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Thursday, June 30, 2011
Sponsors | 94% success? I'll take that anytime!
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Asbury Park | Drug deals, timelines, and comments
News stories last month about a former Asbury Park Press newsroom employee, charged with masterminding a multimillion-dollar drug trafficking ring, focused on a timeline federal prosecutors made public in a news release.
Christopher Erwin, 47, had led the ring selling more than 500,000 tablets of the prescription painkiller oxycodone "since at least as early as January 2009, and continuing for at least two years," prosecutors said.
But in reading their formal, 45-page criminal complaint, I stumbled across a detail I hadn't read before: A confidential source claimed Erwin started selling oxycodone to them much earlier -- around October 2007, the complaint says. That would have been just two months after he left the Press' employment, according to the newspaper's account of his arrest.
The paper did not disclose the circumstances under which Erwin left in August 2007.
The criminal complaint, and a string of comments posted to Gannett Blog by a reader who said they were Erwin, shed light on the post-Gannett years of one former employee whose life, according to prosecutors, spiraled into a drug dealing conspiracy.
Charge: $20K weekly income
Erwin was released from jail on $1 million bail after posting properties as collateral. He was placed under house arrest, with electronic monitoring. Some 21 other co-defendants, including two doctors who allegedly sold prescriptions to Erwin, have also been charged in what prosecutors call the Erwin Organization.
The criminal complaint includes allegations that Erwin, who lives in Barnegat, N.J., made as much as $20,000 weekly selling the highly addictive painkillers, all the while masquerading as a landscaper.
Meanwhile, a close review of Gannett Blog's comments in recent years shows a reader identifying themselves as "Chris Erwin" started posting here at least as long ago as Sept. 8, 2008. The reader said they'd worked at the Press "about 13-plus years."
"I never got a bad review and was rewarded with decent raises along the way," they said. "I started out as a $10-an-hour PT clerk and ended up making about 45K per year. My last two reviews spelled my doom though."
Despite those two, "above-average" reviews, this poster says they were denied a raise one year, then offered a raise of just 1% the following year.
'Legendary little man'
The poster said they eventually complained to then-Publisher Bob Collins ("the legendary little man himself"), and then to Corporate -- "not realizing that this was the exact management style they wanted." The comment concluded: "I was eventually suspended and then fired when I didn't quit."
At least eight more comments were posted that year; in 2009, and then this year. Many were critical of former Press Executive Editor Skip Hidlay.
The most recent comment I found came very early one Wednesday morning last month: May 11. Writing about Hidlay, who had just resigned as publisher of a Kansas daily, they wrote: "Bet it was his choice to resign immediately. Now that's funny. Karma sort of sucks."
That comment was posted shortly before 1 a.m. Just hours later, agents for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency arrested Erwin and 15 of his other alleged co-defendants.
[Image: yesterday's Press, Newseum]
Christopher Erwin, 47, had led the ring selling more than 500,000 tablets of the prescription painkiller oxycodone "since at least as early as January 2009, and continuing for at least two years," prosecutors said.
The paper did not disclose the circumstances under which Erwin left in August 2007.
The criminal complaint, and a string of comments posted to Gannett Blog by a reader who said they were Erwin, shed light on the post-Gannett years of one former employee whose life, according to prosecutors, spiraled into a drug dealing conspiracy.
Charge: $20K weekly income
Erwin was released from jail on $1 million bail after posting properties as collateral. He was placed under house arrest, with electronic monitoring. Some 21 other co-defendants, including two doctors who allegedly sold prescriptions to Erwin, have also been charged in what prosecutors call the Erwin Organization.
Meanwhile, a close review of Gannett Blog's comments in recent years shows a reader identifying themselves as "Chris Erwin" started posting here at least as long ago as Sept. 8, 2008. The reader said they'd worked at the Press "about 13-plus years."
"I never got a bad review and was rewarded with decent raises along the way," they said. "I started out as a $10-an-hour PT clerk and ended up making about 45K per year. My last two reviews spelled my doom though."
Despite those two, "above-average" reviews, this poster says they were denied a raise one year, then offered a raise of just 1% the following year.
