Earlier this month, we reported that the Daily News offered another round of buyouts to all editorial staffers, with a deadline of May 21 for acceptances. According to Keith Kelly, nearly 30 people took the offer from owner Mort Zuckerman, which adds up to about 9 percent of the total 320 editorial staff. On that list are several prominent News vets, including book critic Sherryl Connelly, political reporter David Saltonstall, and photographer Charles Ruppmann. George Rush, the gossip reporter who had, with his wife Joanna Molloy, been writing the “Rush & Molloy” column since 1995, also took the buyout. Rush and Molloy (Intel Chris’s most beloved second bosses ever!) gave up their daily two-page spread in late 2008 to focus on other subject matter, putting out only a weekend gossip column. Molloy will continue at the paper writing her public-interest stories (she’s kind of the Andrea Peyser of human beings with hearts). The best part of working for George Rush was that he had a reputation for being above the board, and for not treating his subjects like the dirt he dug up on them. He was one of a kind: It’s the end of a gossip era!
News news [NYP]
