Updated at 6:10 a.m. ET, June 28: Friday's massacre: Real change, or real retribution?
Denise Ivey just told The Courier-Journal staff in Louisville, Ky., that she's leaving as publisher, with a replacement to be named within 60 days. Barbara Henry is quitting as publisher and group chief in Indianapolis at the Star, Gannett just announced, in a release describing a major reorganization. Short iPhone post; will update. Comment, below, please!
Friday, June 27, 2008
56 comments:
Jim says: "Proceed with caution; this is a free-for-all comment zone. I try to correct or clarify incorrect information. But I can't catch everything. Please keep your posts focused on Gannett and media-related subjects. Note that I occasionally review comments in advance, to reject inappropriate ones. And I ignore hostile posters, and recommend you do, too."
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unfortunately, the people who are actually responsible for the debacle known as Gannett aren't the ones being axed.
ReplyDeleteOur publisher here in Indianapolis also "retired" today.
ReplyDeleteOther changes besides Denise Ivey and Barbara Henry. Some reorganization as well. Here is the link to the official details:
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/6exk2z
Too bad that these two, probably two of the more competent people in the company, have been shown the door. WOW!
ReplyDeleteWhat goes around comes around. I only wish that I was able to have seen the same thing happen to Curley, Watson, Sherlock, and Collins. We'll see what the employees of these properties have to say. The devil is always in the details.
ReplyDeleteI thought Barbara was an outstanding leader but she also made her share of mistakes. I was axed by one of her choices who came in and butchered what was previously announced as one of the best departments in Gannett.
ReplyDeleteIn a way, I suppose I owe her for that, too. I'm in the tech sector now and business is booming.
Cheers Barbara!
Something here stinks.
ReplyDeleteMajor staffing announcements on a Friday afternoon. At the end of a fiscal year. Before a holiday week.
Think somebody at GCI HQ is hoping this doesn't get a lot of play?
They are also reducing the number of regional groups from 5 to 4. The new West group will be headed by Des Moines' Laura Hollingsworth, who has been publisher less than a year (but was GM under Mary Stier when she was Midwest Group president.)
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ReplyDeleteThis may not be good news for Dennis Ryerson, the top editor at Indy. Henry brought him in (they'd worked together at Des Moines)and he was very loyal to her.
ReplyDeleteI have known Michelle Krans for 17 or 18 years, and she is a very talented, sharp woman. Dickey is just smart enough to surround himself with talented people. Why is it you have to assume a woman got there on her back? (HELLO -- it is 2008!) I lived in Palm Springs -- it is not a fabulous place to live. I was there for a decade and could not wait to leave. Get your head out of the gutter.
ReplyDeleteCincinnati's Buchanan should be added to the list of soon to be former employees.
ReplyDeleteShe's led more harm than good and she should not continue to get off with the excuse that it’s the economy, as that’s not the full story. Her abusive style and unwillingness to listen has resulted in notable losses of revenues, profits, talented people and company value. And, Dubow knows it.
FYI ... Ryerson also worked for Barbara Henry in Great Falls.
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ReplyDeleteOMG! This reorf is CRA-ZAZY!
ReplyDeleteWhere do I start? VP? No offence but she isn't ready to lead the corporate charge. Isn't it great that we have laid off hundreds in the field and we get 2 additional VP's in corporate? This is insane!!! How can this happen? Who is running the show here? and What the heck is Dickey in charge of? Everyone else didn't have 2 corporate VP's.
Can't wait to see if corpaorate ad sales and marketing bail reporting to Krans! This is comical to watch!
Is there anyone left to promote into Ivey and Henry 's job? look att he last 2 hires into pub jobs- Lindus and Roegner! BIG JOKES!
this company is going down the drain in a very big way.
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ReplyDeleteBarbara Henry was a waste. As was her side kick Ivey. Both of them were Sue Clark Johnson's hitmen. It is about time they were both thrown out. Can you imagine having to kiss those wrinkly asses all day long?