'Legendary little man'
The poster said they eventually complained to then-Publisher Bob Collins ("the legendary little man himself"), and then to Corporate -- "not realizing that this was the exact management style they wanted." The comment concluded: "I was eventually suspended and then fired when I didn't quit."
The most recent comment I found came very early one Wednesday morning last month: May 11. Writing about Hidlay, who had just resigned as publisher of a Kansas daily, they wrote: "Bet it was his choice to resign immediately. Now that's funny. Karma sort of sucks."
That comment was posted shortly before 1 a.m. Just hours later, agents for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency arrested Erwin and 15 of his other alleged co-defendants.
[Image: yesterday's Press, Newseum]
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
June 27-July 3 | Your News & Comments: Part 3
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Newsquest | Strike ends amid reports of deal
From a post today by Roy Greenslade at The Guardian of London:
Journalists working for Newsquest/Gannett in South London have called off their campaign of industrial action after reaching an "amicable agreement" with management at GCI's U.K. newspaper subsidiary.
The mother of the National Union of Journalists' chapel, Thais Portilho-Shrimpton, said the company had agreed to replace any vacancies that occur over the next six months and to retain two extra editorial positions.
The company's offer was accepted by the majority of the 33 NUJ members who were mid-way through a four-day strike.
The agreement follows the harmonious end to a dispute in north London, between NUJ members and Tindle Newspapers. The company agreed to reverse its policy of non-replacement of staff.
Journalists working for Newsquest/Gannett in South London have called off their campaign of industrial action after reaching an "amicable agreement" with management at GCI's U.K. newspaper subsidiary.
The mother of the National Union of Journalists' chapel, Thais Portilho-Shrimpton, said the company had agreed to replace any vacancies that occur over the next six months and to retain two extra editorial positions.
The company's offer was accepted by the majority of the 33 NUJ members who were mid-way through a four-day strike.
The agreement follows the harmonious end to a dispute in north London, between NUJ members and Tindle Newspapers. The company agreed to reverse its policy of non-replacement of staff.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
June 27-July 3 | Your News & Comments: Part 2
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Army Times, Defense News, other sites hacked
Gannett has disclosed that hackers breached Army Times and nearly a dozen other GCI sites devoted to government news, accessing names, e-mail addresses, passwords and other personal information of an untold number of users.
The Los Angeles Times has the story this morning; I'm working from my iPhone now, so can't post much.
The Los Angeles Times has the story this morning; I'm working from my iPhone now, so can't post much.
Monday, June 27, 2011
June 27-July 3 | Your News & Comments: Part 1
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The category is: Hyped initiatives for $9.4 million
He made this hyperbolic announcement in December 2008 to a Wall Street audience about a then-new initiative: "It will, I believe, upend the traditional thinking about content in our industry both in how we gather it, and how we sell it."
And there was this: "It also will allow us to develop and gather information much more efficiently by eliminating duplication and allowing our local entities to focus on what's important -- a deep, rich local report. It is the logical next step from our local Information Center initiatives, creating a national head to the local content gathering bodies."
Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
Until last month, that is, when Connell abruptly retired, and ContentOne was split into three parts. The reporting and editing part -- in other words, the old GNS -- was sent packing to USA Today, where Executive Editor Chet Czarniak was put in charge. And now (drumroll, please) it's been reborn as . . . the Gannett News Network!
All this is according to a recent Czarniak memo to the troops, announcing details of an expanding investigative project into federal highway project overruns.
So, after much committee meeting; brainstorming and bonuses paid all around, Gannett News Service became ContentOne only to be renamed Gannett News Network. (Right now, I picture CMO Maryam Banikarim rolling her eyes and updating her resume.)
In his memo, Czarniak also drops an oh-by-the-way paragraph about the Des Moines Register's decision last week to lay off its widely read agriculture reporter. Philip Brasher, you'll recall, was the paper's lone D.C. reporter on a beat of critical importance to the newspaper.
Referencing "Des Moines support," Cznariak writes: "The Gannett D.C. Bureau is working with Des Moines Register Executive Editor Rick Green to ensure Washington-based coverage of issues and lawmakers important to Iowa in light of a recent staff cutback by Des Moines. A communication plan is in place currently and firm staffing plans are expected to be resolved in July."
