On Wednesday, Oct. 17, Mountain Xpress reporter Cecil Bothwell was tapped for the second time as Asheville’s best local print reporter in the paper’s 2007 annual reader poll. Two days later, the journalist was called to the publisher Jeff Fobe’s office and fired.
“It was almost funny,” Bothwell reported. “After winning the vote, I half-way imagined that a summons to Fobes’ office might involve a raise; instead Fobes and Managing Editor Jon Elliston told me they had decided to terminate my employment.”
Source: Blog Asheville
Commentary
According to the article author, a campaign donation to Elaine Lite precipitated the firing.
Huh? As much as I dislike Elaine Lite, I would not fire an employee for that reason...most especially if I were running a socialist newspaper like the Mountain Xpress. I think it is something else, and that reason is just a dodge.
Somebody with the writing skills of Cecil Bothwell will land on his feet somewhere.
Friday, October 26, 2007 10:22:00 PM
There's more to this than meets the eye, I'm betting. Who is the editor of MountainX and what are his/ her connections to the Republican Party in Buncombe and/ or who is leaning on the editor???
marsha hammond, west asheville
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