ReplyDeleteI did and it sucked!!! Ding dong the witch is gone!!!
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ReplyDeleteAnon 6:30p: You are absolutely right!!!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteAll: Please cut me some slack on the "bitch," etc., references. I don't want to turn off commenting here. But I also want to get to bed.
ReplyDeleteJim,
ReplyDeleteI do not understand this blog. Barbara Henry is and was a bitch. The bitch of all times. This is the most joyous occasion for all of us in Indianapolis. You of all people are going to censor this. What kind of blog is this. Freedom of speech, 1st amendment bullshit. Watch dog my ass.
You are accusing people of being incompetent and stealing and lying. You talk about how Gracia is ugly and Craig is a loser. How Wendel Van Lare is fat and bulbous.
Barb Henry is a bitch. A female dog. Nothing disparaging about that. The plain truth.
Why dont you take a poll of my collegues at Indy and you will see that we are all celebrating this news. Christmas came early.
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ReplyDeleteA wise person once told me to be very careful of what I wished for. He said the end result could be a whole lot worse. Being optimistic I dismissed his comments. 10 years later and a few more gray hairs I can tell you that he was correct.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what this means for all of the VPs that Denise brought to Louisville?
ReplyDeleteIvey is a strong manager and has done a fine job in L'ville. She's posted good numbers, trains some fine managers who have been promoted, and generally righted the ship there. Could it be her job is done and she's simply retiring? Or is that too tame for this dialogue?
ReplyDeleteI have to imagine there is some strategic reason for doing this now, just before the end of Q2 and a couple weeks before the next earnings call -- which has got to be awful, based on all indicators around the country.
ReplyDeleteAll this ugly name-calling is wasted energy. I understand the impulse; I've worked for every kind of miserable Gannettoid you can name. But the whole industry is imploding because the money is draining away. Yes, the industry has been mostly complacent and technologically short-sighted for decades, but the audience has moved on and now it's too late to save what used to be journalism.
Brace yourself for a future where local news is big collection of whatever the web sites can scour up for free, with a little sprinkling of "investigative" reporting as a fig leaf. Most of the customers are no longer willing to pay for more. No amount of hand-wringing or name-calling is going to change that.
I think what some people miss is that there are a lot of people in the management ranks that, like many of those not in management, are just as disillusioned. They really do not like making the cuts. Could be that even though people haven't always seen that in Barbara and/or Denise it's there and is behind today's announcements. I don't know if they retired or were forced out, but given their ages I think it's fair to say they probably got tired of it all, especially after Dubie's bonus.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, there must be some justice in the world because Leslie Giallombardo, who under Sue-Clark Johnson was allowed to act like, and believe, she had a brain, might just now be the first person who gets two buyouts from Gannett so that she will, once again, go away so someone (I guess Michelle) will be left to try to pick up the pieces. Then again, maybe Dubie and Martore will push for her to be promoted since she's done such a fabulous job since she was brought back.
The Indianapolis Star and The Courier-Journal are two of the many Gannett papers that are actually carrying their own weight. I believe Barbara Henry and Denise Ivey saw the writing on the wall and exercised their options to grab what they could and run as fast as they can into a comfortable retirement. The VPs they are leaving behind are going to be shaken until they know who to kiss up to. The new retirement freeze is about to go into effect and they are leaving before it does. Maybe they aren't so dumb afterall...
ReplyDeleteDenise and Barb were thrown out. They are all going to sleep in the Sue Clark Johnson bed as a threesome. Yuck!!!
ReplyDeleteMaybe we can throw Giallombardo into that water bed of worn out newspaper wanks!
I know Michele pretty well and she is going to toss Giallombardo
I just read the release and it says Henry is 55 years old! Man she looks like she is 80! Ivey looks good for 58 and Laura H is the sweet little hottie from Iowa, but she ain't no 41, she is looking more like 50.
ReplyDeleteOuch!