Sunday, June 26, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 10
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Fort Myers | Gannett's new math: 35 - 14 = 35
 |
| Eberle |
Eberle failed to mention that companies chasing these sort of tax breaks often show little long-term commitment -- companies like, oh, Gannett.
In Tulsa, GCI accepted $259,787 in Oklahoma tax rebates in return for creating at most 165 customer service jobs at a call center -- jobs the company eliminated in March, when it closed its Center of Excellence, less than five years after it opened.
Jackson, Miss. | Leslie Hurst, and a wayward heart
Worried The Clarion-Ledger has lost touch with Jackson, Miss., Publisher Leslie Hurst established 10 strategic goals for her staff. Among them:
"Reconnect with our readers, advertisers and our communities, demonstrating that we haven't lost our community heart."
Indeed, only last week, Hurst directed her employees -- shaken by a new round of layoffs -- to seek consolation in a re-reading of those goals.
Her admonition to reconnect isn't new, of course. In December, when Corporate promoted her from Lafayette, La., she told the Jackson daily: "We need to know the people we serve and understand what is on their minds."
Yet, Hurst didn't arrive with a reputation for community outreach. "On one of her first days in Lafayette," a former employee there told The Independent Weekly, "she told us that she would not speak to the public, would not answer e-mails, and if called would not pick up the phone. She also will not answer voice mails."
Hurst has passed through a lot of communities. She's been president and publisher of seven Gannett newspapers -- two simultaneously -- in just 14 years. The cities and years she was appointed:
 |
| Hurst |
Her admonition to reconnect isn't new, of course. In December, when Corporate promoted her from Lafayette, La., she told the Jackson daily: "We need to know the people we serve and understand what is on their minds."
Yet, Hurst didn't arrive with a reputation for community outreach. "On one of her first days in Lafayette," a former employee there told The Independent Weekly, "she told us that she would not speak to the public, would not answer e-mails, and if called would not pick up the phone. She also will not answer voice mails."
Hurst has passed through a lot of communities. She's been president and publisher of seven Gannett newspapers -- two simultaneously -- in just 14 years. The cities and years she was appointed:
- 1996: Hattiesburg American in Mississippi
- 2000: The Herald-Dispatch, Huntington, W. Va.
- 2003: The Idaho Statesman, Boise
- 2005: Lansing State Journal in Michigan
- 2007: Daily Advertiser in Lafayette, and the Daily World in Opelousas, La.
- 2010: Jackson
Saturday, June 25, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 9
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A smile is just a frown -- turned upside down!
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| Hurst |
"I hope that after you absorb the information about the RIFs, you will re-read the strategic objectives and feel good about the direction in which we are headed."
-- Publisher Leslie Hurst of The Clarion-Ledger, in a memo to employees of the Jackson, Miss., paper about an imminent reduction in force. The paper has cut an estimated 10 jobs this quarter.
Related: We're tracking Tuesday's layoffs in this read-only spreadsheet, which shows all job cuts during the current quarter.
Deal Chicken | Google 'Offers' ups payment terms
Gannett's Deal Chicken and myriad other start-ups are taking aim at the sizzling online coupon market that's dominated by Groupon.
Now, comes Google, which launched its version -- Offers -- in Portland, Ore., a month ago, and will soon expand to San Francisco and New York.
In a new post today, Business Insider's Henry Blodget ticks off the advantages Google may have over the competition, starting with better payment terms. "Google Offers will give merchants 80% of the merchant's share of voucher revenue within 4 days of the voucher sale, and the rest within 90 days," Blodget says.
Now, compare that to Deal Chicken's terms, which only gives merchants 30% within five business days, and the remaining 70% within 30 days.
Earlier: Dozens more jobs point to Deal Chicken expansion.
In a new post today, Business Insider's Henry Blodget ticks off the advantages Google may have over the competition, starting with better payment terms. "Google Offers will give merchants 80% of the merchant's share of voucher revenue within 4 days of the voucher sale, and the rest within 90 days," Blodget says.
Now, compare that to Deal Chicken's terms, which only gives merchants 30% within five business days, and the remaining 70% within 30 days.
