In the continuing saga of the shift (or shaft) in print criticism, The Village Voice has let go chief film critic J. Hoberman this week. Someone much admired and important to the cultural film scene, it's another fallout of a publication jettisoning one of its major assets and reason for reading its papyrus. But it must also be an indication of the desperate economics and dwindling ad dollars being spent in print to not justify the salaries of great writing talent. The studios are moving on too.
My favorite essay was his remembrance for Strangers in Paradise which showed off his critical precision and insatiable appetite for discovering the new when he started. I wish him good luck and hope he lands somewhere safe and warm.
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