Friday, October 24, 2008

Friday | Oct. 24 | Got news, or a question?

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67 comments:

  1. Please note the special Earnings Forum, just below this post, set aside for discussion about the third-quarter earnings release. Gannett is expected to disclose it by 8:30 a.m. ET.

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  2. Jim

    A lot of the people who follow this blog are managers, directors and publishers. We see some of the gross waste that Gannett is doing and are very frustrated. We can not say much due to the risk of being labeled not being a team player.
    The real question is do the board of directors know about some of the waste and bad decisions. They hear Craig and Bob explain it away and talk about investing in online. But we are pissing away millions that we could save and we are not following through on some huge revenue ideas becuase Craig and Bob are looking to far ahead thst they can not see what is right in front of them.
    My point, why dont you list the names and addresses of the board of directors so the ones of us that can provide real examples of wasted expenses and lost revenue can send them letters.
    It might not work, but I have to beleive it is worth a try.

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  3. That's a terrific idea. Thanks.

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  4. So the word in New Jersey is that another round of layoffs is coming for the group, and could be as soon as next week. At least some of this information comes from the new APP editor, who went out to some bureaus, so it has some credibility. The number that has been floated is 150 people, but I can't confirm that. Anybody else hearing about layoffs?

    Hope those execs enjoy their Christmas bonuses.

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  5. 3:29-- "The" higher up at HNT/CN in East Brunswick is said to have a hit list of sorts, which includes staffers who are known to him as liabilities. He spent some time reviewing personnel files and listening to complaints from the worker bees during the past few months. The list is in place for use at an "appropriate time." Apparently, one of those who is on the list has abused the use of company vehicles several times, including using a company vehicle to drive out of state to "party" and such while "pretending to work." I'm guessing we don't want to use a forensic black light in those white cars. And, one other person who appears on the list had blogged about how he liked being a slacker and getting away with it because "it is the culture here." Embarrassing? Absolutely. But these people, who happen to be among the best in their field, shouldn't be targeted to lose their jobs because of such trivial errors of judgment.

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  6. 5:54 am Who ARE you? You must be a higher-up yourself because I can't imagine how you are privy to that information otherwise. And that you would leak any of this information is certainly an abuse of your liaison with "The" higher-up at HNT/CN. He might want to consider YOUR departure for such an indiscretion!

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  7. Cherry Hill lost 2 employees in the credit department yesterday to what's being called a layoff even though their end date isn't until 11/14.

    Does 11/14 ring true to anybody who claims to know about upcoming layoffs?

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  8. Jeeze, can NJ Group afford to lose another 150? who'll be left to fill the paper(s)?

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  9. The paper I work for is a ghost time. Complete areas that are empty with no one there. Seems like they may rent out part of the building. The neon sign for our paper is part way out and has not been repaired. They don't empty the trash cans, and the floors are never vacuumed. It is no longer functioning at all.

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  10. 8:21 AM
    Every picture tells a story.

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  11. Has anyone received information on renewing their health insurance?

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  12. I dunno........1.3 billion doesnt seem like anything to sneeze at.

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  13. Numbers are out. Hang on for a ride.

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  14. 9:08 - I got an e-mail with a link. Do they still mail out those packets? I just figured they'd save money by not mailing them out.

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  15. 9:29 - When's the deadline for the health-insurance enrollment? Should I read anything into the fact that we've gotten diddly squat?

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  16. Gannett: A company On the Move.
    Will the last employee left please turn out the lights?

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  17. Yes...11-14 is the date for credit and Mid December for A/P. They must have had all of their ducks in a row. They have been compiling a list of things for our credit people to get done.

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  18. That 1.2 Billion loan would now buy back almost half the company's stock.

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  19. The company is eliminating health care as part of its cost reduction strategy, according to sources close to the issue.

    Okay, okay, doesn't that information come out in late November? That's when I have gotten my health care packet in the past.

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  20. I know Cherry Hill is going to let
    go of five more. Layoffs ?.

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  21. 9:29 here - The e-mail I got said enrollment starts Nov. 11 (or maybe it was Nov. 10), ending Nov. 21.

    I haven't even checked the link yet to see how much info is on the enrollment website. As I recall, there's quite a bit, with comparison options. But like I said, I figured they're saving money by not handing out packets.

    I'm in Tysons. Have others across the country not gotten an e-mail yet about the enrollment period?

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  22. I received an e-mail regarding the enrollment period. Can't recall the dates but that sounds about right for USAT. Conference calls to be held in a few weeks. Everything will be e-mailed this year so no packets. That sounds like a smart move. I always thought it was a huge waste of monety to print up glossy folders and press kit for insurance enrollment!!

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  23. Dubow just told stock traders he's no longer buying back the stock. So if McLean doesn't think it is worth buying at this low level, at what price do they think it will be worth buying back? Wow. Talk about a signal to sell GCI.