Earlier: Dozens more jobs point to Deal Chicken expansion.
Des Moines | How to take the 'op' out of op-ed
[Updated at 5:12 p.m. ET June 26: See my note, appended to the bottom of this post.]
[Opposites detract: Gartner, Hollingsworth]
At The Des Moines Register and many other newspapers, the "op-ed" page reflects its position and purpose. It appears opposite the editorial page, and its content -- columns, essays and the like -- is often in opposition to the paper's institutional, corporate view: the unsigned editorials.
And while op-ed pages attract their share of wing nut contributors, that doesn't describe Michael Gartner -- whose modest opinion piece about what he termed the Register's "devastating" layoffs was rejected by the paper this week.
As a former Register president, Gartner is one of Publisher Laura Hollingsworth's predecessors. In 1997, he won a Pulitzer Prize for editorials he wrote for Iowa's Ames Tribune. And he's a former president of NBC News.
Was his piece too long? At 11 paragraphs, that's doubtful. Did it merely repeat something the Register had already covered? Nope; just read the Register's own, bare-bones story about its layoffs.
Off topic or outdated? Hardly. It dealt with an issue of great importance to the Register's readers: the layoff of 13 mostly newsroom employees on Tuesday, including a Pulitzer Prize winner and the paper's sole Washington-based reporter.
'The news that we won't know'
Perhaps, then, it was his passing reference to a subject near and dear to Hollingsworth: Corporate's control of the daily.
"The layoffs at the Register," Gartner wrote, "may be the result of changing economics of the newspaper business or shareholder demands or absentee ownership. Or a combination of all that. But it’s foolish to point fingers and folly to assign blame. That matters not to the reader. What matters is all the news that we won’t know. And, of course, we don’t know what we won’t know."
Sounds like a subject worthy of an op-ed submission, doesn't it?
Not to Hollingsworth, who almost certainly would have been involved in the decision to reject Gartner's piece. Instead, it was published in Des Moines' Cityview weekly, and then, today, by Harvard University's Nieman Watchdog blog.
Paraphrasing Gartner, what matters also is all the opinions that we won't know.
[Note: After I posted this item, readers have pointed out that Gartner is co-owner of Big Green Umbrella Media, which publishes Cityview. Naturally, that makes him a competitor of the Register, and offers another reason why the paper may have rejected his op-ed.]
Sponsors | Gifts from the Midwest and Southwest
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Friday, June 24, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 8
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June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 7
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Des Moines | Why they're dancing on K Street
On the Civil Eats blog, Paula Crossfield writes about the serious consequences of The Des Moines Register's decision this week to lay off Philip Brasher, the well-known agriculture reporter in Washington.
"Brasher," she says today, "was one of the only reporters who was not working for agriculture industry-sponsored outlets in the room at Senate and House Agriculture Committee hearings, and played a key role in informing the public about these as well as the inner workings of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. For the most part, the agriculture industry will now have a free reign over coverage of national food policy issues in the Midwest."
Asked for comment, Register Publisher Laura Hollingsworth -- who also is head of Gannett's Midwest regional group of newspapers -- said:
"While we made the difficult decision this week to close our Washington, D.C., office, we maintain a 45-year reporting veteran in Des Moines who covers the agricultural issues that affect Iowa and the Midwest. We also are augmenting his coverage with resources from Gannett’s ContentOne team. Fully leveraging our resources in Iowa and Washington allows us to still provide comprehensive political and agricultural coverage for our readers in Des Moines and beyond."
We could fertilize a lot of farmland with statements like that.
Hollingsworth's is an increasingly common, and false, refrain from publishers and other senior managers whenever the ax falls: Less is the same. (Or, in the case of The Tennessean, it's actually more.) Worse still, Hollingsworth glosses over the fact that Brasher was a big contributor to ContentOne's ag coverage.
On Twitter, Brasher wrote: "Years with @DMRegister were wonderful. Real pros have lost jobs they loved -- and still working their butts off there."
