The gossip world giveth jobs, and the gossip world taketh jobs away. Last week, Page Six hired Emily Smith to replace departed deputy editor Paula Froelich. Now, the column has let Bill Hoffman go. What happened?

He was never the prototypical P6 staffer; he was primarily a rewrite man before joining the gossip page in the wake of the Jared Paul Stern scandal. Last year, Hoffman found himself embroiled in a lawsuit over an item P6 ran regarding a sex tape showing the fiancee of radio shock jock Opie; that issue still has not been fully sorted out. One insider tells us that Hoffman, who's in his 50s, may have just outgrown caring about the celebrity detritus that made up his beat on P6.

Dylan Stableford also got word that Hoffman was dropped from the gossip page. We're waiting for comment from the Post. Update: And it is, "No comment."

Page Six is younger now: Corynne Steindler, Neel Shah, and Emily Smith, reporting to overlord Richard Johnson.