThinking

    WriteThinking Well-Known Member

    The best thing Tim Franklin could do for the industry now is to get together with his classes and brainstorm, making assignments and projects for/with his students, about the business end of it.

    How can we turn print revenue into digitally generated revenue? How to popularize video and podcasts, and perhaps, generate revenue out of those? What about establishing a fee scale/plan ideas for widespread charges for online content, and the implementation of them? How about establishing a digital-oriented program for training ad staffs? Etc., etc., etc.
     
  12. Leo Mazzone

    Leo Mazzone Member

    Does Franklin look like this guy?

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
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