Daily Breeze reporter headed to LA Weekly*

Gene Maddaus, who covered the city of Carson and politics for the Daily Breeze, has accepted a job as a staff writer at the LA Weekly. From the newsroom memo (via LA Observed):

We have hired a reporter to fill our staff writer opening. Gene Maddaus of the Daily Breeze will come aboard Jan. 11.

Gene is an energetic, tough-minded reporter who has laid down a lot of shoe leather working at three newspapers in Southern California. He has an impressive record of enterprise and investigative work, stories he turned out at a time when that kind of reporting is harder to execute at daily newspapers.

At the Daily Breeze, Gene covered politics and Carson City Hall for more than three years. Before that, he covered the city of Pasadena for the Pasadena Star-News. He began his newspaper career at the Inland Valley Times, a now-defunct Times Community newspaper.

Gene is a 2000 graduate of Syracuse University in 2000. He grew up in Maine.

Gene also is a a former colleague of mine and I wish him the best.

*Update: Memo from Daily Breeze City Editor Frank Suraci:

To all,

Congratulations are in order for our colleague Gene Maddaus, who will be leaving the staff in two weeks to join LA Weekly. Gene has done solid work for us covering politics and the city of Carson and we'll miss his firebrand reporting style.

Join me in wishing Gene the best as he moves along to the next chapter of his career.

Frank

P.S. Haven't heard from Jim Dear yet, but I imagine he'll consider this the best Christmas gift a guy could get.

For those not immersed in Carson politics, Jim Dear is the city's mayor.

Four today

1. The Syracuse University school of journalism, which trains students for careers in journalism, plans to honor Arianna Huffington with a lifetime achievement award - something Simon Dumenco at Ad Age finds ironic, considering one of Huffington's greatest achievements is convincing journalists to work for free. Advertising Age

2. The Redding Record Searchlight trims an inch of width off the newspaper and touts the move as a both a favor to advertisers and an act of environmentalism. Redding.com (Meanwhile, the New York Times Magazine cuts 9 percent from its print size to save money. E&P)

3. LA Weekly Editor in Chief Laura Ochoa is leaving the alt weekly - details to come. fishbowlLA

4. Hearst builds walled gardens and grows revenue inside. New York Times