Monday, March 19, 2007

Word Is

OK, we'll have to admit that we got a chuckle out of the item in the Cleveland Plain Dealer's "TipOff" column this morning, crafted with loving care by columnist Michael K. McIntyre.

"Word is," says McIntyre borrowing a tride-and-true phrase, that ex-PD sports media columnist Roger Brown is out at Cleveland market CBS affiliate WOIO/19's "19 Action News"...apparently making his own decision to step down from the gig.

Brown E-Mailed his former employer to note that he left his role as 19's sports/gossip guy to - and we quote here - "devote my attention to other possibilities, options and opportunities".

Those opportunities may or may not include writing a weekly sports/gossip/media column for the Lorain Morning Journal and Lake County News-Herald.

Though we don't get either paper here at the OMW World Headquarters, we've only been able to find two columns written by Brown on the co-owned papers' websites - the latest on March 4th. If he's still writing the column, it certainly wouldn't appear to be a weekly one...assuming there's not a web glitch in the works causing columns not to show up online.

Brown expresses interest in doing "more TV work in the future", though we're not entirely sure where an on-air sports gossip reporter goes after leaving the most gossipy news operation in the market.

And we'll toss it to Mr. McIntyre for the perfect closing line in a piece about Roger Brown:

...we have no idea whether he has sold his house or how much it went for.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Actually, those papers have websites that only run a limited amount of the paper's content.

The LCNH never put the late Hal Lebovitz's column online.

Actually, it is a shame to use a real legendary sports writer's name in a column about Roger

Anonymous said...

As reported by OMW, Roger's column has not appeared in the News Herald since March 4. But they did run his picture with the tagline, "Roger Brown is off this week", the last two Sundays...

Man, I miss Hal Lebovitz...

Anonymous said...

Ditto in the Lorain Journal. Quick, someone put Rodger's picture on a milk carton

Anonymous said...

That column in today's Plain Dealer was a great mockery of Roger Brown. It was hilarious. It's obvious by that blurb how much respect the P.D. has for Roger.

Anonymous said...

Roger rocks. You guys are all just so jealous, it's ridiculous. Whatsa'matter...don't you like the fact that Rog was well-read in the PD? Sheesh, how petty can you be?

Anonymous said...

I believe it is interesting to note the arrogance that Roger maintains. He has lost two jobs in the last several months, his position at the News Herald/Morning Journal appears tenuous, and yet Roger continues to say that he's pursuing other opportunities.

I also find it interesting that the News Herald/Morning Journal says that Roger has been "off". When he was at the P.D. his column was supposed to run Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, yet he rarely turned in a Wednesday column. I would like to be able to work fewer days and still be paid, but my employer requires that I put in a days work each day I'm scheduled.

All this over a columnist who rarely ever directly cites an identifiable source for his quotes and inside tips.

Perhaps he and Ronnie Duncan can commiserate.

Anonymous said...

Word is Ronnie Duncan and Roger Brown both lost more jobs in Cleveland than Bruce Drennan

Anonymous said...

To "Anonymous" who posted at 10:27pm...Hi, there Roger Brown! Another great career move you made there. The Lorain-Whatever-Its-Called. If that doesn't work out, there's always the Cedar Point Times.

Anonymous said...

It's hard to tell with Roger and Ronnie, since neither of them may be counted upon to show up to work, as requied.

Of course, Ronnie doesn't want to see Roger out of work, since Roger was using his column to do Ronnie's PR (along with Kendall Lewis' PR).

Maybe the opportunity Roger keeps saying he's pursuing is development of a rep firm?