This is truly horrific…
Renowned media critic and journalist Eric Boehlert has passed away at the age of 57 following a shocking bike accident. His wife Tracy Breslin confirmed the tragic news to The Sun, revealing he was struck by a train in Montclair, New Jersey, on Monday night while on an evening bike ride.
Tracy told the outlet that her husband, who was a frequent bicyclist and runner, had been cycling and enjoying the decent weather when the accident occurred. According to the NJ Transit, a train on the Montclair Boonton Line had hit and killed an adult male on a bicycle Monday “prior to” the Watchung Avenue Station between the 8:59 p.m. departure from Hoboken and the arrival in Hackettstown at 11:07 p.m. So awful…
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Eric’s wife described her husband to The Sun as the “kindest, most generous and one of the coolest guys you will ever meet.” He had been a writer and founder of the Press Run Newsletter who had a mission to pen an “unfiltered, passionate, and proudly progressive critique of the political press in the age of [Donald] Trump.” Tracey further noted that he was a “fierce and fearless defender of journalism,” adding:
“He was a fierce defender of the truth, but as fierce as he was to critics and the media, he was just as kind to them as well. Overall, just a really amazing, unique person. Such a good dad.”
If you didn’t know, Eric worked as a senior fellow at Media Matters for America for 10 years and as a staff writer for Salon for five years before creating Press Run. He also covered the music industry as a contributing editor for Rolling Stone and as a staff writer at Billboard. Additionally, Eric made hundreds of television appearances to discuss media and has been quoted in several publications over the years, including BuzzFeed, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
Following the devastating news of his death, many of his former employers and colleagues have taken to social media to commemorate the media critic. Salon wrote on Twitter Wednesday:
“We are devastated by the loss of esteemed journalist and former @Salon senior writer, Eric Boehlert. Our condolences to Eric’s family and friends during this difficult time. His passing is a huge loss to media criticism and progressive journalism.”
Former The Daily Show host Jon Stewart tweeted:
“Rest In Peace Eric Boehlert. Greatly admired his passion and tenacity.”
Journalist Mark Harris offered his condolences to everyone who knew Eric:
“This is an awful loss. Eric Boehlert was a remarkable and staunch advocate for greater honesty in the press, a remarkable Twitter presence, and a man of conscience who knew how to call bullshit and who to call it on. Condolences to all who knew him.”
Hillary Clinton even expressed her devastation over the sudden loss, saying:
“I’m devastated for his family and friends and will miss his critical work to counteract misinformation and media bias. What a loss.”
Our hearts just break for this family. We are keeping them in our thoughts as they mourn Eric’s death.
[Image via Montclair State University/YouTube]
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