Deadline’s founding journalist, NIKKI Finke, passed away at the age of 68.
The veteran entertainment reporter passed away on Sunday morning in Boca Raton, Florida, after a protracted illness.
According to Deadline.com, journalist Finke established her website in 2006 under the moniker Deadline Hollywood Daily as an online extension of her LA Weekly column Deadline Hollywood.
She established herself a voice for the weak in the entertainment industry and the enemy of those used to having their high-powered secrets protected by exposing little-known Hollywood incidents.
Her insider information was highly valued, especially when it was backed up by her witty signature, “TOLDJA!”
Finke made a name for himself by “live-snarking” during some of the biggest award events in Hollywood.
The warning labels on these live blogging for the Golden Globes, Emmys, and Oscars read, “Not for the easily offended or foolishly naive.”
“At her finest, Nikki Finke epitomised the spirit of journalism and was never hesitant to communicate the hard realities with an incisive style and an intriguing spark,” stated Jay Penske, founder, chairman, and CEO of the Penske Media Corporation.
She was honest and frank. Nikki was never easy, but I will always remember her as one of my most unforgettable friends.
According to Deadline, Finke had worked internationally for numerous sizable news organisations.
She was a Long Island, New York native who worked as a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press in Moscow and London.
Finke worked as a correspondent for Newsweek in both Washington, DC, and Los Angeles.
She worked as a staff writer for the LA Times, contributing to the entertainment and features pages.
In California, Finke was the radio host of an insiders-only programme on the entertainment business.
Finke also graced the pages of New York Magazine and the New York Observer.
Finke joined the LA Weekly staff in 2002, and her column was titled “Deadline Hollywood.”
Her column’s primary subject was Hollywood’s backstage operations.
Finke started her website and bought the Deadline domain name online for just $14 in order to share breaking news more quickly.
According to Deadline, it was first known as Deadline Hollywood Daily in March 2006.
The New York Observer even referred to her as the “Media Mensch of the Year.”
Finke chronicled the 2007–2008 writer’s strike in great detail, which greatly increased the popularity of her website and column.