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  24. The sooner the towel is thrown in, the quicker he gets his $36.3M. What about that don't you understand?

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  25. Anyone else hear Martore say in about the last minute of the call that there will be more "FTE" full time employee reductions in the next quarter and that a plan is being formulated? That what I heard. So...I guess that's about as good a confirmation as any that more layoffs are coming.

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  26. 11:01 AM - Damn! Never would have thought that Dubow could mastermind a plan like that. It's brilliant.

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  27. Jim, has anyone looked at how some properties have cannibalized their "moms" brand for MomsLikeMe.com? I just think it's hilarious how the Moms brand was pushed for the past year or so and then poof they killed it.

    Maybe the blowjob posts had something to do with it.

    Greenville's already moved over: http://upstatesc.momslikeme.com/

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  28. I love it. A newspaper-media company withholding news. In the conference call, they disclosed they will no longer publish the monthly ad revenue figures, but will only put them out quarterly. Stock analysts didn't like this, and pressed for an explanation, and corporate had some lame response about monthly not fully counting digital revenues, etc.
    The other ominous thing I got out of the conference call was that corporate has no interest at buying back GCI stock even at this low level.
    Yes, and I also heard the further FTE reductions coming in corporate and publishing, with details coming in December at a New York conference.

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  29. Know why the Gannett benefits/401k website keeps going down? Because employees are constantly moving their matched 401k OUT of the stock! A lot of employees I know move their money out every paycheck.

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  30. Management thought it was so smart to buy back its shares the last few years. I would love to see an accounting of what it paid for shares on the way down and how much it squandered in total. Buying shares, as we all know, is a way of artificially stimulating earnings per share and the share price instead of using the money to invest in operations. So how many millions were spent on lost share price that could have been spent on new technology, better product positioning and better talent?

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  31. My 401K is now my 201-NOT-O-K!

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  32. Gannett trying to put a positive spin on todays report is a joke and insulting to all employees, see you next week when the stock hits $5

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  33. I guess following the USAT trend, we were just informed that our per copy single price is going up to 75 cents starting November 3rd.

    Anyone else seeing this change as well?

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  34. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  35. In June 10 newspapers moved their SC daily price up. It was a test run. This was started even before the first layoffs.

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  36. ours already went to 75 cents

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  37. Sell, Baby, Sell

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  38. I just deleted a comment in which someone revealed what I believe is an executive's home address. Please don't do that again.

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  39. Jim, the address is also shown in the comments to your post about the third quarter profits.

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  40. What utterly pisses me off about that conference call is Gracia saying there will be "additional FTE reductions" in corporate and publishing, but not saying how much and when. She said details are still being worked out, and will be told to stock analysts at a December meeting in New York, where I guess corporate will lay out their 2009 intentions.
    So we are going to have to wait another month for Christmas misery? These guys have no compassion. Dubow last week, and Gracia today said there will be layoffs, but they seem to delight in keeping people concerned if they will have money enough to buy Christmas presents for the kids. I think this is utterly selfish and mean. If there are to be layoffs, announce them and get it over with, not further destroy morale for the next month as we watch for the guillotine blade to fall.

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  41. 1:54 p.m.: Thank you for pointing that out; I've now deleted it there, too.

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  42. They can't be understaffed during an election year. After December, look out/

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  43. Hey, corporate, we want to know now ... are there going to be layoffs? Stop with the b.s. and just tell us. Don't wait until Thanksgiving or Christmas. You know what's going to go down. Time you share it with the people who help pay for your BMWs.

    If there aren't going to be layoffs anytime soon, tell us that. We're not looking for a lifetime guarantee, but morale is sinking to new lows and it's largely because we feel we're being used and deceived. Tell us what you know! Treat us like adults! A doctor doesn't wait until the last second to tell a patient they have a terminal illness. Have some compassion. Get some balls.

    Y'all in plush offices making these decisions with people's lives ... what, is this a game to you? You get your jollies out of keeping your empty-suit secrets. Do something brave. Be frank and honest with your workforce. We can't stand you as it is, so it's not like your popularity level is going to be diminished. Your the enemy to us. We have to coexist, but we will never trust or like you. Maybe a little straight talk, however, will buy you a bit more respect and stop the constant worrying.

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  44. That just goes to show that Jim is working this blog the right way. A high ranking official's home address was posted in two places earlier today and Jim deleted them. Good for Jim.

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  45. Jim, you're all over today's goings-on like yellow on The Simpsons. Well done.

    And now Gannett's up a dime! Wonders will never cease.

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  46. Does anyone know when period 12 ends this year?

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  47. A minor and unhappy point I haven't seen Jim or others pick up from the conference is that Dubow and Martore said that the big dip in ads that hit in September are continuing and in October the "trends continue what we've seen." If that persists through Christmas, the 4th could be the worst quarter of the year. Of course, the 4th is normally the best.

