Pilot announces Hartig’s retirement

The Virginian Pilot announced in today’s paper the retirement of editorial page editor Dennis Hartig.

Hartig, who grew up in the Ocean View section of Norfolk and graduated from Norfolk Catholic High School, joined The Pilot in 1979 as editor of the Virginia Beach Beacon. He later became deputy managing editor, acting editor and, in 1997, managing editor, the newsroom’s No. 2 position.

The article says Hartig, 60, will leave by the end of the year. Also, the editorial staff will remain at six members, with an addition being named before year end.

Hartig and I have had our disagreements but the loss of the institutional memory of the paper is a bad thing. He has actually been talking about retirement for a while. I had hoped that he would stay at least another year, through the 2009 election cycle. When I emailed him Friday after getting word of his retirement, it was to say that he would be missed. And he will be. Just as the retirement of Margaret Edds left a hole, so does this retirement.