I knew this day was coming for a month, but I still can’t believe it’s here. January 26 is the last day my column will run on MLive, which, as pretty much everyone knows, has announced a big restructuring. It’s been a bit lonely on the Opinion page for the last few weeks, as my statewide political columnist colleagues, Tim Skubick and Ken Braun, are already gone.
Don’t worry (or start cheering). My column isn’t disappearing. You can find it right here! I also have a new Facebook fan page. I’m thrilled that I’ll begin to write columns once again for The Huffington Post, and will be contributing to Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire, which is an indispensable source for what’s going on in politics today. I’ll be writing for other state and national publications, as well.
And, of course, with a busy election season, I will continue to provide the top-notch political analysis that my publication, Inside Michigan Politics, is known for. Owning my own business for over two years has been a dream come true, and I’m proud to be one of the (too) few female publishers and executive editors in the state.
But what I’d like to do here is thank the people I’ve had the pleasure of working with at MLive over the years. I’ve written columns there since 2008, starting with my “Capitol Chronicles” blog. My contributions there have been in various forms and frequency, but it’s been a great ride from start to finish.
Eight years is a long time to be somewhere (in journalism, that’s a lifetime.) I’ve tried my best to include everybody, and I apologize if I’ve overlooked anyone.
I worked with Bill Emkow the longest and he was just a rock. He’d always go to bat for journalists and had a passion for new media. James Schmehl and Justin Rogers helped me on the technical side of blogging (as I’m a Gen X dinosaur.)
I’ve known Meegan Holland pretty much since I moved to Michigan almost 12 years ago, and was delighted when she became my primary editor. You may have heard, but she’s moved on to bigger and better things. Dan Hawkins has been my editor since last year, and he has a wonderful eye for detail. Every writer needs an editor –– and I will sorely miss him being mine.
It’s been an honor to share Opinion page space with Ken, who has a unique conservative voice and more importantly, fabulous taste in women, as the brilliant Kathy Hoekstra will attest. And Skub and I go way back. Around the same time I started at MLive, he decided to start inviting me on “Off the Record” for some reason (he’s periodically shared viewer complaints about my hair being too long and distracting.) Tim is the best in the business and I already miss his daily contributions to MLive.
I’ve worked with several great reporters at MLive (although never in the office) –– Dave Eggert, Melissa Anders, Jeff Wattrick, Jonathan Oosting and the legendary Peter Luke. Two have a special place in my heart –– Emily Lawler, who I worked with in my MIRS days and whose love of cats and cycling is contagious –– and Angela Vasquez-Giroux, a poet at heart and one of the strongest women I know.
Jen Eyer and Tim Martin deserve my special thanks. They’ve had to monitor the hundreds of thousands (millions?) of reader comments on my columns, so they deserve hazard pay. I’ve always appreciated Jen’s insights (especially as a fellow mom) and her no-nonsense attitude. Tim and I served for years together in the Capitol press corps and he’s one of the absolutely nicest people I’ve known.
And finally, as a fellow media business executive, I have great respect for John Hiner and we’ve talked shop several times. I sincerely wish him luck as he navigates these difficult and uncertain times for the newspaper industry.
Thanks to everyone who’s read me over the years –– be it out of love, hate or both (depending on the day). All I know is that I never inspire indifference, which is something I’m very proud of. Writing should never be boring. I hope you’ll join me here, where I promise it never will be.