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  48. December 28th is when the quarter ends on the Gannett Calendar

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  49. For this Thanksgiving and Christmas, everyone should have their plan B ready, as in bye.

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  50. 4:15 Have you been living under a rock? seen the stock market? Of course revenue will be down .
    Its a recession and ad spending is always affected.

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  51. Jim:

    Seeking Alpha has the full transcript.

    http://seekingalpha.com/article/101788-gannett-q3-2008-earnings-call-transcript?page=-1

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  52. 4:43--I have not been living under a rock---Gannett revenue has been down for years. Get over yourself!!! This has nothing to do with the financial crisis--How dare you intimate that!!! Gannett and their choice of Directors and Managers have caused this. By this time next week Gannett may be a symbol up for sale!!!!!!!!!--Especially at the Journal Nes---School Teachers Beware !

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  53. Anybody have any news on the Salem Oregon site? We are shrinking our paper on Monday and raising the cost to $.75.
    I read an earlier post stating that managment is doing coffee at other sites to make a list of people to ax... Well Silberman is currently doing this. I haven't signed up yet, but herd it is good conversation. But I don't want to talk and be put on a hit list...
    Any advise or info out there?

    Thanks,
    BLM

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  54. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  55. Thanks, 5:10! I've added that link to the relevant posts.

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  56. 5:31 pm Our ad manager is Andrea Thorne and she is great! Our numbers are as high as they can be considering the economy.

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  57. hey, honolulu --

    how did you get the company to agree that buyouts will be in seniority order if "too many" people want to leave?

    in indy, we had several people who would have volunteered for layoffs but the company said no and layed people off in ways that violated the contract. the union grieved it & now it's going to arbitration, which may cost the company more than it payed to get rid of people who didn't want to leave imstead of people who did.

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  58. 4:43 I am fed up with efforts to politicize this problem. It is not a recession, according to the official government definition, no matter how much you Democrats try to say it is.

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  59. And it won't be a recession until Thursday, when the Q3 GDP report says that it is ... was. Since most of Gannett is regional or sub-regional, many of its properties went over the edge even before third quarter.

    Maybe it's a bit like the last big flu pandemic. A lot of us will be gone before officialdom slaps the label on.

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  60. Another miserable Friday night. Will this ever be over?

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  61. 5:54 + 6:15 AM, I work @ HNT and have heard grumblings about certain people who seem to get away with anything and everything.

    I do my job and watch a lot of other people barely get their work done and participate in all sorts of shenanigans, so in a way I'm glad someone has finally noticed.

    Though the majority here are hardworking, there are many, many stories about a select few, who have made HNT-CN into a real-life Peyton Place!

    In light of all this, I'm not surprised that Skip has a hitlist. Further, this could mean there will be no chance of voluntary buyouts.

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  62. Skip enjoys the hit list he is a regular Jay Edgar Hoover. The thing is with Skip it is most of the time a personal vendetta. You better drink the kool aid or else. Plus the guy never had an original thought in his life. Total Gannett drone. I remember in a meeting after he returned from Virginia how he called Dubow ''a great man'' I thought it was kind of odd but at the time I didn't get the cult mentality. Treating the people the way he does I don't know how he sleeps at night. Classic bully who deep down is a scared little man.

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  63. 5:54....tell him come to Neptune and get rid of the dope that walks around all day, smokes every ten minutes, and is glued at the hip to a certain manager so he can get away with doing NOTHING! (hint: production dept)

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  64. 10/24/2008 6:15 AM -- I'm 5:54 AM and happen to disagree with the concept of a list at HNT/CN, however... "The" higher up has managed to investigate a lot of things on his own, basing his list on fact rather than fiction. So when a company vehicle is parked in a residential neighborhood when it is supposed to be miles away on an assignment and the offending staffer's immediate supervisor "covers" it up... guess who else is on the list. On a separate issue, we all know HNT/CN does not cover anything in Brooklyn or Paterson. Let me also mention that when staffers come into work stoned or hung over, "The" higher up is aware of it, especially several cases of getting high on the job. His rationale is that you cannot produce quality and produce results with things like this are going on. And, yes, he's making his list and checking it twice.

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  65. 6:49, as chris erwin said, watch yourself. skip may get rid of some people who desperately need to be gotten rid of, but don't for one minute fool yourself into believing he really cares about quality. I can tell you from personal experience that hard work means nothing to that man. When he first came to the APP, I believed that too. I watched him fire someone who needed to be fired. Then I watched him target people who dared to express a divergent opinion, and I ended up with a target on my back because of my association with someone on the hitlist. I busted my ass for five years under his reign of terror in Neptune and the only thing I had to show for it was narrowly avoiding a nervous breakdown. My only saving grace was getting out before I wound up dead or in the hospital. I can supply confirming details to Jim if you're really interested in the truth.

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  66. I just deleted a comment that was a particularly mean-spirited personal attack. Please don't do that.

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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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