But is the story really over? The paper’s outspoken critics, including Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz, say it’s time to focus on Globe higher-ups. “They really are to blame,” he says. Some staffers are angry at Storin for not making a faster and cleaner cut. “There are people who are quietly seething over this,” said one reporter. Another added, “There’s a lot of newsroom buzz about whether Storin is safe.” Storin told NEWSWEEK that he is comfortable with the way he handled Barnicle. “I made each decision on the basis of the information I had in hand, and in each case I think I did the right thing.” He says the paper plans to replace both columnists. As for his own job: “I’ll be there.”
Storin has plenty of defenders–both in and out of the newsroom–who laud him for vastly improving the paper. Even Boston Phoenix media critic Dan Kennedy–who made the Liebling charge last week–says Storin’s back-and-forth on Barnicle “has to be balanced against a record that overall is pretty good.” Some speculate that any call on Storin may be up to the New York Times Co., which owns the Globe. But, says Nancy Nielsen, a Times spokesperson, “the publisher of the Globe [Ben Taylor] . . . is the one who would make any decision that has to do with Matt.” Says Storin: “I have had only expressions of support from my superiors.”
The Globe’s next challenge could come this week, when rival Boston Herald debuts a more upscale look aimed at luring readers. What timing.
