http://cbs2chicago.com/sports/jay.mariotti.quits.2.803995.html

Star Sports Columnist Says He Wanted Out Because Paper Can't Compete On Web
CHICAGO (CBS) ? In a bombshell announcement in the world of sports journalism, star columnist Jay Mariotti has abruptly resigned from the Chicago Sun-Times.

Only after taping his last ESPN TV from the Sun-Times newsroom today did Mariotti open up.

Mariotti told CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker that he decided to quit after covering the Olympics in Beijing because newspapers are in serious trouble, and he did not want to go down with the ship.

"It's been a tremendous experience, but I'm going to be honest with you, the profession is dying,'' Mariotti said, "I don't think either paper [Sun-Times or Chicago Tribune] is going to survive.

"To showcase your work ... you need a stellar Web site and if a newspaper doesn't have that, you can't be stuck in the 20th century with your old newspaper.''

Mariotti blamed the scandal-plagued past at the paper for its downfall. Former top execs Conrad Black and David Radler looted the company for millions of dollars, and both were sentenced to jail. The paper's ad revenues have been plummeting and more layoffs are expected.

What do you think of Jay's resignation and his assertion that newspapers are dying? | Read what others have to say.

Mariotti's comments sparked a pointed response from his former employer.

Sun-Times Editor Michael Cooke said in an e-mail to CBS 2: "That's Jay's opinion. He has plenty of them. But the facts, of course, say something different. I'm going with the facts. Well, it's turning nasty ... and that's typical of Jay to throw a bomb on the way out of a place that cared for him, nurtured him, paid him well for 17 years.

Cooke said he learned of Mariotti's resignation in an e-mail, that said, simply: "I quit.'' Mariotti had recently signed a new contract with the paper.

"The reason Mariotti showed up at the Sun-Times 17 years ago was because the paper had the best sports pages in town. That was true then, and it's true now,'' Cooke said.

"And as in all sports, when the star leaves, some other young star-to-be skates on to the ice. The Sun-Times has a deep bench of talent, and we'll be using that depth.

"I am not hearing from grief-stricken fans,'' Cooke said.

Cooke pointed to e-mails that he received from readers, including this one: "I wish to inform you that due to recent developments on the Jay Mariotti front, I will now read your newspaper. In fact, I picked one up on the way to work this morning. Not a half-bad rag, I must say. Bully on you."

CBS 2 Chief Correspondent Jay Levine reports that Mariotti's resignation came on a day the Sun-Times hinted at new cuts on top of nearly 30 people who resigned or were fired earlier this year - and two weeks after the rival Tribune cut 80 newsroom jobs.

"I don't know if either paper in Chicago is gonna survive," Mariotti said. "I think all sports journalism is gonna be done on the Internet."

Charles Madigan now teaches journalism at Roosevelt University after 25 years of writing for the Tribune. He says those new publications can't afford expensive columnists.

"I think his future is on the Internet," Madigan said. "I think he made that decision for himself, but I see all kinds of niche publications - different kinds of publications aimed at different kinds of readers."

But others feel losing a drawing card like Mariotti will hurt the struggling Sun-Times.

"I don't think it necessarily spells the end of the Sun-Times," said Ann Sapir, Crain's media writer. "I don't think one columnist moving online means that, but given everything that's happening in the industry, the Sun-Times is on the edge."

As for the future of the Sun-Times, Cooke says "indications are, we'll be ok."

Others aren't so sure.

"I would say good-bye Jay and I would toast the people who decided to stay," Madigan said. "They're doing difficult work under difficult circumstances, but who knows where it gonna lead?"

Mariotti said he plans to pursue opportunities on the Web, and continue his regular appearances as a panelist on ESPN's "Around the Horn."

Mariotti joined the Sun-Times in 1991. He made headlines in 2006 when Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen went into a profanity-laced tirade against him before a game against St. Louis. Guillen later apologized.

Mariotti also got into a public spat this year with fellow Sun-Times staffers after writing a column that said he was Guillen's only critic in the Chicago media. Behind the scenes, Mariotti often clashed with colleagues and management, but was widely regarded as one of the most popular columnists among readers of the paper. He made a career of stirring the pot in a sports-crazed town.

The irony is that Mariotti's shift to cyberspace comes as the Sun-Times and everyone else - print, radio and TV is doing the same thing. It's the next battleground, the new frontier for all of us. Mariotti's beef with the Sun-Times is that it wasn't moving fast enough; something the Sun-Times denies, but which if true, would be an even greater threat to its survival than the defection of its star columnist.

