John Higgins, business editor of Broadcasting & Cable and a veritable institution in the industry, died of a heart attack this week. He’ll be sorely missed. Among the bevy of nice tributes on the B&C site is one from Tom Wolzien that captures Higgins remarkably well. Here’s an excerpt:

John Higgins was the best financial analyst not on Wall Street. The skills of being a financial reporter and being a financial analyst are interchangeable, to great extent. It just depends on who you work for and whether you’re governed by securities regulations or the First Amendment.
Like the best reporters or analysts, Higgins built his network well. But more than building, John was the network; a focal point for ideas, for trades of information and reports, and for spying on the competition. He was, in one human force, what Berlin was to the Cold War, or Hong Kong was to the spies of Asia. Those at the Times or the Journal who didn’t hire him because of his somewhat rough sartorial habits and similarly rough personality never knew what they missed.
When he’d call, “Hiiggiinnss,” he’d say. “What do you think about “ or “Do you have a clue about” or “(insert many names) is saying this about…is he full of xxxx or what? or “That lying xxxx is at it again, why do they keep people like that around?” or simply, “I’m doing xxxx, whatcha got?”...
Those who know how the media information engine room works, will also know that the impact of this loss will go far wider than this magazine. It is the loss of a man at the center… a man whose tendrils wrapped themselves around and through the entire industry. John Higgins was the Information Superhighway.