Jack Ohman, who has been with the Portland Oregonian for 29 years, has announced that he has left the paper. He made the announcement through his Facebook page. I’ve spoken with him and he’s confirmed that he has left voluntarily. As to the future, he tells me he’ll be able to share details of later this week.
From the Oregonian, we learn what Jack’s editor had announced to the newsroom:
Erik Lukens, editorial and commentary editor, said in a note to the newsroom Monday: “I consider myself lucky to have worked with him for the past five months, and all of us in the editorial and commentary department will miss him a great deal.”
Jack was a finalist this last year for The Pulitzer Prize. Before that he’s won several other awards such as National Headliner Award, Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award (Cartoon category), Society of Professional Journalists Award, and the Scripps Howard Journalism Award.
I’ll post more details later this week.
Jack is one of the greats of our generation. He has been doing innovative work, particularly in his local storytelling, creating a new kind of observational musing that breaks down the traditional walls around editorial cartooning. I can only imagine his was a rich viewpoint to tune into every day for Oregonian readers. Clearly he was woven into his community, as a great editorial cartoonist must be. From a distance, I’ve admired his style and substance all these years. Good luck wherever you go from here, Jack!