War on body-shaming: Newspaper fires columnist for writing that nearby airline passenger was fat A column about sitting next to an overweight airline passenger ended Alan Linda’s 30-year run as a community columnist for the Fergus Falls Daily Journal. "I've gotten an overwhelmingly positive response over the decision," Tim Engstrom, the Daily Journal's editor and publisher, said Monday. "People say it's the right thing to do." In an editorial last week, the newspaper's editorial board explained the decision to cut ties with Linda, an Otter Tail County resident whose humorous columns have run in several other Minnesota newspapers over the years. "Last Friday, his column was about sitting next to a larger person on an airplane," the board wrote. "In the column, he called the person 'fat' and went on to describe a lack of sympathy for the man's weight issue.  "Not only did this offend many of our readers, it offended us," the editorial said. "Bullying others is not OK. Body shaming is not OK. … The list goes on, but you get the picture. Let's debate the issues, not make personal attacks on people." http://www.startribune.com/fat-shaming-columnist-gets-booted-from-fergus-falls-newspaper/414260203/