Next Leader Will Be Fourth in Less Than 3 Years
“For the second time in 15 months, the editor of The Los Angeles Times has been fired in a dispute over budget cuts ordered by his publisher,” Thomas S. Mulligan reported Sunday night on the Times Web site.
“Times Publisher David D. Hiller told Editor James E. O’Shea to step down after the two were unable to agree on Hiller’s plan to cut $4 million this year from a $120-million newsroom budget, according to people familiar with the situation.
“The $4 million would be in addition to reductions valued at about $3 million in the newshole, the space in the newspaper devoted to editorial content, these people said.
“They said that O’Shea argued that across-the-board cuts would hamper newsgathering efforts at a time when The Times was gearing up for in-depth and expensive coverage of the presidential election race and the Summer Olympics in China.
“The dispute came to a head Jan. 7 when Hiller and O’Shea had lunch at a downtown L.A. restaurant. O’Shea’s departure, which was to be announced this week, was initially reported Sunday on the Wall Street Journal’s Web site.
“O’Shea’s firing came one month after the closing of the $8.2-billion buyout of Tribune Co., The Times’ parent, led by Chicago real-estate baron Sam Zell and an employee stock ownership plan. Zell was out of the country on Sunday and unavailable for comment, a spokeswoman said.
“In an interview, Hiller disputed that O’Shea had been fired, saying that his exit was part of a plan involving senior level and organizational changes to be enacted after Zell took control of the company. ‘Think of it as the changes made at the start of a new presidential term,’ Hiller said. ‘In the context of these changes, Jim and I decided we no longer saw things the same way about how to take the company forward.’
“For his part, O’Shea said, ‘It is true that we did not share a common vision for the future of the LA Times. From my perspective he made the decision to terminate me. I cannot comment further without talking to my attorney.'”
Kevin Roderick, LA Observed: Times editor O’Shea fired
MESSAGE BOARDS: Feel free to send an e-mail about this column.
A Loss in the Maynard Institute Family
Charles Grant Lewis, husband of Dori J. Maynard, president of the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, died on Sunday at their Oakland, Calif., home. Lewis, 59, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2006.
The two were married on Sept. 11, 2006.
Lewis was the principal of an Oakland-based architectural firm bearing his name. His work included historic renovations, museum design and transportation-related projects. His work had won local, state and national awards.
He worked on projects that included the international terminal at San Francisco International Airport and the San Francisco Giants downtown ballpark. Among his proudest achievements were the home restoration designs that helped transform one of the worst blocks in West Oakland into a stable residential area.
A native of Los Angeles, Lewis attended the University of Southern California. He was a member of the American Institute of Architects and served on the board of the National Organization of Minority Architects. He was a proud and active member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
“He was treated with both Western and Eastern medicine. He could not have had a more loving and determined partner than Dori,” Evelyn Hsu, the Maynard Institute’s senior director, programs and operations, told colleagues.
Arrangements for services are pending. Expressions may be sent to the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, 1211 Preservation Park Way, Oakland, CA 94612.
