Friday, December 05, 2008
Friday | Nov. 28 | Got news, or a question?
Can't find the right spot for your comment? Post it here, in this open forum. Real Time Comments: parked here, 24/7. (Earlier editions.)
Hattiesberg: We now have an equally sad answer
Before the layoff started, I read several comments bearing a desperate-sounding question: Does anyone know anything about Hattiesberg? They were asking about Mississippi's Hattiesberg American, of course.
So, all week, I kept my eye out. But even though I suspected it would be bad, it was still shocking to see: The American is shutting down its presses in February, and moving production to The Clarion-Ledger, 100 miles north in Jackson. The move wipes out 38 jobs -- more than 20% of the workforce. The American is joining a growing number of papers that are economizing, by junking their presses.
So, all week, I kept my eye out. But even though I suspected it would be bad, it was still shocking to see: The American is shutting down its presses in February, and moving production to The Clarion-Ledger, 100 miles north in Jackson. The move wipes out 38 jobs -- more than 20% of the workforce. The American is joining a growing number of papers that are economizing, by junking their presses.
What I'm doing right now
10:50 p.m., San Francisco time: Photographing a $5 bill that a reader sent for a Gannett Blog subscription. I ask readers to consider supporting my blog with a voluntary subscription of $5 per quarter. You may pay online, using the "Donate" tool in the green sidebar, upper right. Or you can snail-mail checks (payable to me) or cash via Jim Hopkins, 584 Castro St., #823, San Francisco, Calif. 94114-2594.
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Part 3 | Thurs. | Dec. 4 | Got news, a question?
Can't find the right spot for your comment? Post it here, in this open forum. Real Time Comments: parked here, 24/7. (Parts 1 and 2.)
If Scripps loses $15M, what is GCI's hit in Detroit?
Maybe this is why I've got a feeling something big is brewing in ominously-quiet Detroit:To start, surely you saw that E.W. Scripps expects to lose $15 million on the Rocky Mountain News this year, prompting the publisher to put the paper on the auction block today. If that's the toll in Denver, how much is the Detroit Media Partnership losing on the Detroit Free Press and the other daily in that joint operating agency, The Detroit News? Remember, the Freep was already bleeding a year ago, well before the credit crisis engulfed the U.S. auto industry -- right there in the Freep's back yard. Detroit's economy has got to be in worse shape than Denver's.
Gannett has controlled the Detroit JOA since buying the Freep in 2005 from Knight Ridder, then selling the News to MediaNews Group. In Denver, MediaNews owns the Post, which is in a JOA with the Rocky. Blogger Alan Mutter wrote today that MediaNews is the most likely buyer for the Rocky, which would probably then be shut down -- giving MediaNews sole control of the Denver market. Is anything like that afoot in Detroit?
Waiting for Detroit's plan
With Corporate now on a rampage to cut costs anywhere, the Freep and the JOA would be expected to report job reductions in the current layoff, even after buying out 116 employees in July. But we've heard nothing yet from Detroit Media Partnership CEO David Hunke, who also is Freep publisher. Ditto for Hunke's boss, USA Today Publisher Craig Moon.
Then a reader pointed me to yesterday's alternative Metro Times, where columnist Jack Lessenberry notes "persistent rumors have been circulating that the Detroit Free Press was on the verge of publishing mainly on the Internet." And then there was this curious comment, by Anonymous@7:53 p.m. . . .
Earlier: Documents reveal double-digit profit margins at scores of papers now on verge of massive layoffs.
Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
[Image: yesterday's front page, Newseum]
Calling all laid-off business news journalists
Talking Biz News blogger Chris Roush has posted the following, and asked me to do the same here.
If you have details of business news desk workers at Gannett papers who have lost their jobs this week, please e-mail them to me at croush@email.unc.edu. All correspondence will remain anonymous unless you'd prefer to be quoted. I'll post all of the names that I can get by the end of Friday. I'd like to commemorate their work in business journalism, and by exposing their names to the general business journalism public, maybe someone will offer them a new job.
If you have details of business news desk workers at Gannett papers who have lost their jobs this week, please e-mail them to me at croush@email.unc.edu. All correspondence will remain anonymous unless you'd prefer to be quoted. I'll post all of the names that I can get by the end of Friday. I'd like to commemorate their work in business journalism, and by exposing their names to the general business journalism public, maybe someone will offer them a new job.
Poynter Online: Profit-layoff comparison 'bogus'
That's according to Biz Blog author Rick Edmonds, who criticizes a former Gannett employee (and maybe me, too) over those newspaper profit margins and the current round of job cuts. "It's bogus,'' he writes, "to juxtapose some leaked profit margins at Gannett papers for the first three quarters of 2007 -- ranging as high as 42% -- with this week's layoffs." Edmonds explains.
