Letter from David Sirota (re: Newsweek)

Friends:

I have a bit of personal news to share -- it is with a great sense of sadness that I have decided to resign from IBT/Newsweek. I will now be looking for an opportunity to continue this work. I hope I'll find it.

I am deeply upset about the news that has come out about IBT/Newsweek, but I am honored to have been able to work with a superb team of truly professional editors and reporters. They were instrumental in giving me the space and support that allowed me to produce serious award-winning investigative journalism under extremely difficult circumstances.

During my time there, our investigative work won recognition from the Loeb Awards, the SABEWs and the Izzy Award. It also prompted the kind of concrete impact that investigative journalism is supposed to have -- from government investigations to recusals to legislative proposals. And our small team most recently broke what came to be called the "Corker Kickback" story -- the single biggest story of the entire tax bill (and yeah, it is a bit surreal to be in this situation only a few weeks after that huge national story).

What I am most proud of is that we were able to do this all even though we did not have the enormous resources and brand of a larger outlet -- through hard work and perseverance, we were able to accomplish this all with a tiny team from a tiny outlet.

Thanks to all of you who have been so helpful for so many years. Journalism is often a business with lots of backbiting and very little professional solidarity -- but so many of you have been extremely supportive of the work I do.

If you have job ideas, leads or opportunities that you know of, please email me and let me know. With two young kids to support, I'm going to be looking hard for work. I very much hope I can stay in journalism -- but it's hard to know if that will be possible considering the state of the industry.

Onward.