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In a column posted Friday, Richard Nilsen announced that he is leaving his position at the Arizona Republic — a paper where he’s worked for more than 24 years.
According to his colleague Kerry Lengel, Nilsen was one of 24 veteran reporters and editors who accepted early-retirement offers from Gannett corporate headquarters.
Gannett president Bob Dickey wrote to employees in February and offered the buyout to 665 employees (at the Republic and other Gannett-owned papers across the country) who were at least 56 years old with at least 20 years of service.
“Arizona has been a state for 100 years; I was a critic at the Republic for more than a quarter of that time,” wrote Nilsen. “If we can still count on young people discovering classical music, dance, and art, then the future of the arts to explore the experience of being alive is secure and will continue to remind us of the importance of being awake in the world.”
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Nilsen left along with veteran reporters Betty Beard, Max Jarman, Kathleen Ingley, and Jim Gintonio, who also have announced their retirements.
