— Former L.A. Times newsman Joel Sappell gives Sam Zell, head at Sun-Sentinel parent Tribune Co., a parting shot on the way out the door. Here’s the crux of it: Our optimism grew when Zell, soon after his highly leveraged takeover of Tribune, promised investment, not retrenchment. But that didn’t…
Think you can beat her? Tonight at 8 p.m. we get to see Palm Beach Post crime reporter Rochelle Gilken take on American Gladiator (UPDATE: Just learned the show has been postponed to next Monday, June 9, due to hocky playoffs). She spent five weeks in LA doing the show,…
… but we’re not buying this one either. It never fails: When Charlie Crist is going for a higher political office, he gets a girl first. And now that he’s vying for vice president of the United States, he’s got a doozy: a divorced, cosmetically enhanced socialite from the Hamptons…
I pose a question: In its story on what seems to be petty allegations against Broward Public Defender Howard Finkelstein by rival Alex Areazza, why did the Sun-Sentinel choose not to publish JAABlog’s name? Here’s the line from Jon Burstein’s story: “In his letter to State Attorney Michael Satz, Arreaza…
Occasionally I point out errors in the local newspapers, but today it’s time to hoist myself on that petard. In my column this week, I write about Deerfield Beach Mayor Al Capellini hiring a private investigator to tail his chief political rival, Commissioner Steve Gonot. Based on video the detectives…
Deerfield Beach Commissioner Steve Gonot didn’t know he was being watched. When Gonot attended a League of Cities convention in Orlando last August, he had no idea a private investigator was shadowing him and capturing him on videotape. The politician didn’t sense the prying eyes at another convention a couple…
And a fine bit of Ray Charles while we’re at it…
I don’t feel the need to comment on this screed that came across the transom today regarding Sun-Sentinel Executive Editor Earl Maucker and his upcoming appearance at the IRE conference in Miami. Other than to say it’s damn interesting. It’s comes from one “Titus Groan” (make sure to go to…
Ron Gunzburger at Politics1 offers this little piece of governor gossip: McCAIN VEEPSTAKES. Politics1 Exclusive. How interested is Florida Governor Charlie Crist in being John McCain’s VP runningmate? So much so that veteran GOP dirty trickster Roger Stone — who coordinated a few dirty stunts in support of Crist during…
From JAABlog: If you happen to be in the Broward County Public Law Library (basement of the downtown Courthouse) and want to access JAABLOG from one of the free computers, forget about it. JAABLOG has been restricted. Seems the powers that be have had it with the blog and have…
The noir fiction thing at Soya e Pomodoro in Miami went well. Even for me. Barely. A little more on that later, but here are a few highlights: — Edna. Edna Buchanan looked great in this shimmery silver jacket and gave a spirited reading of her newest novel, which hasn’t…
— Don’t think there’s institutional corruption in the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office? Then read this story about the arrest of Lt. Sandra Nealy written by Sonja Isger and Allyson Bird in the Palm Beach Post. Key graphs: She and six co-workers at county corrections facilities fell under criminal and…
Tiki bar owner Bob Gregory and Riviera Beach city officials have had it made in the shade for five years running. It’s taxpayers who are getting burned. Gregory has run the popular Tiki Waterfront Sea Grill at the Riviera Beach Municipal Marina since 2003. The place occupies a prime piece…
It looks like oil isn’t going to stop rising. What the flying fuck is the chimp in the White House doing about it? War, financial meltdown, staggering inflation … how many debacles is this SOB going to leave us with? And he doesn’t even pretend to try anymore…
— I’m floored. On my back and absolutely stunned. You see, the school board might actually do something that is … sensible. Unheard of. The Sun-Sentinel’s Kathy Bushouse and Susannah Bryan report this morning that Broward County Schools Superintendent Jim Notter has put the brakes on a project to build…
Wyatt Olson, a friend and former colleague who left New Times to teach journalism at Shantou University in China, is back on the reporting trail, following the horrific earthquakes (death toll 40,000 and rising). He trekked with a student to the Sichuan territory, where the brunt of the damage has…
Two events to plug this morning. First comes “The Noir Side of the Sun” on Thursday evening in Miami. It’s a celebration of crime writing courtesy of the Florida Center for the Literary Arts. Here’s the info: The Noir Side of the Sun: Crimes, Mysteries, and Thrillers–Miami Style Thursday, May…
Recently, the Palm Beach Post began posting daily slideshows of mugshots of the poor souls booked into the Palm Beach County Jail. The first newspaper I ever saw do this was the Key West Citizen (though I can’t find the feature today — the Cooke Communications website is just awful)…
We already know that the Fox-fueled right-wing machine will beat the American public over the head with Rev. Wright for the next six months (assuming Obama wins the nomination). That ought to scare those hardworking white Americans who prefer Hillary good and plenty, huh? But what are they going to…
Ron Ishoy confirmed this morning that prosecutor Howard Scheinberg is leaving the State Attorney’s Office and will be employed by Scott Rothstein’s law firm in Fort Lauderdale. Either this is related to the Judge Ana Gardiner expose or it’s one hell of a coincidence. Scheinberg allegedly partied with Gardiner while…
Check out this lede from a Sun-Sentinel story today: “Billed as a comedy-thriller, the Actors’ Playhouse production of Thumbs provides a brilliantly-plotted mystery, a superbly witty comedy, but not a compelling thriller about an actress suspected of murder and a female sheriff in a life and death struggle.” Sorry, the…
South Florida is threatened with losing its only public journalism school — and the major daily newspapers have barely written a word about it. Brings to mind one word: pathetic. Florida International University is planning to dismantle its J-school in response to budget cuts. Sources say the situation right now…
