At times, yes, it does feel as if we are captaining the Titanic.
Last week, The Onion published its last paper edition. That same day, some 700 jobs were cut from the Tribune Company—an organization that, most notably, publishes the LA Times and Chicago Tribune, as well as six other daily newspapers.
And, closer to home, our crosstown brethren at The Bulletin received the troubling news that their health care benefits would be cut. In somewhat Scrooge-like fashion, the news was reportedly announced very suddenly.
We have received phone calls and emails all day—some from frustrated staffers, others from friends of frustrated staffers there.
We are truly sorry—it is troubling indeed to see our industry constricting like a boa constrictor on itself.
Yes, we recognize that a business—even one in the public interest like newspapers—does need to consider its bottom line to stay viable. But, as the newspaper industry continues to reorganize itself over the next few years, we also hope that these calculations are done with a consideration for the importance these jobs have to individuals and their families, as well as to the community.
This article appears in Nov 28 – Dec 4, 2013.
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I certainly feel sorry for the people who are affected by this downsizing.
But I shed no tears for the newspaper industry itself or for the people at the top. These big papers, as well as the Bulletin, are not really suffering from the rising popularity of the internet, but from the democratization of news. And they brought this on themselves. For decades, they provided a product slanted toward the interests of their big corporate supporters. Just look at the Bulletin’s shilling for big developers by advocating expanding the UGB when there are literally hundreds of undeveloped residential lots around town. People are sick of reading propaganda authored by the 1% for the 1%, and they are looking elsewhere for information.
There is ample money to be made in providing information that people can actually believe in, but who will step into that void?
I agree with DJ. Note that it’s the Billionaire Koch brothers (whose shilling for the uber 1% + the conservatives in the last 25 yrs has pushed campaign costs out of sight) bought the LA Times, the Trib, and laid off employees!