The business section of the Chronicle is taking a huge hit with a number of key staffers departing for new ventures.
Ken Howe, the business editor who has been at the Chronicle for decades, has decided to take a buyout and move to Hong Kong, so he can be closer to one of the biggest stories of the decade – the growth of China. Howe spent time in Asia on a fellowship last year and became fascinated by the region’s rapid changes.
Dan Fost, the former media columnist and current tech reporter, is taking a buyout after nine years at the paper. He has been covering Web.2.0 and other stories. Readers will miss Fost’s deft, light touch. He’s a master at making business stories interesting.
David Lazarus, whose column is a must-read, has accepted another job at the Los Angeles Times. He is so respected that the Chronicle’s rival, the SF Weekly, declared him the city’s best newspaper columnist. Lazarus will be joined at the LA Times by his business section colleague, Jessica Guynn.
1 comment:
Thanks for the kind words. I would be remiss if I didn't note others who have also left our section: assistant business editor David Tong and reporters Ben Pimentel and Pia Sarkar. (More are leaving after me, but I'll let them announce it themselves.) Ben took at job at Stanford's Graduate School of Business, and Pia went to TheStreet.com; both are excellent reporters who will be missed. David was the consummate gentleman and an editor who always kept the readers first. I hope the section will get some help from other parts of the paper.
I should also note, however, that a great guy, Al Saracevic, is taking over as Business Editor. He's been the tech editor and the number two guy in the department for years, and is both a fantastic old school journalist and someone thoroughly steeped in new media. It's going to be fun to read the section from the outside.
I'll miss the Chronicle terribly - this is a happy-sad moment for me as I pursue a new career as a freelancer. People can find me at danfost*at*gmail.com.
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