Reclusive veteran entertainment journalist Nikki Finke, who founded the film industry changing trade site Deadline in 2006, died Sunday morning in Florida after a prolonged illness. She was 68.
Deadline forwent the celebrity focus of mainstream outlets or the more specific content-centric focus of late 1990s/early 2000s geek sites like Aint it Cool, JoBlo and Dark Horizons. Instead, she levelled an unforgiving spotlight on studio executives and high-powered agents.
Her take-no-prisoners style led to her scoring huge exclusives and the establishment of Deadline as one of the biggest players in the field. Her relentless coverage of the writers strike in 2007 and 2008 cemented the outlet’s place in the industry.
Jay Penske, founder, chairman and CEO of Penske Media Corporation which acquired Finke’s blog in 2009, shared a statement honoring Finke, saying on Deadline:
“At her best, Nikki Finke embodied the spirit of journalism, and was never afraid to tell the hard truths with an incisive style and an enigmatic spark. She was brash and true. It was never easy with Nikki, but she will always remain one of the most memorable people in my life”.
In her time, she also worked for the Associated Press, Newsweek, Los Angeles Times, New York Observer and New York Magazine.
Source: Deadline
