Updated at 1:52 p.m. ET: The Coloradoan's publisher has now confirmed this switch, in a note to employees today. Total jobs eliminated: 48. After years of speculation, tipsters say the Coloradoan plans to shift printing 50 miles south to Denver, where the Denver Newspaper Agency JOA now has more capacity, after the death of the Rocky Mountain News less than two weeks ago. Between 40 and 50 Fort Collins jobs are at stake in the press shuttering.
"It's basically I-25 all the way,'' a reader told me, after I asked about the return trip to Fort Collins, especially in winter. "No mountains to cross, and The Denver Post and News go (or went, in the Rocky's case) to quite a few households up here. It's likely they'd also turn to the DNA (Denver Newspaper Agency) to deliver the paper instead of the current local carriers."
Employees were to be told last night and today, when the paper is expected to make a public announcement, my reader says. Fort Collins would be at least the eighth Gannett production facility to close in the past five months alone.
The Coloradoan has 200 to 250 employees overall. Publisher Kim Roegner has been in the job since June; she had been display advertising manager at The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Ky. Other key facts:
- Executive Editor: Bob Moore
- Founded: 1873
- Joined Gannett: 1977
- Employees: about 250
Gannett Denver connections
CEO Harry Whipple ran the Denver Newspaper Agency from May 2006 until last Wednesday; he had previously run a JOA in Salt Lake City. From 1992 to 2003, Whipple was publisher of The Cincinnati Enquirer. Plus, Gannett partner MediaNews Group owns the Denver Post.
[Image: recent screenshot of homepage]
I wish I had stuck around for the meeting tonight. We have bets on whether or not our circ dept is going with the press. The Coloradoan carriers did such a crappy job delivering USAT that they contracted out with the Post/Rocky carriers to deliver those papers, why not the Coloradoan now, too?
ReplyDeleteKim, I hope you read this and I hope you see how your shitty management has killed a good paper. Between you and Chin, this once-fine community paper will be in ruins and you can move on to your next death project.
Thanks for killing the dreams and livelihood of so many people.
Keep an eye on Denver! I've been watching them since 2007, when everything started unraveling.
ReplyDeleteDenver is about 6-12 months ahead of the rest of the country in this financial quagmire.
Whatever happens in Denver will happen in your community in 6-12 months, guaranteed.
When things start looking up in Denver, that's when you'll know better times are ahead.
This doesn't bode well for a recovery any time soon, however.
Already happened at the Asheville Citizen-Times. Let me tell you... what a fiasco it has been.
ReplyDeleteI wonger why it didn't metion that Harry Wipple once served at the Valley News Dispatch in Tarentum PA. He was one of those bare bone publishers that robbed the place to make hiself look like a hero.
ReplyDeleteYou forgot to bitch about corporate executives in this post.
ReplyDeleteDon't blame Kim. Talk about moving production to Denver started way before Kim ever came to work at the Coloradoan.
ReplyDeleteDo you really think any of these decisions are being made locally --
Don't shoot the messenger.
Actually, Whipple is out of Denver. Former Denver Post publisher Gerald Grilly replaced him last week. "Whipple will join the executive committee of MediaNews Group, the company said. His duties were not announced."
ReplyDeleteJust because it's a straight shot up I-25 doesn't mean delivery to Ft. Collins is a cakewalk. Having driven that stretch myself many, many times I can tell you that it often is a long, slow trip - ice and snow in the winter, fog in the fall, winter, spring, wrecks all the time, not to mention the occassional dust storms or wildfires. It may be only 60 miles or so, but the trip can thake a couple of hours or more when the weather is bad. And it can get so bad that they close the road altogether. Lots of luck with this one...
ReplyDeleteHere the letter Kim sent out this morning.
ReplyDeleteKim Roegner
President/Publisher
TO: All Employees
DATE: March 11, 2009
After careful consideration, we have made the decision to contract with the Denver Newspaper Agency to print and deliver our products. This decision will affect both the Fort Collins Coloradoan and USA Today, and we expect to make the changes in May.
This was a very difficult decision that will affect about 48 staff positions with the newspaper.
Consolidation of printing operations has proven an efficient way to reduce costs at many newspapers across the country, as our industry faces a difficult advertising environment.
Although deadlines may require some minor changes, our goal is for our customers, both advertisers and readers, to not see any noticeable change.
We will be providing more specific information to affected employees. Severance packages will be offered to all employees who remain in their positions through the transition. Once all effected employees have their information, I will be coming around to each department to discuss any questions you may have.
I appreciate your continued focus and dedication.
Sincerely,
Kim Roegner
The DNA is riddled with former Gannett staffers including Bernie and Stan.
ReplyDeleteThis is a smart move. While I hate the job loss the days of every newspaper having its own press and distribution has long passed. Concentrate dollars on news and information not operations.
ReplyDeleteWhipple also ran the Tucson JOA back in the 80"s where he will always be fondly remembered for eliminating the annual Christmas bonus. What a guy!!
ReplyDeleteHey, Mr. Whipple - don't squeeze the Charmin!
ReplyDelete(C'mon, someone had to say it!)
Why do you think Christine bailed out of FC so suddenly? This was in the works for sometime and she probably couldn't stomach it!!
ReplyDeleteGannett will probably turn the whole thing over to Dean next.
It was under Whipples watch in Cincy that Gannett got dinged big time for the Chiquita banana fiasco!
ReplyDeleteDon't squeeze the banana's either!!
This is a shame. Many good people lost their jobs today with little possibility of finding work in the same field. Although the move is understandable and not completely unexpected, it is still a tough pill to swallow for those 48 people who are out of work.
ReplyDelete"This is a smart move. While I hate the job loss the days of every newspaper having its own press and distribution has long passed. Concentrate dollars on news and information not operations."
ReplyDelete3/11/2009 12:51 PM
Well, so long as our quality of print doesn't go down and we can't read this news and information that you're striving to concentrate on. We also need to boost advertising revenue, but in a struggling economy, let's get real people...this will be tough. Does news bring in money? No. Huge companies who advertise bring in money, small companies bring in money, but so long as they are struggling, we'll struggle as well. Get real people!
2:32 p.m. said, "Does news bring in money? No."
ReplyDeleteYeah, try putting out a paper with nothing but ads. See how many copies you sell. Zero. You'll fold in a week. Unfortunately that's exactly what Gannett is doing the way it's taking a chainsaw to its newsrooms.
Gannett forgot that news is the only thing that brings in money.
Concentrating revenue is huge, from all avenues of a newspaper, not just ads. But I do believe that advertising brings in the most money. But has anyone read the Coloradoan lately? Not very interesting news in there. Plus the new layout is just strange.
ReplyDelete2:52 PM said, "Yeah, try putting out a paper with nothing but ads. See how many copies you sell. Zero. You'll fold in a week".
ReplyDeleteActually they are called shoppers and they are doing better than newspapers right now. Of course Craig's List is cutting into them pretty heavily, but they are still operating at a higher profit margin than "news" only publications.
Wow. Gotta love the people living in cuckoo fantasyland, where the world only wants to read papers with ads.
ReplyDeleteThe shopper model doesn't drive Gannett. It never will, and you know it. I can tell that it must be sad for you that you need the newspaper and reporters to have your job. The business you're in needs stories... good ones and difficult ones, to motivate people to pick up the paper, so you can sell your ads.
The margins for shoppers might be high, but you're dreaming if you think the revenues will ever match what the papers bring in.
Gannett is failing you, dear ad rep. The public still demands news. But Gannett insists on cutting and skimping on the product that you're selling. The newsrooms aren't the problem. They were the cure.