This is easily one of the worst comment sections I've seen in regards to one of Jim's posts. Perhaps someone did get her comeuppance, and it's fine to celebrate that kind of thing - especially when there's so little to celebrate within this industry anymore - but at least maintain some semblance of professionalism. Most of you are writers; you should be able to express yourselves more appropriately.
ReplyDeleteSorry to sound like the morality brigade, and believe me that's not the side I typically take, but considering this is one of the best blogs to go to for updates on Gannett and the industry in general I would hope it would remain uncluttered by useless rants / foolishness that would normally be found on, say, AngryJournalist.
This thread is useless without pictures.
ReplyDeleteCould it be possible that there will be more publishers leaving their post? Could the regionalism be part of what is to come. One Publisher for 3 or 4 papers? Perhaps the new publisher at these 2 papers will be just one person since they're close in proximity?
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the most active posts for this blog. This must be a record for Jim. Congrats Jim.
ReplyDeleteToo bad for Henry and Ivey. They sucked anyway.
Good bye oldies!
Hello Laura H. I agree with the earlier poster, she is a MILF (Manager I would Like to Fire)
What a bunch of losers. If you want to bitch about managers in an insipid and insulting way, do it on your break while you're smoking your Kools out behind the dumpster. Otherwise, grow a brain before you post.
ReplyDeleteLouisville and Indy have to be really worried now that someone like Steve Silberman, editor of The Desert Sun in Palm Springs, could become their publisher. Silberman, supposedly being trained by the one-and-only Michelle Krans (who just got promoted -- she was trained by the other one-and-only Bob Dickey, is a major passive-agressive, indecisive man who would sell his first-born to keep kissing Dickey and Krans' ass. Be aware, publisher-less papers in Gannett.
ReplyDeleteIf this is the decision of Dickey to dump Ivey and Henry, I will say "Bravo". Well done Bob. I have been at Gannett for over 18 years and have worked with Henry and it is no pleasure. She is like Dubow with breasts!
ReplyDeleteFor all of you who would defend her, walk a mile in my shoes and you will be jumping for joy today.
I am from USA Today and I did not know Barbara Henry that well, but it sounds like many people on this post loathe her as much as we loathe Jeff Webber. The only difference is Barbara Henry is leaving and Jeff still has a job!
ReplyDeleteMaybe we need to "Dickify" Moon and get him to start tossing some of our dead wood here too!
MILF Hollingsworth. I love it. She is pretty uptight, but a hard worker. Congrats snooks!
ReplyDeleteEVERYONE misses the point. It doesn't matter the body or the name in charge.
ReplyDeleteGannett is the newspaper version of the Stepford Wives. Intellect, integrity and indepentdent thought were negitive qualities for managers to have.
I worked with the "company" for 20 years. When it came to bosses, only the package was different. Inside, ALL had been brainwashed on their way up. The business of journalism, not the words and photos, was what became important to them.
And now the company is self-destructing because there are no leaders capable of original, courageous thinking.
So Rome is burning. And none of the robots in charge, the old or new, have a clue how to work a fire hose.
Despite all the invective against Ivey and Henry, I believe they're doing what any smart top business leader in the newspaper industry would do right now -- take what money is left and run as fast as you can. McClatchy leader Pruitt said he sees no bottom.
ReplyDeleteIs it possible one (or more) of those "cut" on Friday chose retirement from Gannett rather than accept MORE responsibilities?
ReplyDeleteA lot of us come here to complain Gannett keeps asking us to do more, more and more with fewer and fewer resources. We do the jobs that were once held by 3 or 4 (or more) people. We do it because have no other financial choice.
Perhaps the publishers in this case have other financial options and could afford to say "no thanks" to the requests they assume more workload. They simply chose to walk away.
Maybe I am wrong. But isn't this a possibility?
it's possible that in the wake of revenue slides, henry and ivey were being told to do things even they couldn't stomach . . . which would have to be pretty bad, since in indy gannett tried to make reporters and copy editors and photographers do "advertorial" without concern for what that would do to credibility already damaged by gannett.
