Miami Herald columnist and author Carl Hiaasen parodied Knight Ridder CEO Tony Ridder in his 2002 novel Basket Case. Now he has voiced his anger in a Miami New Times interview.
“Anyone who can look you in the eye and tell you the Miami Herald of 2004 is as good as it was in 1984 is out of their skull. It’s palpable, the difference is palpable,” Hiaasen said.
“How could I not write about him (Ridder). I grew up with this newspaper. I’ve put my life into it. It was the paper that landed on my doorstep every morning. So I have a right to be pissed, just like any reader,” Hiaasen said.
“It’s amazing what they still do given how the budget has shrunk, the staff has shrunk, the news hole has shrunk. But it’s really silly pretending it’s the same paper it used to be.”
Read the interview here.