Greg Cote broke his silence Monday after the Miami Herald laid him off the previous day. The longtime Miami Herald columnist detailed the call that ended his 54-year career.
What We Know: Cote’s Miami Herald run will officially end September 25. He says he learned the news from McClatchy Media over the phone. McClatchy laid off 30 Herald staffers in total, and Cote was among them. Moreover, the cuts are part of nationwide cuts affecting many different publications. Cote addressed the layoff Monday on his own podcast, The Greg Cote Show, calling it a jarring, unscripted moment.
What They Said: (All quotes via The Greg Cote Show):
Greg Cote on being cut by the Miami Herald. “I found out what it meant when people say, ‘My heart sank and my stomach sank.’ I took the call. That’s when in an appropriately somber but perhaps rehearsed I hate to have to tell you this tone of voice, a man I’d never met before or heard of informed me that my Miami Herald career of more than 50 years would be ending as of September 25th… The voice I didn’t know began to mention severance pay and all kinds of red tape and I started zoning out. My mind started racing as a reality hit and then the call ended.”
Greg Cote on the emotions of being laid off. “I’m not going to pretend that I was stunned. The newspaper industry has been a southbound zeppelin struggling for years. It was a matter of time. Colleagues of my age have been joking for years, what would last longer, our career or the newspaper industry itself. I won’t even pretend I was overwhelmingly disappointed.”
Greg Cote says he was planning to retire after the football season. “I’ve been pondering retirement for a good while. My wife’s probably sick of me hearing about it. It was the how and the when. I figured I would do it certainly on my terms and my timetable after football season, maybe in a few months. I never once imagined being laid off. Abruptly discarded like yesterday’s news. The newspaper business has turned brutally cruel.”
Greg Cote says he thought he was indispensable. “It also isn’t the [Miami] Herald making these layoffs. It’s the corporate bean counters who care about cutting costs, cutting losses more than they do journalism. We all think we’re bulletproof. I did. But in this business, none of us are. Heck, I thought I was indispensable, right? I was the main sports columnist. I’d won awards. I’m too valuable. Ha. The truth is, being laid off only hurts my ego and my vanity. Those things are should be put in their place.”
What Remains Unclear: Cote hasn’t detailed his exact severance terms, saying only that “red tape” came up on the call. It’s also unclear who inherits his signature columns and NFL picks. McClatchy has not commented publicly on his specific case.
What It Means: Cote’s blunt reflection captures a broader reckoning sweeping local news. Furthermore, it shows even decades-long veterans aren’t safe from corporate cuts. Consequently, South Florida loses another distinctive voice sooner than it expected. Moreover, his exit adds one more data point to shrinking American newsrooms.
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