Mariotti Not Joining Trib

By Benjy Lipsman in News on Sep 17, 2008 7:40PM

Word from the Tribune late Tuesday ended any speculation that former Sun-Times sports columnist Jay Mariotti might be joining the city's other major newspaper. While talks did in fact take place, they fell apart due to the Sun-Times lawyers threatening to sue the pants off Mariotti and the Trib. Said Mariotti, "[they] threatened me with a lawsuit in 64-point type." Jay the Joke also said of the Trib, "It's not your father's Tribune...I enjoyed dealing with them. I think they have a great future.'' Huh. We thought Jay left the Sun-Times because newspapers were a dying industry.

So with his flirtation with Zell and his paper now over, will Mariotti be packing his bags and taking himself to a city not yet sullied by his hatred for everything and everyone? Or will he remain in Chicago to build some new non-dying media empire?