Journalist Adam Klasfield leapt at the opportunity to join The Messenger early in 2023, when the sheen of the news startup was bright and the reality of its pie-in-the-sky business plan was as yet unexposed. (Axios founder Jim VandeHei excoriated the false promises made to journalists by Messenger dreamer/founder Jimmy Finkelstein, in a post-mortem that had a heavy helping of I-Told-You-So in it.)
🚨🚨This sucks for hundreds of people who deserved better. It was a terrible investment thesis and obvious misreading of very clear media biz realities. It was foreseeable – and foreseen. https://t.co/pxnKYhoKas
— Jim VandeHei (@JimVandeHei) January 31, 2024
Klasfield, who covers the courts — a busy place in national politics these days — came crashing down to Earth with the rest of The Messenger this week, as the much-ballyhooed news operation shuttered after failing to raise more money after falling short of critical financial projections.
Still, there’s nothing like being comforted by one of the world’s most famous space travelers as your ascent falters — and in this case the laid-off Klasfield was buoyed by words from the original Luke Skywalker, Mark Hamill, who presumably appreciated the journalist’s reporting and chimed in with “Awful news, Adam. Here’s hoping you are hired elsewhere ASAP!”
Awful news, Adam. Here's hoping you are hired elsewhere ASAP!
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) February 1, 2024
Klasfield, who has nearly 300K followers on X, responded: “I really appreciate that, and it’s an honor to receive your well wishes.” As one follower pointed out, “Mr. Hamill is a good reference.”
Klasflied responded with similar gratitude to many, many others who also wished him well and showed their appreciation for his work.
You've been a lifeline in a difficult and scary time, Adam. Whoever hires you inherits a lot of hard-earned credibility and trust.
— uh oh, trouble (@MotherOfExiles3) February 1, 2024
Leaving aside the uncomfortable fact that hundreds of top investigative journalists failed to adequately investigate their future employer — and to recognize its silver lining for the tin it was, as VanderHei says — the story of The Messenger’s implosion brought wide sympathy for the many smart people, now jobless, who threw their lot in with the enterprise. It’s just that not all the sympathy came from a Star Wars icon.
