[Newspoetry] FWD: Reporter fired for acrostic

[William Gillespie]

Subject:  Reporter fired for acrostic
Date:  Tue, 9 Jan 2001 16:43:24 -0500
From:  Ron Silliman

Now this may be a first,

Ron

Newspaper spells it out for rogue writer: you're fired

MediaGuardian.co.uk

Matt Wells, media correspondent

Tuesday January 9, 2001

It must have seemed so clever to conceal a crude rebuke to the Daily
Express's controversial proprietor in his final, florid editorial, but
departing columnist Stephen Pollard must now be wishing that it was all
just
a bad dream.

His new employers, the Times, last night confirmed they were sacking Mr
Pollard before he had even started.
George Brock, managing editor of the Times, said: "We have spoken to
Stephen
Pollard today and we are not proceeding with his contract to work with
us."

The decision was taken by the paper's editor, Peter Stothard, who
returned
from a period of sick leave to take back the reins yesterday. Mr
Pollard,
who was to join the Times as a leader writer and commentator, was told
of
the unfortunate development by telephone.

Mr Pollard's expensive entry in the annals of journalism was made on
Saturday when, in an apparently innocuous commentary on the virtues of
organic farming, he made clear his feelings for the new Express owner,
Richard Desmond. The first letters of each sentence spelled out the
message
"fuck you Desmond".

At first, Mr Pollard appeared smug about his prank, joking to Sunday
newspapers that the acrostic was "an amazing coincidence". He must have
been
regretting his words yesterday: Perhaps understandably, he was not
saying
much.

While some at the Times feel executives have had a "sense of humour
failure", others said Mr Pollard's actions at the Express were
inappropriate
for a leader writer on a serious newspaper. One Times executive pointed
out
that, while Mr Pollard expressed his frustration at Mr Desmond, there
are
many who believe that the News International boss Rupert Murdoch "is the

devil incarnate". Mr Murdoch would not, it was suggested, take kindly to

being insulted in the pages of his own newspaper.

Mr Pollard was among the first of several high-profile departures from
the
Express after the takeover by Northern & Shell, publishers of the
celebrity
and soft porn titles OK! and Asian Babes.

He was offered a job on the Times as a columnist and leader writer on
health
policy issues in early December. Mr Brock confirmed that contracts had
been
signed by both the Times and Mr Pollard. It is not clear whether Mr
Pollard
will receive a payoff.