The Radio Equalizer: Brian Maloney

11 March 2005

Why Did Collin Levey Exit The Seattle Times?

That rare breath of fresh air at the Seattle Times apparently wasn't meant to be there for long.

Collin Levey, opinion page columnist for the Times, has exited, for reasons not specified. Was it her own choice, or was the paper simply unwilling to tolerate a dissenting voice, as is the Seattle media's standard practice?

She joins Michelle Malkin as another refusenik who struggled to co-exist in Seattle's Stalinist media environment.

It's interesting to see liberal papers becoming more strident, rather than listening to concerns of readers who want balance. In another case, complaints may force the removal of the "Mallard Fillmore" conservative comic strip, from the Boston Globe.

At the same time, newspaper circulation is generally on the decline nationwide.

Levey, a former Wall Street Journal contributor, didn't make it clear whether she would continue to write for other publications, such as the New York Post.

Levey's final Times column laments the upcoming loss of Seattle's wonderful, charming and popular streetcar line to the new sculpture park.


Update: I was able to contact Levey via email this morning. She says, perhaps with diplomacy, that she was treated well by the Times, but didn't offer a reason for her departure from the paper:

"For all the talk of intolerance these days, I got nothing but the best treatment from the editorial pages of the Times. Truly."

What's going on at BlethenWorld?

If her reasons were personal, I'd imagine she'd have no hesitation in saying so. I can't read into her response, but I wonder if something fishy's going on.

Let's hope Levey lands somewhere very soon. One would hope another Puget Sound Area paper would scoop her up in a flash.


Update:

Would you like to speak your mind to the Times honchos about this?

Editorial Page Editor: James F Vesely: jvesely@seattletimes.com

Executive Editor Michael Fancher: mfancher@seattletimes.com


Update:

Even bizarre, childish "alternative" Seattle weekly The Stranger is more open-minded than the Seattle Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer! They've hired The Shark from Sound Politics to write a new token opposition column. Good luck Stefan!



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