Oregonian Reporter To Switch To Flacking For Government

Julie Sullivan, a Pulitzer-winning journalist, told editors she’s leaving to join the county’s communications department, where she’ll work under David Austin, another former Oregonian reporter.

This is not the first time Austin has drawn from his pool of former colleagues as a talent source. In April, the Willamette Week reports, Austin hired Hank Stern as a communications coordinator. Stern had been a Willamette Week editor and an Oregonian reporter before joining Austin at the Multnomah county offices.

Willamette Week called Sullivan’s departure “perhaps the biggest loss” the paper of record has suffered in recent months.