Khristopher Brooks, Young Reporter Fired Over A Press Release [Q&A]

Detroit native says he was just showing his excitement for new job at a Delaware newspaper

While George Zimmerman was being charged in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a young, plugged-in journalist, Khristopher Brooks, had to divide his attention.

Brooks was packing up his apartment and getting ready to begin a new job, as the enterprise reporter for the News Journal in Wilmington, Del. He had also written a press release, which he posted to his personal Tumblr blog on April 9, announcing his career move and quoting from his job offer letter.

Wrong move, he soon found out. The newspaper called Brooks on Wednesday evening and rescinded their job offer, citing “illegal” use of the company’s logo and unauthorized use of the contents of the offer letter. He was offered the job on March 23, he said.

The 27-year-old Detroit native lives in Brooklyn, NY and is preparing to graduate from New York University’s literary reportage graduate journalism program. He’ll walk across the stage on May 11 and then move out of his apartment, without a job to go.

His layoff from a job at the Omaha World-Herald a couple of years ago brought him to New York for school. But Brooks says the entire ordeal has been a learning experience.

Loop 21: The last 24 hours have been pretty interesting for you, to say the least. Can you explain what’s happened?

Khristopher Brooks: Well, most of it happened yesterday. It was weird because it was happening at the same time that the George Zimmerman charges were coming out. I talked with (Jim) Romenesko Wednesday morning, and he posted (to his blog) shortly after. I was going about the rest of the day, into the early afternoon…then I got a phone call from my immediate editor, asking why did Romenesko call.

Loop 21: So, up until that point, you didn’t gather that there was anything wrong with sending out the press release.