ReplyDeletemaybe after awhile, you just can't drink the kool-aid anymore -- especially if you're afraid your retirement plan will be screwed like the workers' was.
the real downside here is that however bad henry was, her replacement is a cinch to be worse, as he or she tries to find new ways to drive out experienced people and bring in kids who'll do whatever they are told because they're so grateful to have any kind of job so they can pay on their student loans.
Reading the comments here and elsewhere you'd forget that Gannett employees are supposed to be intelligent, fair, hard-nosed and inquisitive. Instead it sounds like the worst side of a factory 9-to-5 mentality where every boss is 'stupid.' Come on, people. we're better than this.
ReplyDelete12:52, you can be intelligent, fair, hard-nosed and inquisitive and have a stupid boss. There are many of them- sorry but that's the reality. I think all publishers should be required to have an MBA or experience running a business at some time in their careers.
ReplyDeleteIvey and Henry along with Stier and others were bright, talented female stars of the previous Gannett administration. And they're obviously ignored now while airheads fill the corporate seats. No wonder they leave. Add to that the current leadership's one size fits all dictatorial control over their properties and paralyzing fear of making radical changes to accommodate the real needs of today's market. It's never again going to be business as usual. Somebody has to take the leap for radical change. News companies are waiting until the last second, like the auto industry, Kodak, etc.
ReplyDeleteWhen all is said the 3 ladies you mention are bright. But that's not what this company is about now. The current newspaper division is being led my a bunch of no nothings. It's quite sad for thoose of us that are left. While digital takes over the world (so they may think) the community newspaper division acts like a bunch of freshmen. It's quite interesting to watch. They really have no clue what to do next. Dickey? Big joke. He doesn't do a damm thing to change anything. Chris leads this guy around like his puppy. Krans- Really? She doesn't even deserve to be talked about she is so unqualified. Look at the paper she ran. The PS operation has to be the biggest f'ed up operation in GCI. They are barely making a profit. The entire OC are morons. She is so far up Dickey's ass all the time. I think they share a brain.
ReplyDeleteCall the former ladies whatever you want but at least they ran a good operation.
In the words of Tina Fey "Call them what you want but Bitches get things done!" and "Bitch is the new black"
I love Tina Fey! think she might come to Indy? Think of her as the Interstate President and LH as the West President........
ReplyDeleteIt's late and they have been working on strategy plans and they deceide to order some wine................
Bitch is the new black, except when the bitch is Bab's!
ReplyDeleteThat bitch is OUT!!
MILF Hollingsworth is the new bitch now. Meow!
They decide to order some wine. Laura says is it getting hot in here? Do you mind if I take off my Ann Taylor sweater set?
ReplyDeleteI worked for Barbara Henry in Great Falls. She hired me as editor of the newspaper back in 1992, and I found her to be a supportive publisher, a committed journalist, and a good friend. We had our moments -- as all editors have with their publishers -- but Barb set the bar for me as to how an editor and publisher should work together. I don't know what the backstory is here, but she is leaving Gannett far too soon ...
ReplyDelete"So Rome is burning. And none of the robots in charge, the old or new, have a clue how to work a fire hose."
ReplyDeleteI have a gasoline can ... move over while I POUR IT ON!
I'm a retired Great Falls Tribune associate editor. I worked with Barb Henry (and Dennis Ryerson). It was a pleasure to have a publisher like Henry who understood the newsroom. She held us to high standards and took a personal interest in each of us. She was very involved in the community in a healthy way. I'm dismayed to see the disparaging posts about her.
ReplyDeleteTom: Sad to say, but there is some truth to what some of the posters are saying about Barb. You happened to work in the same discipline from which she evolved, so you likely were spared the "Hyde" side of her. (Though she did go through Business Editors like candy there for a while.)
ReplyDeleteOther departments didn't get the same warm-fuzzy you did. And Great Falls is a long way, and a lot of years, from Des Moines and Indianapolis.
But thanks for posting, because it's nice to know there's a good side, a human side, to everyone - even when it's never seen or experienced.