Timing is everything in journalism. I come out with a story about new Tribune Co. Sam Zell’s newsroom tour, part of which was wondering, “When will the ax fall.” Well it fell yesterday. At least part of it. Zell announced he was cutting up to 500 people nationwide. In more…

When newly minted media baron Sam Zell met with his Sun-Sentinel staff for the first time, there wasn’t a word about it in the newspaper the next day. Turns out, they missed a hell of a story. At the January 31 powwow, the billionaire owner of Tribune Co. decried the…

Miami Herald staffer Wanda Demarzo broke story after story about the Broward Sheriff’s Office that, along with other strong press work, helped to bring Sheriff Ken Jenne down from office and into prison. Now a small story about a sheriff’s award ceremony is threatening her hard-won reputation as a top-notch…

Today, erstwhile Pulp correspondent John DeGroot is appealing directly to Tribune Co. owner Sam Zell for more trenchant and interesting coverage in the Sun-Sentinel. In so doing, he breaks news on the rising rates of out-of-wedlock births and abortions in South Florida and the rest of the state. Specifically, he…

— Sun-Sentinel columnist Alva James Johnson asks a burning question: Why is it OK to teach evolution in public schools, and not intelligent design? I just don’t get it. … I, for one, have no problem with the “e” word becoming a part of the curriculum. Evolution by any other…

A couple of interesting stories on the housing front this morning. The Miami Herald’s Natalie P. McNeal writes about a homebuilder pulling up stakes in Miramar. Actually, Lowell Homes never got around to getting the stakes in the ground before pullling out of the Miramar Town Center project. Another developer,…

Start this Monday with a current events rundown. Obama is making a strong charge (making for what will be a historically contentious, Florida-centric convention). Shawn Marion is about to learn how to lose (a lot). Thousands of worthy students are getting shut out of Florida’s universities because of enrollment caps…

You want to know about the newsroom of the future? Well, the Palm Beach Post is taking a step toward trying to shape it. Saying the newspaper has been “stuck” in the past, Managing Editor Bill Rose sent the following memo to Palm Beach Post staff Thursday morning describing a…

The scene might have come from Wiley Waldrep’s worst dream. The peeled earth, shorn of all trees and vegetation, cracked and exposed under the sun. Long lines of exhaust-spitting traffic on all sides. The loud, rumbling bulldozers moving dirt next to streets leading to nowhere. It’s just what Broward’s last…

Herald owner McClatchy reported earnings this morning and the news was decidedly mixed. Profits rose on the sale of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune but the company issued a pretty dismal outlook and said it would take a write-down in the future due to financial problems. From the AP story: The company’s…

Slow week, so I’ll opine about a couple of things. First, the Democratic primaries. H. Clinton is in the catbird seat (even without her Florida victory on the books). She’ll get the nomination and all dems should be relieved about that. Why? Because she’s more electable than Barack Obama. And…

This is hilarious. Click to hear Sam Zell answer an Orlando Sentinel photographer’s question and punctuate it with an almost imperceptible “fuck you” (I’m sure most in the room thought he said “thank you”). After clicking above, make sure you view both video versions. The questioner, according to Gawker, is…

The good John DeGroot got ahold of the new Tribune Co. employee handbook — and it doesn’t disappoint. The rules were recently sent via PDF to all Tribune employees, including those at the Sun-Sentinel (and Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, and other newspapers, TV stations, etc, the company…

The Palm Beach Post’s Mark Schwed died unexpectedly at the age of 52. He called in sick Monday, wasn’t heard from, and was found today by a coworker. Cause of death hasn’t been determined. Scott Eyman wrote the obit and here’s a guest book for him that includes a photo…

The Pulp want’s to give a warm welcome this a.m. to new Tribune Co. czar Sam Zell, who is making his first trip to Fort Lauderdale. The trip dispels Thom Fiddler’s repeated assertions that Zell, in fact, didn’t realize he owned the Sun-Sentinel. Should get more on that later. As…

— Just a rumor at this point, but sources say that the Miami Herald’s Todd Wright was kicked out of Mara Giulianti’s election party (wake?) by the mayor’s husband, Donald, who allegedly shouted at the reporter. Trying to get more, but if it’s true, more power to Wright. I slammed…

I believe the Florida trounce paves the way for President Hillary Clinton and I think most of her electoral power comes from people yearning for the 90s, when another Clinton was president. You ask what was so great about the last decade? I point you to the current one, this…

Here are some electoral prognostications that everyone can look back on tomorrow and laugh at my utter idiocy: — Mara Giulianti loses Hollywood mayorship. Look, Mara may have all the money, but she knows she’s in trouble. The desperation is evident in her frantic campaigning. Case in point: When voter…

It’s true, S.V. Date, the Tallahassee reporter and Jeb Bush chronicler, has left the Palm Beach Post. Paul Blythe, the newspaper’s state editor, confirmed that Date resigned on Friday, but wouldn’t elaborate on the reason. If you’ll recall, Date — who has been covering the Florida capital for 10 years,…

I’ve been hit with several rumors lately that will make excellent future posts, but for now, let’s do a little news-crunching. — First, the Sentinel had a front-page piece on the fed rate cut in Sunday’s newspaper. Written by Harriet Johnson Brackey, it took a pollyanna tone, beginning with the…

I’m not so much a size guy as a quality guy when it comes to newspaper-watching, but, hey, everybody knows size matters in journalism. And our favorite Sun-Sentinel critic, Palm Beach-based “Ellen Dalton,” snickers at some recent, uh, shrinkage at the Tribune pub in a morning note to the Pulp:…

Some recent headlines in the South Florida media: — From this morning’s Sun-Sentinel: “Salerno’s legacy: Growth, rancor” Outgoing Sunrise city manager Pat Salerno couldn’t have liked that one. You can hear his eulogy, now: “Yes, he was a good man, full of both great growth and boundless rancor.” At least…