To be sure, Brasher wasn't the only Register journalist who lost his job when Gannett laid off 700 U.S. newspaper employees on Tuesday. Among the other 12 in Des Moines: Jane Schorer Meisner, who won the highest of journalism's highest honors: a 1991 Pulitzer Prize in public service for groundbreaking reporting that -- with the victim's consent -- publicly identified a woman who'd been raped. Meisner's work, the Pulitzer judges said, prompted widespread reconsideration of the traditional media practice of concealing the identity of rape victims.
The Register's weekday circulation is 108,247; Sunday, 211,880.
(K Street?)
[Image: today's Register, Newseum]
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| Brasher |
Asked for comment, Register Publisher Laura Hollingsworth -- who also is head of Gannett's Midwest regional group of newspapers -- said:
"While we made the difficult decision this week to close our Washington, D.C., office, we maintain a 45-year reporting veteran in Des Moines who covers the agricultural issues that affect Iowa and the Midwest. We also are augmenting his coverage with resources from Gannett’s ContentOne team. Fully leveraging our resources in Iowa and Washington allows us to still provide comprehensive political and agricultural coverage for our readers in Des Moines and beyond."
We could fertilize a lot of farmland with statements like that.
On Twitter, Brasher wrote: "Years with @DMRegister were wonderful. Real pros have lost jobs they loved -- and still working their butts off there."
To be sure, Brasher wasn't the only Register journalist who lost his job when Gannett laid off 700 U.S. newspaper employees on Tuesday. Among the other 12 in Des Moines: Jane Schorer Meisner, who won the highest of journalism's highest honors: a 1991 Pulitzer Prize in public service for groundbreaking reporting that -- with the victim's consent -- publicly identified a woman who'd been raped. Meisner's work, the Pulitzer judges said, prompted widespread reconsideration of the traditional media practice of concealing the identity of rape victims.
The Register's weekday circulation is 108,247; Sunday, 211,880.
(K Street?)
[Image: today's Register, Newseum]
Banikarim on women, and the perils of shopping
"For many women," Chief Marketing Officer Maryam Banikarim writes in a recent MediaPost article, "shopping is not the carefree, blissful experience" often depicted in advertisements.
"In reality, it is anxiety-laden and fraught with peril at each step. Women fully grasp the shopping environment and purchase process -- from coupons and deals to return policies and guarantees. Each purchase is weighed against their chances of gaming 'the system' to their advantage versus becoming prey to it. Should I buy this now? Is it the best deal I can get? What could I be missing out on? These questions are all top of mind for the household’s chief purchasing officer."
She offers nine tips for advertisers in the full article, here.
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| Banikarim |
She offers nine tips for advertisers in the full article, here.
Layoffs | GCI tracking cuts' impact on diversity
Amid the latest round of layoffs, Corporate says it's monitoring how the ax fell on minority employee groups, according to Corporate's chief publicist, Robin Pence.
"We work very hard to ensure no group has been adversely impacted," she told minority affairs blogger Richard Prince for a post yesterday on The Washington Post's Root website.
"As you know, Gannett is tremendously committed to diversity,'' she said. "We have maintained our percentage of female and minority employees over the last few years despite reductions and we work very hard to make sure it's a fair process for all employees."
Do as they say?
Or do as they do? Consider the 13-member Gannett Management Committee, which has overall responsibility for company operations. After Curtis Riddle's retirement last year, is the GMC now 100% white, based on Corporate's definition of minorities?
And then there's Gannett's nine-seat board of directors, which has just one female member after the April retirement of Karen Hastie Williams (who also is African-American) and Donna Shalala.
Related: We're tracking Tuesday's layoffs in this read-only spreadsheet, which shows all job cuts during the current quarter. Plus: During the first quarter, the company eliminated an estimated 279 jobs at 31 sites, according to this site-by-site speadsheet.
"We work very hard to ensure no group has been adversely impacted," she told minority affairs blogger Richard Prince for a post yesterday on The Washington Post's Root website.
"As you know, Gannett is tremendously committed to diversity,'' she said. "We have maintained our percentage of female and minority employees over the last few years despite reductions and we work very hard to make sure it's a fair process for all employees."
Do as they say?
Or do as they do? Consider the 13-member Gannett Management Committee, which has overall responsibility for company operations. After Curtis Riddle's retirement last year, is the GMC now 100% white, based on Corporate's definition of minorities?
