Jim Romenesko, the must read national media blogger who started out as a Milwaukee Journal police reporter, announced his “retirement” on his website today.
He had previously stopped posting because he was on vacation, and listed a series of things he wanted to accomplish, including binge-ing “House of Cards”
But today the word vacation was crossed out and replaced with “retirement,” in quotes. Whatever that means. He has continued to post his rolling Twitter feed.
Earlier he announced he would stop accepting advertising.
As the Poynter Institute pointed out he was described as in “semi-retirement” when he stopped hosting a media blog on their site in 2011.
He however returned with the eponymous site in which he linked to media news of the day, big and small and explored any topic that interested him.
That as a reporter he was always driven by a curiosity about people is exemplified by his story about a woman who tossed her keys in the air on a beautiful spring day only to have them land on the library roof.
He heard about it checking on the suburban police blotter. She said she felt foolish when he interviewed her about it and he told her not to worry – his story probably wouldn’t get in the paper.
But it landed on the front page.
I sat across from him on the police desk and remember that he was as chagrined as she was.
Here’s a Bob Greene column about his self published book from his cop beat days, filled with morgue reports. He also was a reporter and editor at Milwaukee Magazine.
“Death Log.”
Tags: Death Log, Romensko Posted by