Michigan politics has lost another voice.

Susan Demas of MLive (an aggressive online competitor for
all Michigan newspapers) will no longer write a column for the website. She will continue as a MIRS reporter at the state Capitol, but apparently her boss has told her to
keep her opinions to herself.

As someone who writes an opinion column and news stories,
I can say from (lots of) experience that a journalist can handle both duties
admirably. For some reason, too many editors find the duality of a
columnist/reporter a natural fit in the Sport Department, but not in the world
of news.  Columnist/reporter was a
position that served as the heart of newspaper journalism decades ago. Now, in
Michigan, there’s only a few of us left.

At a time when Lansing is thoroughly dominated by pro-business
Republican politics and policies, Demas was often the voice for the worker who
struggles from one paycheck to the next, or works two jobs to earn the
equivalent of one decent paycheck. She served as a thorn in the side of GOP
lawmakers, and she frequently jabbed centrist Democrats too.

A contributor to several media outlets, Demas may have come across as too liberal for many
readers, but she is honest and witty and snarky. Great combination for a
columnist.

But I guess combinations are not allowed in this new
journalism age.

After six years, her final column was posted on March 28.
You can read it here.

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