And then there's Gannett's nine-seat board of directors, which has just one female member after the April retirement of Karen Hastie Williams (who also is African-American) and Donna Shalala.
Related: We're tracking Tuesday's layoffs in this read-only spreadsheet, which shows all job cuts during the current quarter. Plus: During the first quarter, the company eliminated an estimated 279 jobs at 31 sites, according to this site-by-site speadsheet.
Sponsors | Amid turmoil, $105 in generous gifts
Most of those gifts came in smaller amounts, illustrating the power of microfundraising. "Thanks for keeping GCI's feet to the fire," one reader wrote.
Together, they've helped me reach 82% of my goal. The breakdown:
- Reader donations: $928
- Advertising: $2,358
Thursday, June 23, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 6
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Tweets held hostage: Day 3
Corporate's last tweet on its upbeat Twitter page came Monday, the day before 700 U.S. newspaper employees learned they would soon be out of work. "Congrats Sandra Cordova Micek," the tweet chirped. "Welcome to USAToday as SVP Marketing.''
Now, with Gannett's brand getting battered across the Web, what will Corporate's first post-layoff tweet be?
(Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock . . . )
In non-layoff news, USAT trolls the French Riviera
Apparently, the best way for USA Today to sell more advertising requires a nearly 4,000-mile trip to Cannes, the fashionable French resort on the glittering Côte d'Azur. There, the struggling daily will once more elbow its way through the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, a seven-day marketing schmoozefest that ends Saturday.
USAT says it is "the exclusive U.S. Representative to this prestigious international festival." Gannett's best-known brand doesn't say exactly what that means. Nor do its marketing materials say what the paper will be doing there during a week when Gannett itself laid off 700 workers at its other U.S. newspapers.
Last year, however, USAT says it hosted a private cocktail reception June 24 on the rooftop terrace of the 1835 White Palm Hotel in the heart of the French city.
 |
| Last year: Erdos, Hunke |
This year, the hotel's standard guest rooms next week start at $400 a night, which includes an in-room Nespresso machine. Not bad -- for a Radisson. (Quel dommage: The deluxe Sky Suite isn't available.)
Related: USAT has a reporter filing dispatches from the scene.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 5
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Word for word | Dickey & Co., then and now
Remarks by U.S. newspapers President Bob Dickey and his office:
July 1, 2009, announcing 1,400 newspaper layoffs: "Unfortunately, we must take these steps because the advertising environment remains challenged. There have been some promising signs of a recovery, but the reality is the improvements are not broad-based and the economy continues to be fragile. Even so, we know the economy will improve."
Jan. 4, 2011, announcing one-week unpaid furloughs for most U.S. newspaper workers: "We want to avoid future layoffs and hope that we can do so by taking steps now to control expenses and focus on top line growth."
Yesterday: "While we are seeing improved circulation results and audience growth, weakness in the real estate sector, slow job creation and now softer auto ad demand continue to challenge revenue growth in the division. National advertising remains soft and with many of our local advertisers reducing their overall budgets, we need to take further steps to align our costs with the current revenue trends."
Today: "We will do all that we can to avoid further layoffs outside of those related to ongoing consolidations."
Earlier: When it comes to Craig Dubow and earnings, the sun'll come out -- next quarter.
Jan. 4, 2011, announcing one-week unpaid furloughs for most U.S. newspaper workers: "We want to avoid future layoffs and hope that we can do so by taking steps now to control expenses and focus on top line growth."
Yesterday: "While we are seeing improved circulation results and audience growth, weakness in the real estate sector, slow job creation and now softer auto ad demand continue to challenge revenue growth in the division. National advertising remains soft and with many of our local advertisers reducing their overall budgets, we need to take further steps to align our costs with the current revenue trends."
Today: "We will do all that we can to avoid further layoffs outside of those related to ongoing consolidations."
Earlier: When it comes to Craig Dubow and earnings, the sun'll come out -- next quarter.
