12-02-2008 CHRISTOPHER REPLACED BY JEN�EE OSTERHELDT? The Kansas City Star has announced (12/2) that Jen�ee Osterheldt, a five-year veteran at the newspaper, will now have her column run on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays beginning Dec. 8. She also has a blog (LINK). Osterheldt's career rise has been meteoric. She graduated from Norfolk State University, an urban institution in Norfolk, VA, with a journalism degree and was chosen for the prestigious Knight Ridder rotating intern program. After four month stints at the Star (Kansas City), the Contra Costa Times (Bay Area) and the Pioneer Press (MN), the Star offered her a full-time position. Within a year at the Star she was promoted to columnist. In essence, it now seems as if she will be replacing Hearne Christopher, Jr. (see story below).
HEARNE BIDS ADIEU Hearne Christopher Jr. signed off his final column (11/26/08): "Out of here, for now. It�s been 16 years at The Star, choking out breaking news and stories. Like the original scoop on the Nelson-Atkins� Shuttlecocks and busting the Plaza for its ten-fold inflated count of more than a quarter-of-a-million holiday lighting ceremony attendees. "But, hey, I�m history."
Still alive and kicking...
11-24-2008 CHRISTOPHER STAR COLUMNS CONCLUDING; WILL START OWN WEB SITE Kansas City Star readers may have been surprised to see columns still appearing by Hearne Christopher, Jr.--one of the paper's most-read columnists--even after he was let go by the newspaper during the most recent round of layoffs. While Jeffrey Flanagan's sports column and blog have disappeared---and cartoonist Lee Judge's work is virtually gone--- Christopher's entertainment column continued to run in the newspaper. He is no longer listed as a columnist in the Star. Christopher's column for some reason did not appear on Sunday (11/23), but ran on Monday (11/24) and will also run Wednesday (11/26). At that point it will formally end. He reports he may continue his Star columnist duties on a freelance basis in 2009. However, instead of running four times a week as it used to, it may appear only on a weekly basis. Christopher says in about two weeks he will be starting his own Web site with three full columns each week. He says the columns will be "Just like in The Star only a bit edgier, plus blogging galore, plus a few surprises."
Copyright 2008 Bottom Line Communications. BLC is a Web News Site that analyzes media and marketing issues. Please give credit or link to www.bottomlinecom.com when using any materials. Click on the FEEDBACK tab to send any media tips/comments/thoughts/feedback. We honor off-the-record requests and will correct/clarify any information found not to be 100% accurate.
