See Ya Cuck!

After not being on the air for weeks, Cuck Goudie and Channel 7 have parted ways:

• Chuck Goudie, Chicago media's dean of investigations, is no longer on the air at ABC7.

  Why it matters: Goudie has been a larger-than-life media personality for over 40 years in Chicago.

  The latest: The award-winning broadcast journalist hasn't been seen on the station's newscasts this year, and the station has confirmed they have parted ways.

  What they're saying: "Chuck Goudie was a valued member of our ABC7 team for many years and we thank him for his groundbreaking contributions," spokesperson Jayme Nicholas tells Axios.

Good thing he sold his Hinsdale house for $4 million - he might be needing that cash. Word is he wanted $500K and ABC offered $200K. 

The Chicago media at large has given up on actual investigative reporting. We've pointed out dozens of stories that were worthy of at least a sound bite or three, but if it reflected badly on Machine democrats, it never got past step one. 

But that's the media everywhere nowadays, and why the legacy media in general might be dead within a few years:

• ABC is paying Trump's future presidential library $15 million for George Snuffleupagus' defamatory statements during the run-up to the 2024 election;
• CNN just lost a defamation suit - a near impossibility for broadcast and print media. A jury awarded the plaintiff $4 million in real damages, $1 million in pain/suffering, before CNN waved the while flag and negotiated a private punitive damage settlement. The plaintiff was asking for $1 BILLION dollars;
• CBS is discussing the possibility of settling the $10 BILLION lawsuit Trump filed against the netword for election interference. The fact that they're even entertaining a settlement is unheard of.

No one likes the legacy media and when presented with an opportunity to stick it to them in courtrooms, the public is embracing the chance.

All sorts of big name TV anchors are taking massive pay cuts, newspapers are laying of 20% and upwards of newsrooms, websites are shutting down. John Kass is looking like one of the the smarter guys in the room by embracing his departure from the dying Tribune and starting his own website. He'll have captured a larger part of the disillusioned public as an early bird as opposed to latecomers who will fight over crumbs. 

Learn to code bitches.

UPDATE: from the comments - ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7 isn't just Chicago's top-rated television station. With employees related to three prominent Democrats, it also may have the most politically connected newsroom in town. Morning news anchor Tanja Babich is the daughter-in-law of U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, recently hired per-diem reporter Meghan Kluth is the daughter of Congressman Mike Quigley, and per-diem reporter Alexis McAdams is the niece of Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart. It's strictly a coincidence, according to John Idler, president and general manager of ABC 7. "These are all talented people who were hired on their own merit," Idler said.  

People are sick and tired of the media be just being a post-political job for the connected.