8/28/2008 12:29:51 PM

for real though print media has been on its way out

8/28/2008 12:34:18 PM

now if only he would quit ESPN

8/28/2008 12:41:59 PM

i'm fully embracing the day when newspapers are no more.

8/28/2008 12:43:17 PM

what if someone likes to read newspaper articles from the internet?

8/28/2008 12:46:07 PM

You kind of missed the point of his resignation

Quote :

""To showcase your work ... you need a stellar Web site and if a newspaper doesn't have that, you can't be stuck in the 20th century with your old newspaper.''"

[Edited on August 28, 2008 at 12:48 PM. Reason : w]

8/28/2008 12:46:58 PM

the only papers i read now are through the internet anyways...

8/28/2008 12:49:03 PM

i mostly read WSJ, NYT, and WP

8/28/2008 12:52:37 PM

I still get the Denver Post, but spend about 2 minutes on the Sports page. Only time I really read it as at lunch or on the toilet

8/28/2008 12:54:32 PM

This guy is a huge d'bag and I hope espn doesn't pick him up to write for them full time.

ESPN.com is a shitty clusterfuck as is, they don't need to add him into the mix.

8/28/2008 2:11:58 PM

chicago says: good riddance

fwiw the sun times is shit compared to the tribune

[Edited on August 28, 2008 at 2:15 PM. Reason : .]

8/28/2008 2:14:51 PM

i love mariotti
he would fit right in with the assholes of TWW. we should send him an invite. hell, ill foot the 5 bucks for his user name

8/28/2008 2:44:53 PM

Luckily the only paper I read will never die, The Weekly World News. Plus, if it does die, it will come back to life as some sort of vampire/mummy man hybrid.

8/28/2008 2:48:37 PM

Quote :

"chicago says: good riddance fwiw the sun times is shit compared to the tribune"

Exactly. Tribune was leaps and bounds better than the Sun-Times. Regardless who they own, team-wise, I still use their site when I need Chicago news

8/28/2008 6:07:37 PM

The Sun-Times today had a bunch of responses to him leaving, which were pretty comical. Everyone was happy, including people who work there.

I always found his articles entertaining, but I guess over a period of time he gets annoying.

8/28/2008 7:20:00 PM

What professional just walks away from their career b/c they are pissy about the market trends?

I hope ATH doesn't pick him up if he isn't with a newspaper...

8/28/2008 9:38:40 PM

Newspapers are still profitable.

Papers that refuse to change will die, but those that adapt will live on. While most industries operate on razor-thin profit margins, newspapers were at one time enjoying margins of 30-40 percent or more. Those margins have been more than halved in many cases in recent years, but many predominantly print media companies are still making good money -- just not the kind of obscene margins they've grown accustomed to over the years.

Mariotti was right about one thing, obviously. Papers need a strong Web presence to remain relevant. But the printed newspaper isn't going to go anywhere anytime soon.

My source: I spent two weeks at a pretty intensive scholastic journalism seminar at Washington & Lee University this summer, and we heard from some of the top editors of national newspapers who are members of ASNE (The American Society of Newspaper Editors).

We heard from 6-10 speakers (I lost count at some point), and while a few were somewhat alarmist, even the most paranoid conceded that newspapers weren't in nearly as much trouble as some would like to suggest.

[Edited on August 28, 2008 at 10:01 PM. Reason : .]

8/28/2008 9:59:39 PM

Quote :

