Longtime Philadelphia Inquirer staffer Gail Shister announced last week that she will leave the publication June 1. The out journalist came to the Inquirer as its first female sports writer in 1979 and three years later started writing a daily television column for the publication, which she penned for 25 years. The Inquirer discontinued the column because of employment cutbacks in 2007, and Shister became a metro reporter, writing mostly profile pieces. Shister said she’s leaving the paper to focus on her teaching career at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as on her television column at TvNewser.com. The National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association inducted Shister into its Hall of Fame last August at the group’s convention. Photo: Jason Smith