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This week's mix of voluntary departures and layoffs from the Los Angeles Times includes (in addition to those reported earlier) these staff veterans:
William C. Rempel, a reporter and editor at the paper for 36 years. Most recently he's been a senior projects editor working on the paper's top investigations (and he will apparently stay until the end of April to complete some projects.) Before that Rempel was based in Chicago and in Los Angeles as a national and international investigative reporter, breaking stories on Troopergate, the Challenger disaster, the first World Trade Center bombing and global terrorism, among other subjects. He wrote extensively on the international arms market (and ran up some internally legendary expense accounts) and is the author of "Delusions of a Dictator," based on the secret diaries of former Philippine dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos. He's working on another book to be completed later this year.
Richard C. Paddock, a roving correspondent based in San Francisco, is leaving immediately. He was a former Times correspondent in Moscow and Jakarta who reported from almost 50 countries, including Iraq and Bosnia. Before he went overseas Paddock covered California from the San Francisco bureau, reported in Sacramento for many years, and had been based earlier in San Diego for the Times. He began at the paper 32 years ago as a reporter in the old Westside section.
Ann Brenoff, the Hot Property columnist since last year. She's leaving April 17, after 18 years at the Times, much of that on the desk that produces the editorial pages and Op-Ed section. "My plan is to run my own business -- offering after-school enrichment programs to schools, all centered on writing....I'm paying $50 an hour (course is an hour a week for 8 weeks) to any unemployed print journalist who would like to run a newspaper club in a school near their home. Tell them to contact me at afterschooldays@gmail.com."
Susannah Rosenblatt, a Metro reporter who for a time had the county beat. Her email to the newsroom:
From: Rosenblatt, Susannah
Sent: Tuesday, March 24, 2009 1:38 PM
To: yyeditall
Subject: Happy trails
Heartfelt thanks for five years of learning and opportunity, and to all who made the journey fun.
Lovely people make this newspaper.
Here's to weathering the storm,
Susannah
Noted: Supervisor Don Knabe's office sends word that Los Angeles County began searching this week for a new Chief of Public Affairs in the Department of Public Works. The salary range is 99k-150k. Public job bulletin.