Longtime Chronicle columnist Ken Hoffman gone: Quit? Fired? (Houston, Dallas: restaurant, food)

[astrohip]

Ken Hoffman tweeted out this weekend that he was leaving the Houston Chronicle after 22 years. He will now write for Culture Map (a web site).

mikemcguff.com: Ken Hoffman leaves Houston Chronicle for CultureMap

I have enjoyed Ken's column for all of those 22 years. Well, except his weird fascination with WWF. I even finally ate at his oft-written pizza place in NYC--Lombardi's--last month (really good pizza!). I'll miss him. Seems to me Culture Map can't pay what a newspaper pays, so do you think he really quit, or was the Chronicle getting rid of ANOTHER expensive writer. They've lost so many over the last few years I've lost count. Losing all the best scribes is part of what's made the Chron a second-rate newspaper.

What do you think?

[swopoe]

Ugh. A big loss for the chronicle.

[hbcu]

Not really as his column stated to shrink anyway. They phased him out slowly plus he really only catered to a unique audience

[nunusguy]

The Chronicle has turned into such a pathetic tabloid. Even the Dallas Morning News which use to be a first class newspaper is only a sad shell of its former self.
Gotta go national to the NYTimes, LATimes, or WSJ to find any descent daily print journalism product anymore.

[astrohip]

Originally Posted by hbcu

Not really as his column stated to shrink anyway. They phased him out slowly plus he really only catered to a unique audience

Not sure about this. He wrote 3 columns a week, including a Sunday Zest lead. Not sure what was "shrinking". And I would guess he was their #1 columnist. I can't even name anyone else remotely close. They do have some good ones (Lisa Falkenburg comes to mind), but none with his following or name recognition.

[Texas Ag 93]

I also enjoyed his columns, though I had really fallen off reading them the last few years.

Now he has more time to eat at his favorite fast food places....

[HookTheBrotherUp]

'Sounds like a normal event to me... he found something else he'd rather be doing.

Farewell to longtime columnist Ken Hoffman - Houston Chronicle

[hbcu]

When I meant shrink is reviews were more more thorough then when the chron used to print the food/restaurant section separately. His other columns were alright but he was more of a fan who was happy to know certain local celebrities and report on that circle

As to why he was/is on sports radio who knows as that was a disaster the first time

[crone]

When Jeff Cohen had the big purge a few years ago, he had no respect for Clifford Pugh's rolodex.

Then Shelby Hodge quit and Cohen hired the pole dancer and the meth head prostitute to do the society section. It went down hill from there. The Chronicle lost all the society news and fashion advertising.

Bet Ken Hoffman got poached.

[btw002]

Originally Posted by crone

Cohen hired the pole dancer and the meth head prostitute to do the society section.

Woah, what?