Newspaper buyouts hit home

I've written in this blog about the sad news in the print media, with many California and national newspapers cutting staff and shutting their doors. The trend has hit home. Over the weekend, the Fresno Bee's agriculture reporter Dennis Pollock announced that he is one of the paper's staff taking the buyout and retiring.

Pollock marked the change by noting the retirement of UC Cooperative Extension advisors who were frequent sources for his stories over the years.

Pollock wrote in his farewell column:

"'He's retired now,' someone would say when I asked for farm advisers like Harry Andris, Ron Vargas, Bill Peacock, Mario Viveros. And on and on."

Pollock also mentioned a conversation he had with UC entomologist Walt Bentley about the many UC farm advisors retiring after decades-long careers.

"But he quickly added that the new ones coming on are as sharp as they come," Pollock wrote.

Pollock was a champion for UC Cooperative Extension and did much to spread the word about its important work in the San Joaquin Valley. He will be missed.

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