Over the past two years, I’ve had the pleasure of reading Pharmalot, a blog
developed by (now) former Newark Star Ledger staffer Ed Silverman. Silverman was a social media pioneer, as he was one of the first journalists to take pen to virtual paper and start a newspaper-sponsored blog.
I also had the pleasure of getting to know Silverman personally. First, at a blogger dinner sponsored by Johnson & Johnson and later by interviewing him for “The Digital Health Revolution,” the Web video program I helped produce from 2007 to 2008.
Silverman left these words of farewell on this blog:
“For two glorious years, I have had the privilege and good fortune to run this site. Now, though, the time has come to walk away. This was a difficult decision, but one that is rooted in the turmoil engulfing the newspaper business. Let me explain.
Three years ago, I suggested a site that could somehow become a go-to destination for news and discussion concerning the pharmaceutical industry. As someone who had covered pharma for a decade, but was itching to do something different, a web site represented not only a next step in gathering and disseminating information, but also an opportunity to get ahead of the curve and move on to another stage in my career.”
Given the many financial issues newspapers like the Newark Star Ledger are facing, it is not surprising that Silverman decided to move to greener pastures. After all, he does have to support the Short People and Mrs. Pharmalot.
However, I’m quite sure that Silverman will show up on the Internet elsewhere. I look forward to reading his insights and listening to the debate about the pharmaceutical industry on another Internet property.
For now, he will be missed.
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