TV columnist Michael Ausiello is leaving EW to start his own site. This memo is going out to EW staffers:

To the staff:

Lately I've had the great fortune to share lots of good news with you-like record-breaking EW.com traffic and 12 consecutive months of increased ad pages. But now, a bit of sad news: TV columnist Michael Ausiello will be leaving at the end of October to start his own site with the digital media company MMC.

Mike distinguished himself at EW on his very first day on the job when he broke the news that Shannen Doherty was returning to guest star in the "90210" reboot. Since then, the scoops have flown from his fingers daily, and he has been the first to report some of the biggest TV stories of the past couple of years: from Katherine Heigl leaving "Grey's Anatomy" to Kal Penn leaving "House" for the White House.

Among his peers in the industry, Mike has a well-earned reputation for tenacity, diligence and integrity. And you won't find a more passionate champion for quality TV (or for Smurfs for that matter).

Please join me in wishing Mike the very best in his new adventure.

Jess

Jess Cagle
Managing Editor
Entertainment Weekly