A reporter and columnist who covered New York state government for 25 years, Jay Gallagher died yesterday after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 63.
The Massachusetts native was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on June 17 last year, according to The Associated Press. Gallagher started a blog about his illness that same day, detailing his fight against the disease as well as offering his views on Albany, where he was Gannett's bureau chief for 20 years. He started with the company in April 1974 in Rochester, where the company was then headquartered.
Gallagher was surrounded by his family when he died last night at St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany.
As I post this, family and friends have posted dozens of comments on Gallagher's blog.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
5 comments:
Jim says: "Proceed with caution; this is a free-for-all comment zone. I try to correct or clarify incorrect information. But I can't catch everything. Please keep your posts focused on Gannett and media-related subjects. Note that I occasionally review comments in advance, to reject inappropriate ones. And I ignore hostile posters, and recommend you do, too."
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Jay was the consummate newsman and extraordinarily knowledgeable while with Gannett News Service. As a former Gannett colleague, I can say Jay always tried to help member newspapers any way he could. He had deep knowledge of New York politics, which he used to make his small capital bureau more relevant that it might have been with lesser leadership. RIP Jay. You were one of the good ones.
ReplyDeleteNicely said Anonymous ... As one of his many interns, I learned the crucial basics of dogged, passionate and reasoned reporting from Jay. It's a work approach that I have carried with me from newspaper reporting to PR work and now into academia. He will be missed.
ReplyDeleteCondolences to Jay's family, friends and colleagues. As a long-time Gannett staffer in New York, Jay's work was well known to me and everyone I worked with. He did a great job.
ReplyDeleteJay was the best. He never hesitated to go the extra mile, and was never too busy to help out a member paper on deadline.
ReplyDeleteI had the pleasure of working with him on several occasions. He was a storehouse of useful information, and most of all he was a gentleman and all round nice guy.
Condolences to his family and colleagues. I worked with Jay at the Times-Union in Rochester, and he was a real pro -- someone who other staffers could always depend on for an honest assessment, encouragement and a knowing smile. RIP, Jay.
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