"An open letter to sports columnist Jay Mariotti, who resigned from the Sun-Times and lashed out during a TV interview announcing that newspapers were dead: Dear Jay, What an ugly way to leave the Sun-Times. It does not speak well for you. Your timing was exquisite. You signed a new contract, waited until days after the newspaper had paid for your trip to Beijing at great cost, and then resigned with only an e-mail. You saved your explanation for a local television station. As someone who was working here for 24 years before you arrived, I think you owed us more than that. You owed us decency. The fact that you saved your attack for TV only completes our portrait of you as a rat. Newspapers are not dead, Jay, although you predicted the death of the Sun-Times and the Tribune. Neither paper will die any time soon. Job- hunting tip: It is imprudent to go on TV and predict the collapse of a newspaper you might hope would hire you. Times are hard in the newspaper business, and for the economy as a whole. Did you only sign on for the luxury cruise? There's an old saying that you might have come across once or twice on the sports beat: "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." Newspapers are not dead, Jay, because there are still readers who want the whole story, not a sound bite. If you only work on television, viewers may get a little weary of you shouting at them. You were a great shouter in print, that's for sure, stomping your feet when owners, coaches, players and fans didn't agree with you. It was an entertaining show. Good luck getting one of your 1,000-word rants on the air. The rest of us are still at work, still putting out the best paper we can. We believe in our profession, and in the future. And we believe in our internet site, which you also whacked as you slithered out the door. I don't know how your column was doing, but we have the most popular sports section in Chicago. The reports and blog entries by our Washington editor Lynn Sweet have become a must-stop for millions of Americans in this election year. After a recent blog entry I wrote about the Beijing Olympics, I woke up at 5 a.m. one morning, when North America was asleep, and found that 40 percent of my 100 most recent visitors had been from China. I don't have any complaints about our web site. So far this month my web page has been visited from virtually every country on earth, including one visit from the Vatican City. The Pope, no doubt. You have left us, Jay, at a time when the newspaper is once again in the hands of people who love newspapers and love producing them. You managed to stay here through the dark days of the thieves Conrad Black and David Radler. The paper lost millions. Incredibly, we are still paying Black's legal fees. I started here when Marshall Field and Jim Hoge were running the paper. I stayed through the Rupert Murdoch regime. I was asked, "How can you work for a Murdoch paper?" My reply was: "It's not his paper. It's my paper. He only owns it." That's the way I've always felt about the Sun-Times, and I still do. On your way out, don't let the door bang you on the ass. Your former colleague, Roger Ebert"

8/29/2008 9:33:40 AM

that's nice, but print news is a sinking ship, no doubt.

8/29/2008 9:37:05 AM

Quote :

"I hope ATH doesn't pick him up if he isn't with a newspaper..."

april, ATH already employees writers w/out papers

JA and Kevin Blackistone do not work for papers

8/29/2008 9:49:49 AM

Quote :

"What professional just walks away from their career b/c they are pissy about the market trends?"

uhhh, I can think of many possible professions... Mortgage lenders, school teachers, car salesmen, car factory workers, textile plant employees. They're smart if they jumped off the ship before it sank.

8/29/2008 9:54:40 AM

i don't really like marriotti much but he's right. Newspapers are on the way out as a place to make money.

It says everything i need to know that cities like Raleigh and Charlotte can't afford to have their own sports section. There are major colleges and three pro sports teams involved for gods sake.

Anyway, columnists & reporters will never understand that the paper/program is bigger than them. No one stopped watching ESPN when Olberman left.

Everyone is replaceable in a profession like that.

9/2/2008 2:21:11 AM

Quote :

"Newspapers are still profitable. Papers that refuse to change will die, but those that adapt will live on."

9/2/2008 9:55:52 AM

Wow ... I didn't realize that Blackistone was gone in 06...I definitely thought he was a freelancer for Dallas Morning

9/2/2008 11:12:29 AM

http://www.newsobserver.com/business/story/1204482.html


N&O offers buyouts to 320 employees


RALEIGH - The News & Observer this morning offered voluntary buyouts to about 320 employees as the newspaper continues to contend with slumping advertising.

The number of people affected represents about 40 percent of workers at The News & Observer Publishing Co., which also owns community publications such as The Herald in Smithfield and The Cary News.

All N&O newsroom employees will be offered buyouts, said Publisher Orage Quarles III.

Quarles said the company expects "a relatively small percentage" of those offered buyouts to actually apply for them. The company may limit the number of applications accepted, he said, though he did not specify a target number.

The N&O, like most of the newspaper industry, is hurting amid the economic downturn that has eroded advertising revenue in key segments: employment, auto and real estate.

"We continue to tighten up in all areas of the operation based on what we're seeing," Quarles said in an interview. "The market is going to continue to be soft for longer than anyone had expected and, certainly, had hoped."

The voluntary buyouts are the third, broad cost-cutting move at the newspaper in the last five months. In April, the company offered voluntary buyouts accepted by about 33 employees.

In June, it enacted layoffs that affected 70 employees, and it has implemented a one-year wage freeze.

9/3/2008 11:21:43 AM

Quote :

"In a bombshell announcement in the world of sports journalism, star columnist Jay Mariotti"

ahahahahaha

9/3/2008 11:57:32 AM