Has Nigel’s Column been Dropped from New in Chess?

[Wayne Komer]

Has Nigel’s Column been Dropped from New in Chess?

February 11, 2019

The latest New in Chess magazine (2019#1) has arrived. There is Daniil Dubov’s picture on the cover and many interesting articles inside, but no column by Nigel Short.

His “Short Stories” has been informative, literate and controversial but evidently is no more. Wikipedia says that it started in January 2011.

These from the discussion in the EC Forum:

- It appears that the New in Chess magazine has dropped Nigel as a columnist. He doesn't appear in the most recent edition and is reported to have announced his dismissal whilst at the Gibraltar tournament.

- Do we know if ‘dismissal’ is quite the right word here? By which I mean was Short sacked - because he did something to upset his employer or otherwise - or was the column just brought to an end, NiC deciding to move in another direction? The latter being pretty common if somewhat less dramatic

- My informant, who had been present at the Q&A session in Gibraltar phrased it as "Nigel said he'd been sacked".

- Odd that Nige should not have mentioned it on his twitter feed yet. He’s not normally shy and retiring after all

- He’s now said “ A fear that my elevation to FIDE VP would constrain my independence, was the reason given.“

Later:

Finally, this morning on Nigel’s Twitter page:

After eight years of entertaining and sometimes controversial columns, it is a pity that my services are no longer required...

To which Olimpiu G. Urcan replied:

Agree or disagree with his ideas, Nigel Short's column for @NewInChess was incisive and well-written. It's disappointing not to see it there anymore.

https://twitter.com/nigelshortchess?...Ctwgr%5Eauthor

[Gordon Ritchie]

Nigel tells me his services "were no longer required"..

[Wayne Komer]

Has Nigel’s Column been Dropped from New in Chess?

February 17, 2019


From the EC Forum:

(Nigel has) now said, “A fear that my elevation to FIDE VP would constrain my independence, was the reason given.“

Brian Towers - Presumably Judit Polgar's elevation to FIDE VP came too late (10th December) for her to be axed from the January edition of NiC. Will she be gone too in the March edition?

https://www.ecforum.org.uk/viewtopic...966443#p227658

__________

We await an announcement from New in Chess on all of this

[Gordon Ritchie]

Judit Polgar's column covers chess technique. Nigel's was more general and increasingly political so I can understand, even if I regret, the editorial decision.

[Kerry Liles]

I often enjoyed reading Nigel's biting commentary although a few times he really pushed the envelope a little too much. His views about women in chess (and in general, it seems) are not acceptable at all. Overall, two pages in such a magazine is a rather large expenditure for commentary and, as you say, more and more politicized rhetoric.

[Wayne Komer]

Has Nigel’s Column been Dropped from New in Chess?

March 21, 2019

From New in Chess 2019 #2 (March 2019):

Editorial Postscript (page 12)

Just like many of our readers, we are (obviously) big fans of Nigel Short’s writings. But it is true that we decided to discontinue his column. The reason is that we feel Nigel Short’s new position as FIDE vice-president conflicts with what we expect a columnist to be: an independent voice who can say whatever he wants. We feel that his political position would inevitably restrict him. The decision has certainly nothing to do with the quality of his work. Not at all. That’s why we have asked Nigel Short to keep writing for us and we very much hope he will. Nigel is a wonderful chess writer and we are confident we will have many more great pieces by him in New In Chess.