Scheer out as of December

Here's an update to my exclusive post last Friday on the end of Robert Scheer's column on the L.A. Times op-ed page: He went on KPCC's "Airtalk with Larry Mantle" this morning (audio) and said he has now been informed the column will stop running at the end of the year. Scheer speculated about political pressure on the Times because of his lefty views, and noted he has been "a punching bag" for Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh for many years, but he told Mantle "I don't know what's driving them because they won't tell me." No one from the Times would comment to Mantle either. I've previously reported on plans to revamp the lineup of Times op-ed columnists. Scheer's column will still be distributed through Creators.com, and as I mentioned on Friday he will soon launch a new webzine called TruthDig.com. Supporters of Scheer's work have apparently begun a letter and email-writing campaign hoping to convince Times Publisher Jeffrey M. Johnson to keep the column.