For those of you out there interested in the fate of a GetReligion graduate, click here for a column on the life and times of Jeremy Lott. It seems that, while working on his upcoming book for Nelson Current -- which will have that title mentioned long ago, In Defense of Hypocrisy -- the still young master Jeremy has become yet another journalistic victim of the cartoon crisis.
It's rather complicated. As the update at 4pundits.com says:
My colleague Radley Balko wrote on Friday that "of course the real tragedy of the cartoon riots is that it put my friend Jeremy Lott out of a job writing columns for the New York Press. Won't someone please think of the pundits?!?"
That was then. This is now, although there has not been much of a change. Consider this an update to the update:
The New York Press column is dead. After quite a bit of trying, I tracked down the interim editor Steve Weinstein and asked, by e-mail, if he still expected me to file. He called me up on my cell and asked, "You mean the low life column?"
"It's called 'Guns and Butter,'" I said. "It's a national affairs column."
The rest of the conversation went about that well. He said that I could pitch ideas at him but the weekly slot is now toast. Good to know. Also, another potential job fell through tonight, so I am going to sign off and try to drown my sorrows with all the Yuengling in the fridge.
Sorry about the photo. I could not find the classic one in the fur hat.