Discussion for article #233283
Given that 1) one of his colleagues (not from the NYT, and probably not particularly close) said among his other remembrances on Twitter that he was quitting his two-cigarette a day smoking habit immediately so that the same thing doesn’t happen to him, and 2) he looked frighteningly skeletal in his most recent pictures, I find it hard to believe they didn’t know at the Times, even though it hasn’t been mentioned publicly in the news so far.
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If true, why would it have been mentioned publicly. There are some things that are just none of your damn business, even for the transparency handwringers.
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There isn’t any reason why it would, it’s just the article gives the implication that this was some big surprise to everyone.
He was extremely thin and had a series of serious, publicly detailed health problems. So, it seems likely that this disease was a surprise, But the New York ME doesn’t explain how lung cancer would cause a sudden collapse instead of a steady decline, even if rapid. But really, none of that is very important, his loss is a great one for journalism and us all.