In creating Mammoth Monthly magazine, Jean and George Shirk bring a combined 50 years of journalism, public relations, advertising and promotion experience to their new venture.

"We're delighted that we can bring our combined knowledge to this exciting new publication," said George Shirk, 53, who resigned as Editor in Chief of San Francisco-based Wired News to create the magazine with his wife, Jean.

 "I want Mammoth Monthly to be an enthusiastic and fair look at this wonderful place and what's going on here," said Jean Shirk, 46, whobegan her career as a newspaper reporter in New Jersey before moving into advertising, public relations, and promotions for music and the arts in San Francisc o.

"We welcome the community's input, and we will strive to have open minds and open ears," she said.

The Shirks have had a love affair with Mammoth that dates back many years.

"We used to joke that we were the only two Bay Area people who even knew about it," said George Shirk, who before joining the team that built SFGate.com in 1994 was an award-winning sportswriter, covering major league baseball and NBA basketball for the San Francisco Chronicle, among other news outlets.

The couple has always preferred Mammoth to the more convenient Lake Tahoe, which Jean once described as "like the New Jersey shore, only round."

In 1996 the Shirks bought a condominium in Mammoth Lakes, further strengthening their commitment to the town and their passion for theEastern Sierra.

"It's one thing to have an emotional investment," said George Shirk, "and it is quite another to have a financial stake in the place that you love the most. We've paid close attention to what has transpired in Mammoth over the years and we care very much about its future." Why a magazine? 

"The community has been very receptive to our ideas, and we're writers and editors, at heart: it's what we know how to do," says Jean Shirk. As publisher of Mammoth Monthly, Jean Shirk oversees the advertising and business end, while George Shirk serves as editor.

A 1973 graduate of the University of Iowa, George Shirk has taught journalism at the undergraduate and graduate collegiate levels and is a member of the Professional Advisory Boards of the Graduate School of Journalism at University of California, Berkeley and the University of Iowa�s School of Journalism and Mass Communications. He covered news at the Des Moines Register and Tribune Co. before joining the sports staff at the Philadelphia Inquirer between 1980 and 1985. During that time he covered the 1983 championship Philadelphia 76ers. He spent three seasons covering the San Francisco Giants for the San Jose Mercury News, beginning in 1985. In 1987 he accepted a position with the San Francisco Chronicle covering NBA basketball and major league baseball.

In 1994 he was named the first news director of the then-fledgling SFGate.com, the online arm of the San Francisco Chronicle Publishing Co., helping it grow into one of the most successful and widely read online news ventures, with a staff of about 40. In 1998 George Shirk accepted a position with Wired Digital, Inc., the online component of Wired magazine, to be the Editor in Chief of Wired News (www.wired.com). He helped merge Wired News into new parent company Lycos, then created international editions in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Argentina, Brazil and Mexico. He has lectured frequently, most recently in Zurich, Switzerland; Taipei, Taiwan; and in Spanish at the Universidad Austral in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Jean Shirk began her career as a general assignment news reporter for the Courier News in Bridgewater, New Jersey, near her home of Bloomfield and Rutgers University, where she earned her degree in political science.

"I've always been interested in the world around me, and to work as a journalist is a great job," she said. "You get to follow your natural curiosity, ask questions and learn, and get paid for it."

Jean Shirk also worked as a reporter for the San Mateo Times in the San Francisco Bay Area before founding her own record label and starting a second career in the music business. For nine years she worked with renowned promoter Bill Graham Presents in San Francisco, doing promotions, publicity and advertising for the world-famous Fillmore Auditorium, the Warfield Theater, Shoreline Amphitheatre, and other venues. She was assistant public relations director for the San Francisco Symphony (1997-98), and public relations director for Cal Performances, the University of California, Berkeley�s events presenter, until the end of 1999.

George Shirk is an avid road cyclist, hiker, and downhill skier and aspiring mountaineer. He completed his first High Sierra Century in2001, and recently finished his second RAGBRAI (a 500-mile-plus bicycle ride across Iowa). Jean Shirk has done some non-technical/easy climbing, including Mt. Dana, Mt. Hoffman, Mt. Whitney and Mt. Ritter; enjoys bicycling and hiking, and loves learning about nature and the great out of doors.

"We consider ourselves extremely fortunate to be able to work and live in this fascinating place," George Shirk said. "We can't wait to get started."