The End of Empty Netters?

The big news in the Pittsburgh blog world is the possible end of the terrific Penguins blog, Empty Netters, published on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Empty Netters’ Seth Rorabaugh contacted The Pensblog with the following statement:

No sense in making this overly dramatic. I'll get to the point.

Empty Netters might be on its last legs. I'm scheduled to have a meeting Monday with editors at the Post-Gazette regarding the future of the blog.

I won't get into details as to why we've arrived at this point. I'm not sure I have all the answers to be honest.

Regardless, and this is where I ask for your help.

Please contact any or all of the following editors at the Post-Gazette and let them know your feelings - positive or negative - about Empty Netters.

Please be respectful when you contact these people. They have given me an amazing opportunity to create this blog and have allowed me nothing but freedom to write it as I please from day 1.

I can't guarantee this will change anything in the end, but at the very least, I want you to have an avenue to be heard. Ultimately, your voice is far more important than either mine or my editors'.

I’m a big fan of Seth and enjoy reading Empty Netters. Seth has also linked to my blog several times and supported my Best Pittsburgh Sports Blog Tournament and hockey road trips. However, I don’t understand Seth’s move here. How does going public about a future meeting with your employer on a separate blog make sense? Sure, I get wanting your readers to side with you, but this seems like a private matter between Seth and the Post-Gazette editors. Look, I want both Seth and the P-G to succeed, but did we learn nothing from pierogi-gate? Yes, pierogi-gate is an extreme example, but the bottom line is that you can't write about your employer and job status publicly.

Sarah Sprague provided a great summary of commentary around the web on Black and Gold Tchotchkes. There's also more on Kukla’s Corner.