Urgent: In new memo, Dickey says, 'We will do all that we can to avoid further layoffs outside of those related to ongoing consolidations'
U.S. newspapers division President Bob Dickey sent the following memo to employees today:
I want to thank everyone within USCP for your efforts on what was a very difficult day for all of us yesterday. We wanted to reach everyone who was impacted by the end of the day Tuesday and with only a few exceptions, we were able to do so. We will do all that we can to avoid further layoffs outside of those related to ongoing consolidations. The economy, of course, will also play a role in determining future decisions.
These are challenging times, but I want to assure you that the steps we are taking now help us all going forward. Our business continues to change and we need to continue to adapt and respond to the new technologies and consumer trends that are driving these changes. While our local media organizations of tomorrow will look quite different from how we once were or even how we are today, newspapers are and will be a vital part of Gannett’s overall portfolio as one of the many different ways we reach consumers.
You are an important part of our team and our future. The work you do for our communities and our customers makes a difference and the opportunities ahead are promising. I believe in our future and I believe in what each of you as individuals can and will contribute to it. Your work and commitment is greatly appreciated by all -- our customers, communities, colleagues and me.
Thank you.
Bob
I want to thank everyone within USCP for your efforts on what was a very difficult day for all of us yesterday. We wanted to reach everyone who was impacted by the end of the day Tuesday and with only a few exceptions, we were able to do so. We will do all that we can to avoid further layoffs outside of those related to ongoing consolidations. The economy, of course, will also play a role in determining future decisions.
These are challenging times, but I want to assure you that the steps we are taking now help us all going forward. Our business continues to change and we need to continue to adapt and respond to the new technologies and consumer trends that are driving these changes. While our local media organizations of tomorrow will look quite different from how we once were or even how we are today, newspapers are and will be a vital part of Gannett’s overall portfolio as one of the many different ways we reach consumers.
You are an important part of our team and our future. The work you do for our communities and our customers makes a difference and the opportunities ahead are promising. I believe in our future and I believe in what each of you as individuals can and will contribute to it. Your work and commitment is greatly appreciated by all -- our customers, communities, colleagues and me.
Thank you.
Bob
Poynter: 'Gannett Way' isn't everyone's strategy
From a column this morning by the Poynter Institute's Rick Edmonds, regarding Gannett's layoff of 700 newspaper workers yesterday:
Metro papers like the Boston Globe and Dallas Morning News that have adopted a high price/high quality circulation strategy know readers will not be satisfied with skinny papers that have little worth reading. So those newsrooms are protected and, in a few cases, growing.
Metro papers like the Boston Globe and Dallas Morning News that have adopted a high price/high quality circulation strategy know readers will not be satisfied with skinny papers that have little worth reading. So those newsrooms are protected and, in a few cases, growing.
Westchester and Louisville cuts especially deep
Among the many noteworthy job reductions yesterday, based on the rate of cuts:
The Journal News at Westchester, N.Y., eliminated 47 of its 375 jobs, a total of 12.5%. Janet Hasson, named publisher three weeks ago, told the paper: "We're aligning our costs with current revenue trends and preserving the resources to produce relevant content and generate revenue." The paper's circulation is 77,102 weekdays.
The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Ky., cut 50 jobs -- about 10% of all. Publisher Arnie Garson said the future of the paper depends on the local economy, which hasn’t rebounded as fully as hoped. "If we get a break, we’ll be fine," he said. The C-J's weekday circulation averages 151,918.
Yesterday's count: about 575
The latest site-by-site job cut estimates are in this read-only spreadsheet. Figures are at 6:30 a.m. ET today, and are based on reader reports and published accounts. They include a combined 100 reductions or so earlier this quarter. Adjusted for those, we've now tallied about 575 jobs at about 33 sites yesterday alone.
Corporate projected that about 700 people would be laid off across many if not most of the company's more than 80 U.S. newspapers. That figure doesn't include dozens of unfilled jobs that also were eliminated yesterday.
Got a published report on the layoffs? Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
The Journal News at Westchester, N.Y., eliminated 47 of its 375 jobs, a total of 12.5%. Janet Hasson, named publisher three weeks ago, told the paper: "We're aligning our costs with current revenue trends and preserving the resources to produce relevant content and generate revenue." The paper's circulation is 77,102 weekdays.
