Am I the last to hear that Cory Farley is leaving the RGJ? I picked up the Nov. 8-14 copy of the Reno News & Review last night and started reading it after dinner. There it was: "Columnist bows out." (I need to start reading the RNR on line so I don't miss breaking news.)

The article was written by Dennis Myers, a well-respected journalist. The reason I bring up the credibility of the story is that to my knowledge neither the RGJ nor Farley has mentioned his departure publicly. In fact, his usual column is in today's paper. The Myers article says the paper offered all 20-year employees buyouts recently and that Farley sent out a mass e-mail saying he was accepting his offer and will leave this month.

I'm stunned. To say Reno won't be the same without his column is an understatement. I could count on reading at least one interesting thing in the paper on the days his column appeared. I think I've read every one of them.

It's easy to name his most memorable column: the one about his son's leukemia diagnosis. That was powerful. I can name my favorite column, too: the one about the middle-aged guy who divorced his wife, married a trophy wife, was miserable, asked his first wife to take him back and was rejected. (I loved that one for obvious reasons.) I enjoy all his stories about people he talks to. I agree with most of his liberal views; I disagree with his share-the-road-with-bicycles lectures.

Farley sometimes comes across as smug and self-righteous, but he's open and honest and sometimes reveals his weaknesses without seeming to realize it. One column would expound on how all you have to do to lose weight is eat less and exercise more. In another he'd confess he'd gained weight. Another example is how surprisingly naive he's been about the Internet; he's taken longer than most to learn how it can be used to communicate and learn. Even so, I consider him a blogger role model. (Columns and blog entries seem to be interchangeable at many publications.)

Now the question is, will Reno still have Cory Farley after he leaves the RGJ? A man like him needs to express his opinions whether he's been bought out or not, right? I would love to see a completely unrestrained Cory Farley blog. Would he be even more outspoken with his livelihood no longer controlled by a corporation? Now, that would be interesting. But would he want to share his opinions for free after he has made a living at it most of his adult life?

I'm expecting an interesting goodbye column.

P.S. I wonder if there's a connection between the exodus of people who've been at the RGJ 20 years or more and the amateur headlines I'm complaining about.