Rob Hiaasen

American journalist (1959–2018)

Maria Mills
​
(m. 1985)​
Children3RelativesCarl Hiaasen (brother)AwardsKnight Journalism Fellow

Rob Hiaasen (February 9, 1959[1] – June 28, 2018) was an American journalist and assistant editor at The Capital, a newspaper published in Annapolis, Maryland.[2] He also taught at the University of Maryland's Philip Merrill College of Journalism.[3] A native of Plantation, then a rural suburb of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Hiaasen began his career at The Palm Beach Post before joining The Baltimore Sun as a feature writer and where he later wrote a regular column.[4] He was shot and killed at work at The Capital during the Capital Gazette shooting.

Early life and education

Hiaasen was from Fort Lauderdale, Florida,[5] born in 1959 and raised in Plantation, Florida, then a rural suburb of Fort Lauderdale. He had an older brother, the novelist Carl Hiaasen, and two older sisters.[2] He graduated from the University of Florida.[3]

Career

Hiaasen began his journalism career at WPTF in Raleigh, North Carolina, working there from 1984 to 1985.[6] In the 1990s, Hiaasen worked at The Palm Beach Post where he covered local politics.[5] He conducted an award-winning investigation into the case of David J. Acer, the Jensen Beach dentist who allegedly infected his patients with HIV.[7] Hiaasen also worked at radio stations in the South.[2]

In 1993, he moved to Maryland to become a feature writer at The Baltimore Sun.[8] Hiaasen later became a columnist where he wrote in-depth stories such as one about Roger H. Martin, who took an unusual sabbatical from a career as a university administrator to become a fresh student at St. John's College.[9] Hiaasen also wrote considerably about Kirk Bloodworth, a death row inmate who was the first in the United States to be cleared of wrongdoing through DNA evidence.[2] He was a staff reporter for the Baltimore Sun for 15 years.[10]

He wrote a short fiction story entitled, "Over My Dead Body". It was published in 2006 in Baltimore Noir (Akashic Books), a collection of stories about the city written by several Baltimore Sun journalists including Laura Lippman, who also served as the editor of the book.[11] A novel, "Float Plan," was published posthumously in September 2018, with proceeds donated to Everytown for Gun Safety.[12]

Hiaasen joined The Capital in 2010 as a Sunday columnist and assistant editor[2] and also worked as an adjunct professor at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism.[13]

Personal life and death

In June 1985, Hiaasen married Maria Hiaasen (née Mills),[6] a former journalist and English teacher. Together, they had three children.[2] His older brother, Carl Hiaasen, is an author and journalist, known for writing and publishing Hoot. Rob Hiaasen was a resident of Timonium, Maryland.[10]

On June 28, 2018, Hiaasen was one of five people who were shot and killed during the Capital Gazette shooting. It was his wife's birthday.[14]

Awards

Hiaasen was a John S. Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford.[2]

Selected works

— (2006). "Over My Dead Body". In Lippman, Laura (ed.). Baltimore Noir. Akashic Books. pp. 60–71. ISBN 978-1-936070-19-0.

See also

References

  1. ^ Hiaasen, Rob (February 10, 2018). "Rob Hiaasen: Little did I know". Capital Gazette. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Marbella, Jean (June 28, 2018). "Capital Gazette shooting victim Rob Hiaasen: A joyful stylist, a generous mentor". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Ruane, Michael E. (June 28, 2018). "Rob Hiaasen, remembered as a 'great colleague and a real craftsman'". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  4. ^ Lippman, Laura (June 29, 2018). "At the Capital Gazette, the Death of a Reporter's Reporter". The New York Times. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Ovalle, David (June 28, 2018). "Rob Hiaasen, journalist killed in Maryland newsroom shooting, had deep South Florida ties". The Miami Herald. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Cain, Brooke (June 29, 2018). "'Just a great guy': Former colleagues at Raleigh's WPTF recall slain journalist Rob Hiaasen". The News & Observer. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  7. ^ Cerabino, Frank (June 28, 2018). "Rob Hiaasen: An exemplary life, a violent death in Annapolis". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  8. ^ Pignataro, Juliana Rose (June 28, 2018). "Remembering the victims of the Capital Gazette shooting". Newsweek. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  9. ^ Martin, Roger H. (September 2, 2008). Racing Odysseus: A College President Becomes a Freshman Again. University of California Press. pp. 248. ISBN 978-0-520-94207-3.
  10. ^ a b Shannon, Joel; Jansen, Bart; James, Mike (June 28, 2018). "Capital Gazette shooting victims: 'Gifted' assistant editor, mother of four, new hire among those dead". USA Today. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  11. ^ Bigsby, C. W. E. (October 10, 2013). Viewing America. Cambridge University Press. p. 210. ISBN 978-1-107-04393-0.
  12. ^ McCauley, Mary Carole. "For the family of slain Capital Gazette editor, publishing his novel is a 'Float Plan'". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
  13. ^ "Rob Hiaasen". Philip Merrill College of Journalism. University of Maryland. November 27, 2017. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  14. ^ McFadden, David; Finley, Ben (June 28, 2018). "4 Journalists, Sales Assistant Killed at Maryland Newspaper". NBC4 Washington. Retrieved June 29, 2018.