Plain Dealer buyouts, half dozen in sports

[Jersey_Guy]

Meant to post this last week, but the site was down. Story in the Plain Dealer listed some of the folks who took buyouts, including some longtime sports department fixtures:

http://www.cleveland.com/search/index.ssf?/base/business/1161160660289790.xml?bxbiz&coll=2

Among the most recognizable writers who will be leaving are Columbus reporters Ted Wendling and T.C. Brown, sportswriters Burt Graeff, Eddie Dwyer, George Sweda, Bob Dolgan, Bob Roberts and Roger Brown, auto editor Chris Jensen, obituary writer and columnist Richard Peery, food writer John Long, dance critic Wilma Salisbury, travel editor David Molyneaux and gardening and pets writer Suzanne Hively. The 64 who are leaving also include editors, photographers, clerks, secretaries, librarians and computer systems workers.

Not a regular reader, but I think that's one columnist (Brown), the golf writer (Sweda), horse racing (Roberts) and NBA/Cavs (Graeff).

 

[PeteyPirate]

That's a lot of people not good enough to work at the Plain Dealer.

 

[busuncle]

Graef used to be the Cavs beat writer, but I think he currently has more of a GA role. But I could be wrong.

 

[spnited]

And in other Newhouse news...5 long-time sports deskers have taken buyouts in Newark and could be done by the end of the year

 

[Chi City 81]

Paging Ace.

Ace, please pick up the yellow courtesy phone.

 

[Ace]

Paging Ace.

Ace, please pick up the yellow courtesy phone.

Screw everybody.

And I'm good enough to get a buyout from the Plain Dealer, dammit.

 

[FantasyAlliance.cm]

Great, now I won't have to hear Roger Brown tell me how racist the Indians are for trading Coco Crisp.

 

[busuncle]

Here's Dolgan's farewell column. Interesting read.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/sports/116133413931410.xml&coll=2

 

[healingman]

Buyouts ... layoffs. This is not something that's gonna make this business any better ... except, of course, for (all together now) the bean counters.

Well .. there are two desk jobs open at the Dallas Morning News if someone off the Good Ship P.D. wants to keep the steady flow of income and pack away the buyout into savings.

 

[DyePack]

Of course, six months from now we'll see the ads for some of these positions.

Maybe by that time, the fools at Poynter or E&P will have awakened, removed their heads from the cracks of their asses and started to report on this stuff. Right now, though, we can enjoy the latest essay from the current recent grad/tool recounting his job search.

 

[busuncle]

Buyouts ... layoffs. This is not something that's gonna make this business any better ... except, of course, for (all together now) the bean counters.

In defense of the PD, these buyouts were 100 percent voluntary and extremely generous. I'd be willing to venture that, adjusted for cost of living, PD reporters make more than almost anyone else in the country.

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

Here's Dolgan's farewell column. Interesting read.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/sports/116133413931410.xml&coll=2

Wow. He nicknamed Sudden Sam McDowell, then kicked his ass? He named the Dawg Pound? ... Apparently they edited out the paragraph when he wrote about how he learned humility from Bob Feller.

Come on, it wasn't that bad. I don't doubt he punched out McDowell. A lot of people did. Sam would get into beefs but he was too drunk to fight effectively and they'd easily knock him down. Dolgan didn't claim he named the Dawg Pound, he said he reported the players called the defense The Dogs.

If he had problems with humility, he wouldn't admit to oversleeping a World Series game on a bender or discuss the times he was demoted in his years at the PD.

 

[Ben_Hecht]

Bob was a great pitcher.

He remains a remarkable egomaniac.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Here's Dolgan's farewell column. Interesting read.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/sports/116133413931410.xml&coll=2

"In more recent years, I did a lot of nostalgia writing, with many of the stories reprinted in the book, 'Heroes, Scamps and Good Guys.' I conducted the Glad You Asked feature the last 13 years. "

I wrote a book review of this for the PD when it came out. Bob Dolgan sent me a handwritten letter thanking me for the review and even noted the one minor criticism I had and said if there were a future edition perhaps it could be changed. A young journalist could do worse than follow his example.

 

[busuncle]

I had forgotten about "Glad You Asked." That was my favorite feature growing up, in the days before you could just use Google to find answers to difficult questions. I submitted a question once when I was about 12. Sadly, it was never published.

 

[old_tony]

Graef used to be the Cavs beat writer, but I think he currently has more of a GA role. But I could be wrong.

One of the nicest people in the history of the world and someone I consider a real friend in the business. And a hell of a journalist. I hope he's going out on his own terms.

 

[D-3 Fan]

Bob was a great pitcher.

He remains a remarkable egomaniac.

Still is. Amazing thing is that the old man lives about 30 minutes south of me in his hometown of Van Meter (I'm in Des Moines). Just as surly and badass to the local guys as he is to the national guys [/Hi Mike Claiborne], and yet fans still adore him like a freaking god in Iowa.

 

[Ben_Hecht]

And a f'n stud, too. Just ask him.

 

[Satchel Pooch]

I think I have the record for shortest printed response to Glad You Asked: Have there ever been any switch-pitchers in the major leagues?

No.

 

[Just_An_SID]

Props to Killick. . . he had this story almost a month ago.

http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/32328/

Technically, this thread is a D_B