When Gary Levin departedVarietyto serve as USA Today's top TV reporter in early 1998, "Touched by an Angel" was still airing on CBS. "The X-Files" was a hot property for Fox. "Suddenly Susan" anchored Mondays for NBC. "Boy Meets World" was halfway through its run on ABC. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" was ascending on the WB and "Moesha" was an anchor for UPN. More from Variety Gannett's Taylor Swift Reporter, Revealed: Meet Bryan West, the First Full-Time Swiftie Journalist (EXCLUSIVE) Vizio Adds 30 Free Streaming Channels to Smart TVs USA Today Headquarters in Virginia Evacuated After Reports of Man With Weapon After 28 years at USA Today, Levin is drawing the curtain on his full-time journalism career, stepping down as television editor. The television industry was light years removed from today's sprawling, global pay-TV marketplace at the time Levin arrived at USA Today's New York office. Which means he was perfectly positioned at what was then the nation's most-read newspaper to chronicle the wild ride of business, content and technological innovation that have vastly expanded television. In a salute to Levin's unusually long run at the Gannett-owned newspaper, USA Today colleagues paid tribute to his skills as a journalist and to his character as a colleague. Levin was recently presented with the ultimate Fourth Estate tribute — a mock front page of USA Today with stories heralding his longevity and his achievements. Robert Bianco, a longtime TV critic for USA Today, emphasized how strongly Levin supported him even when Bianco's reviews angered Levin's sources. "My god, he was fun to work with. Wickedly funny — and sometimes just wicked — a dry sense of humor lightened by an incongruous fondness for slapstick," Bianco wrote. Another former USA Today colleague, reporter, Bill Keveney, cited Levin's drive to break news and deliver strong stories on his beat. Levin created the "Save Our Shows" feature in USA Today as a vehicle to draw attention to worthy programs in need of a viewership boost to keep them on the air. "I will always admire Gary's shoe-leather reporting — from daily calls with his envied list of contacts to painstaking work on Save Our Shows," Keveney wrote. "And I appreciated his blunt honesty which could bruise a delicate ego but earned him respect from TV execs." Before USA Today, Levin spent two and a half years withVarietyin New York, covering TV, marketing, advertising, sports media, broadcast news and business. Earlier in his career he was a reporter for Advertising Age. Below are two examples of Levin's work forVariety: Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? Samsung, Sonos, Criterion Collection Among Top Brands on Sale for Labor Day - See Running List Here Sign up forVariety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us onFacebook,Twitter, andInstagram.