Connell to E&P: Cuts will wipe out 2,000 jobs
Gannett now expects to eliminate about 2,000 jobs in the community newspaper division alone, says a new Editor & Publisher story that suggests the final tally may be higher, once two of the biggest sites outside the division -- USA Today and Detroit -- reveal their plans.
The trade publication quotes spokeswoman Tara Connell, who rarely communicates with Gannett Blog. Previously, Connell had said only that the number of jobs cut would be "significantly less" than 3,000. Corporate had set a goal of reducing employment 10% in the 30,000-employee community newspaper division. Late this morning, the number of jobs eliminated had already reached nearly 1,800 at 65 of 85 papers, according to a running tally by Gannett Blog readers.
Until now, Corporate did not know how many jobs were being eliminated, Connell says, because individual papers decided which cuts to make. "We said that it was going to be locally decided and locally managed and that is exactly what happened," Connell told E&P.
Wiggle room alert
Connell's 2,000-job estimate doesn't include USA Today or the mysteriously quiet Detroit Free Press. Combined, the two employ perhaps 3,400, and are managed outside the community newspaper division. The Freep and the Gannett-controlled Detroit Media Partnership joint operating agency have not revealed any layoff plans. USAT has said only that it expects to eliminate 20 newsroom jobs; many more cuts are likely from other departments. Stay tuned.
Connell told E&P that all of the cuts are keeping with the company's mandate to keep expenses tied to revenue: "Hopefully," she said, "we will not have to do anymore (daily newspaper) layoffs, but it has to be kept in line with revenue." She also said other divisions outside of the community newspaper division are likely to be affected as well: "There have been and will continue to be layoffs throughout the company."
Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
[Image: today's front page, Newseum]
The trade publication quotes spokeswoman Tara Connell, who rarely communicates with Gannett Blog. Previously, Connell had said only that the number of jobs cut would be "significantly less" than 3,000. Corporate had set a goal of reducing employment 10% in the 30,000-employee community newspaper division. Late this morning, the number of jobs eliminated had already reached nearly 1,800 at 65 of 85 papers, according to a running tally by Gannett Blog readers.Until now, Corporate did not know how many jobs were being eliminated, Connell says, because individual papers decided which cuts to make. "We said that it was going to be locally decided and locally managed and that is exactly what happened," Connell told E&P.
Wiggle room alert
Connell's 2,000-job estimate doesn't include USA Today or the mysteriously quiet Detroit Free Press. Combined, the two employ perhaps 3,400, and are managed outside the community newspaper division. The Freep and the Gannett-controlled Detroit Media Partnership joint operating agency have not revealed any layoff plans. USAT has said only that it expects to eliminate 20 newsroom jobs; many more cuts are likely from other departments. Stay tuned.
Connell told E&P that all of the cuts are keeping with the company's mandate to keep expenses tied to revenue: "Hopefully," she said, "we will not have to do anymore (daily newspaper) layoffs, but it has to be kept in line with revenue." She also said other divisions outside of the community newspaper division are likely to be affected as well: "There have been and will continue to be layoffs throughout the company."
Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
[Image: today's front page, Newseum]
Day 3: Job losses near 1,800; Salinas whacks 31%
Gannett's downsizing has now claimed 1,794 newspaper jobs, according to a new Gannett Blog reader tally that also brings this heart breaker: The Salinas Californian eliminated a whopping 31% of its 130 jobs -- one of the biggest percentage losses yet.
But the final number of Gannett jobs lost is expected to be higher, because three of the biggest worksites haven't disclosed figures: USA Today; the Detroit Free Press and affiliates, plus The Cincinnati Enquirer. Combined employment at those three is around 4,400. Excluding USAT and Detroit, Corporate now says total job reductions will be about 2,000.
In Salinas, General Manager Terry Feinberg was struggling to find something to say when he told his paper: "As difficult as this is, it does provide us with an opportunity to take a look at everything we do.''
The paper reports: "Layoffs started Tuesday and finished Wednesday, with 21 people losing their jobs immediately and another 14 positions to be cut over the next six to eight weeks. Four positions were removed through attrition, and one person took a voluntary buyout, for a total of 40 jobs eliminated.''
California is one of four states where Gannett markets were especially hard hit when the real estate bubble collapsed (the other three: Arizona, Florida and Nevada). Plus, the Californian's circulation tanked recently, Deutsche Bank says. It plunged 13.3%, to 14,240 as of Sept. 30, from 16,416 a year before.
We've now accounted for 65 of the 85 community dailies, plus USA Today. Is your paper included? Please add your numbers and links to stories on our list, or in the comments section, below. Or e-mail confidentially via gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com].
