Thanks for having me for a few days, #newsie! But I'm headed back home. :)
Kit O'Connell
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Kit O'Connell, formerly at the late great Texas Observer. Give me some time to move into this new space.
Texas Observer“Among the unexpected sources of support for the magazine was the #fediverse—the collection of decentralized Mastodon servers that soared in popularity following Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. Many comments on the GoFundMe page mention that the donors learned about the Observer through #Mastodon—where the Texas Observer was one of the first journalistic outlets to set up its own server, @jamescanup said.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/29/texas-observer-closing-gofundme via Guardian
There has not yet been a vote of the board of directors on our future. We understand the vote is due this afternoon and we will update here as soon as we have more information. #TexasNeedsAnObserver
“It’s hard to prove a murder when there wasn’t one.”
Citizen Sleuth transforms from a whodunit to an engaged and complex exploration of the #ethics, not just of true crime but of #storytelling more broadly, according to @sarahutch's new review of this thought-provoking #documentary which screened at this year's #SXSW:
https://www.texasobserver.org/citizen-sleuth-review-true-crime-documentary/
“Given the state of affairs, especially in #Texas, which is sort of at the right-wing vanguard, there’s never been a more urgent need for The Texas Observer,” @gabrielarana, our Editor in Chief, told the #nytimes: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/29/us/texas-observer-closing.html
Our emergency fundraiser, $277k and counting ... https://www.gofundme.com/f/laid-off-texas-observer-journalists-and-staff
I fell asleep early but could not sleep well. Really hoping the board understands the value of the Observer, now, if they did not before. #TexasNeedsAnObserver
Related: @andreagrimes reports that former staff and contributors from as far back as 1972 have signed onto this letter to the board of directors asking them to #SaveTXO!
If you're a past contributor, you can still sign on here through tonight: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeMo4eONPA1vFQH9yDElx2Zxppk3Er_4m0bYLdhaAeL3KTnNA/viewform
Sign On in Solidarity with the Texas Observer staff
A coalition of former Texas Observer staffers have issued a statement urging the board of the Texas Democracy Foundation not to shutter the magazine, and to work with current staff members' proposals to keep the magazine open while they pursue new paths forward. We're asking fellow former staffers to sign on, and for other Observer supporters, including freelancers and contributors, to add their names to support our statement. It reads: As former staff members of the Texas Observer, we are deeply disappointed by the Board’s decision to shutter the 68-year-old Texas institution in a matter of days, and to lay off current staff members who learned they would be losing their jobs from a report in another publication. We know you appreciate the Texas Observer’s decades-long legacy of straight-talking, rabble-rousing journalism, and we thank you for your service to the magazine. We are immensely proud to have contributed to that legacy ourselves over the years. Since 1954, the Observer has played a historic role representing the public interest and holding politicians and power-players accountable across the Lone Star state. Because of what Molly Ivins rightly called Ronnie Dugger’s “high minded idealism,” the magazine has done what no other Texas publication dared: remain beholden to no one but the people of Texas. In our time with the Observer, we recognized we were both employees of the magazine and custodians of its legacy. Every sweaty summer day spent covering a political rally, every weekend cleaning the office basement, and every precarious budget cycle successfully navigated, was an expression of our faith in the Observer’s future of service to our fellow Texans. We believe the Texas Observer’s future is just as valuable as its past, and are heartened by the remaining staff members’ level-headed proposal to sustain the magazine beyond the end of this week. We urge the board to revisit its decision to shutter this bastion of Texas truth-telling and ask the board to give the Observer’s staff and supporters time to map out a thoughtful path forward. We're asking fellow former staffers, freelancers, and other supporters of the magazine to publicly lend their support to the statement by 11pm on Tuesday, March 28, in advance of another anticipated vote from the TDF board.
$200K! Our campaign to #SaveTXO surpassed our major goal of $200,000. In our editors' letter, we asked them to halt layoffs & closure if we could raise this money. IT TOOK ONLY A DAY!
Thank You So Much! https://www.gofundme.com/f/laid-off-texas-observer-journalists-and-staff
An incredible outpouring of support that shows how valuable the Texas Observer is to the people of our state, our country and our world. While we don't have concrete news yet, we know the board paying attention. We'll have more soon.
(🧵1/?)
(edit: Halt, not Half!)
"In middle age, I'm forced to recognize that nothing short of being who I am will resolve my profound inner confict. The word 'transition' is terrifying but, however catastrophic the process of coming out may be, I'll not be much good to those I love if I'm burned out, incapacitated, or dead."
https://www.texasobserver.org/i-am-a-trans-texan/
