Jim Hightower - Yes, the Observer’s finances are severely strained, and the board of directors should’ve been alert to the fact that the magazine was spending at an unsustainable/irresponsible level. But the Tribune’s claim that the board abruptly voted for “closing” down is false, wrong, untrue! To the contrary, the board only voted for a temporary hiatus. At the same time, it committed to raising large sums of money, while reorganizing for a healthy financial future. Far from rushing to the cemetery, board members, staffers, previous donors, and former editors (a majority group the Tribune did not interview before issuing its obituary) has stepped forward to help with this rejuvenation.
Full disclosure: I’ve been a loyal Observerite since my college days; I was a longtime friend and neighbor of legendary Observer editor Molly Ivins; and I followed her as the publication’s populist-spirited editor for two years. So I’m fully in the revivalist camp.
However, that doesn’t make me naïve. There is no question that financial clots and a series of internal editors-v- board conflicts have weakened the publication in the past couple of years – but you don’t then just snuff out its fiery spark of progressive activism, which is needed now more than ever!
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