[Image: yesterday's front page, Newseum]
But the final number of Gannett jobs lost is expected to be higher, because three of the biggest worksites haven't disclosed figures: USA Today; the Detroit Free Press and affiliates, plus The Cincinnati Enquirer. Combined employment at those three is around 4,400. Excluding USAT and Detroit, Corporate now says total job reductions will be about 2,000.
In Salinas, General Manager Terry Feinberg was struggling to find something to say when he told his paper: "As difficult as this is, it does provide us with an opportunity to take a look at everything we do.''The paper reports: "Layoffs started Tuesday and finished Wednesday, with 21 people losing their jobs immediately and another 14 positions to be cut over the next six to eight weeks. Four positions were removed through attrition, and one person took a voluntary buyout, for a total of 40 jobs eliminated.''
California is one of four states where Gannett markets were especially hard hit when the real estate bubble collapsed (the other three: Arizona, Florida and Nevada). Plus, the Californian's circulation tanked recently, Deutsche Bank says. It plunged 13.3%, to 14,240 as of Sept. 30, from 16,416 a year before.
We've now accounted for 65 of the 85 community dailies, plus USA Today. Is your paper included? Please add your numbers and links to stories on our list, or in the comments section, below. Or e-mail confidentially via gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com].
[Image: yesterday's front page, Newseum]
Part 2 | Real Time comments Thurs. open forum
This section is now closed to new comments; please go to Part 3.
Layoff stories: A sleepless night, then 'tears of joy'
Part of an occasional series of personal accounts by readers.
I was tipped off Monday night that I would be dumped after seven successful years with the company. I'm young, underpaid and have always produced. That night I slept in 10-minute bursts, with constant dreams that my wife was getting ready for work and I wasn't.
But the forewarning enabled me to be numb through the meeting with HR on Tuesday. The few who were staying seemed more broken up than those of us going. As soon as the HR lady finished wielding her axe, I hit the ground running scrounging for jobs. I remained stone-faced until I got to the car and saw a bunch of reporters' notebooks strewn in the back seat. That set me off a bit realizing my career as a reporter -- the only thing I've done for more than a decade -- was likely over.
By the time I finished the half-hour drive home, I had calls and messages indicating my prospects for employment were surprisingly good. The tears of sadness became tears of joy later in the afternoon with all the calls of support I received -- especially from those who I've hammered in my stories over the years. It made me feel good that they thought I was tough but fair.
I'm sad for the newspaper industry, sad that I'll no longer be part of whatever that future includes and more sad for those left behind who have to try to carry on. I'm going to be fine -- just in a different career. On Monday I was covering a political story, 24 hours later I was looking to switch teams. What a strange week.
A look in someone's eyes. A cardboard box on an empty desk. A final conversation. Please share your layoff story in two or three paragraphs. Post replies in the comments section, below. Or e-mail via gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
[Photo: Amazon]
I was tipped off Monday night that I would be dumped after seven successful years with the company. I'm young, underpaid and have always produced. That night I slept in 10-minute bursts, with constant dreams that my wife was getting ready for work and I wasn't.
But the forewarning enabled me to be numb through the meeting with HR on Tuesday. The few who were staying seemed more broken up than those of us going. As soon as the HR lady finished wielding her axe, I hit the ground running scrounging for jobs. I remained stone-faced until I got to the car and saw a bunch of reporters' notebooks strewn in the back seat. That set me off a bit realizing my career as a reporter -- the only thing I've done for more than a decade -- was likely over.By the time I finished the half-hour drive home, I had calls and messages indicating my prospects for employment were surprisingly good. The tears of sadness became tears of joy later in the afternoon with all the calls of support I received -- especially from those who I've hammered in my stories over the years. It made me feel good that they thought I was tough but fair.
I'm sad for the newspaper industry, sad that I'll no longer be part of whatever that future includes and more sad for those left behind who have to try to carry on. I'm going to be fine -- just in a different career. On Monday I was covering a political story, 24 hours later I was looking to switch teams. What a strange week.
A look in someone's eyes. A cardboard box on an empty desk. A final conversation. Please share your layoff story in two or three paragraphs. Post replies in the comments section, below. Or e-mail via gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.[Photo: Amazon]
Former top editor Bushee on future of newspapers
Ward Bushee (left) spoke to San Francisco's KQED public radio this morning about The San Francisco Chronicle, which he joined as editor this year after leaving The Arizona Republic. (He told KQED an amazing story about a near-death experience that I'd never heard.) The interview is available on the station's website, or you can listen to it below:Part 1 | Real Time Comments Thurs. open forum
This section is now closed to new comments; please go to Part 2.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
