by Kent Sterling
The shake-up at the Indianapolis Star Sports Department has a happy ending for IU beat reporter Terry Hutchens, who was removed from that position last week, and now those who relied on him for IU news will find him writing for Fox News/Scout.com, Hutchens announced this afternoon via Twitter.
I'm happy to announce that I've been hired by Fox Sports/Scout to launch the Scout site at Indiana beginning July 21. Great opportunity.
— Terry Hutchens (@IndySportsHutch) July 2, 2013
Terry’s next tweet makes him one of the classier former employees of the Star:
It was difficult to leave the Indy Star after 22 years but I'll be able to continue to cover IU football and basketball. Great fit. #iubb
— Terry Hutchens (@IndySportsHutch) July 2, 2013
The Star has yet to announce the replacement for Hutch.
Fox, Yahoo, and ESPN continue to invest in unique product as the print media continues to shrink. As a subscriber to the Star, I am appalled more often than I’m pleased by the paucity of unique perspective and information.
Monday, for instance, the sports section had three piece in the sports section that were generated locally. Hutch wrote about the Pacers quest for free agents, there was a game wrap about the Fever victory, and finally a misplaced screed about roller derby. In today’s Star, the very good Zak Keefer hit the Butler move to the Big East, Michael Pointer wrote three pieces related to the Pacers, and Jill Disis compiled some information on Joe Lefeged.
The rest? Agate and wire service filler.
I get that Gannett honchos limit resources to the point where the reporters, columnists, and editors have to bust their humps to make the Star worth picking up for something other than the Sudoku. I’ve been there myself with WIBC Radio in the mid-1990s. We had zero chance to succeed as decisions were made at a corporate level and by a deranged general manager who made everyday a challenge.
It’s true with television and radio news too. Unique content requires people, and federal law mandates that people get paid, so filling the space between the weather forecasts is done in a variety of ways – few of them interesting.
There are just very few reasons to pick up the paper, as most but the technologically illiterate are well-informed long before the paper is printed, much less delivered.
Even the pace of the online edition is often slower then on other portals, including this one.
I’m happy for Hutch. He’s a good guy. Sorry for the people working elsewhere in media whose workdays are being squeezed more and more tightly.
hutch, can’t wait to see you in your white leisure jacket at your first opportunity. sorry they continue to put stock in krapitz. oh well, karma always prevails bro as the merm will someday learn; best wishes.
Thanks for finally writing about >Indy Star