Romenesko

Los Angeles Times
It took several years and numerous memos, but William Lobdell finally got a religion column in 1998. "I wanted to report objectively and respectfully about how belief shapes people's lives. Along the way, I believed, my own faith would grow deeper and sturdier," he writes. "But during the eight years I covered religion, something very different happened." After covering church scandals and corruption for years, "I felt used up and numb." He asked for another beat.