The Wiz of Odds

Old Media

Our weekly look at how college football news was played across the front pages of Sunday newspapers, leading with the Seattle Times and the Washington Huskies' upset of USC.

Old Media

Our weekly look at how college football news was played across the front pages of Sunday newspapers, leading with the Akron Beacon Journal's coverage of the hometown Zips' first game in the new InfoCision Stadium. Click any image for an enlarged view.

Old Media

A look at how college football news was played across the front pages of newspapers the past couple of days. Included in the bunch are the Eugene Register-Guard and Idaho Statesmen, which chronicled the LaGarrette Blount incident. Click any of the images for an enlarged view.

First the Sack, Then the Plaque

I've had the privilege of working with a lot of talented people in the newspaper business. One of the best was Melissa Isaacson, who has been crafting stories for the Chicago Tribune since 1990. She is also the author of two books, "Transition Game: An Inside Look at Life With the Chicago Bulls" and "Sweet Lou: Lou Pinella: A Life in Baseball."

Melissa got the call last week that her job had been eliminated, a crummy way to end nearly 20 years of service. Unfortunately, this is happening to way too many journalists in this transition of the information delivery system from print to cyberspace.

After a day of gathering her thoughts, Melissa started a blog, which already has several terrific entries. But that's not the end of the story.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Stops the Presses

The final print edition of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer rolled off the presses Tuesday morning. Although the parent Hearst Corporation will maintain a skeletal website, the majority of the 167 employees will lose their jobs.

The 146-year-old Post-Intelligencer was Seattle's oldest business. Last month, the Rocky Mountain News, which was two months shy of its 150th birthday, closed. Former Rocky staffers are now trying to start an online news publication, the In Denver Times.

Scripps Throws In the Towel in Denver

The Rocky Mountain News was two months short of its 150th birthday Thursday when Scripps CEO Rich Boehne announced to the newsroom that Friday's edition of the newspaper would be the last.

Several other newspapers are expected to fold in the coming months, including the Tucson Citizen and the San Francisco Chronicle. Many others are fighting for their lives.