The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Ky., cut 50 jobs -- about 10% of all. Publisher Arnie Garson said the future of the paper depends on the local economy, which hasn’t rebounded as fully as hoped. "If we get a break, we’ll be fine," he said. The C-J's weekday circulation averages 151,918.
Yesterday's count: about 575
The latest site-by-site job cut estimates are in this read-only spreadsheet. Figures are at 6:30 a.m. ET today, and are based on reader reports and published accounts. They include a combined 100 reductions or so earlier this quarter. Adjusted for those, we've now tallied about 575 jobs at about 33 sites yesterday alone.
Corporate projected that about 700 people would be laid off across many if not most of the company's more than 80 U.S. newspapers. That figure doesn't include dozens of unfilled jobs that also were eliminated yesterday.
Got a published report on the layoffs? Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 4
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.)
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 3
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Silence is leaden on Corporate's Twitter page
Here's a screenshot of Corporate's Twitter feed; note that the most recent entry is from yesterday -- and it's not about impending layoffs:
Nashville | Cutting 20 news jobs will help 'deepen the paper's legacy of public service journalism'
The Tennessean laid off 14 employees today, and plans to reorganize the newsroom this summer. The cuts are among 700 across the U.S. newspaper division. Word-for-word excerpts from the newspaper's just-published story about the newsroom changes:
Publisher Carol Hudler and editor Mark Silverman announced that news operations will be refocused to better meet changing print and digital needs in Middle Tennessee. It is expected that about 20 news positions will be lost through unfilled positions and layoffs as a part of those changes later this summer.
The news changes will help The Tennessean continue and deepen the newspaper’s legacy of public service journalism, improve the breadth and reach of local news in Nashville and its suburban counties, and continue to establish The Tennessean as the region’s primary source of digital news, information and engagement.
"We will sharpen our focus and concentrate our staff resources on the issues and topics our audiences are most passionate about," said Silverman. "At the same time, we will seek opportunities to partner with groups and individuals to provide additional information."
Earlier: Silverman wins Ben Bradlee editor award.
 |
| Silverman |
The news changes will help The Tennessean continue and deepen the newspaper’s legacy of public service journalism, improve the breadth and reach of local news in Nashville and its suburban counties, and continue to establish The Tennessean as the region’s primary source of digital news, information and engagement.
"We will sharpen our focus and concentrate our staff resources on the issues and topics our audiences are most passionate about," said Silverman. "At the same time, we will seek opportunities to partner with groups and individuals to provide additional information."
Earlier: Silverman wins Ben Bradlee editor award.
Layoffs | Indy cuts 62 jobs, including 26 in news
That's according to this Indianapolis Business Journal story:
The Indianapolis Star on Tuesday laid off 62 employees, including more than 15% of its newsroom staff in the latest round of cost-cutting by Gannett, the newspaper's parent company.
Among those laid off in Indianapolis were 26 newsroom employees, including 12 copy editors and eight reporters, mostly those covering suburban news. The Star also eliminated 19 open positions, said Robert King, the newspaper's religion and philanthropy reporter and president of the Indianapolis Newspaper Guild.
"The Indianapolis Star, I've been told repeatedly, continues to make money," King wrote in an e-mail. "Yet, Gannett, and its corporate bosses in Virginia, seem to view workers not as assets but as liabilities on a balance sheet."
Related: We're tallying site-by-site layoff figures in this read-only spreadsheet.
Got a published report on the layoffs? Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
[Image: today's Star, Newseum]
Among those laid off in Indianapolis were 26 newsroom employees, including 12 copy editors and eight reporters, mostly those covering suburban news. The Star also eliminated 19 open positions, said Robert King, the newspaper's religion and philanthropy reporter and president of the Indianapolis Newspaper Guild.
"The Indianapolis Star, I've been told repeatedly, continues to make money," King wrote in an e-mail. "Yet, Gannett, and its corporate bosses in Virginia, seem to view workers not as assets but as liabilities on a balance sheet."
Related: We're tallying site-by-site layoff figures in this read-only spreadsheet.
Got a published report on the layoffs? Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
[Image: today's Star, Newseum]
Bad news, now all within reach of media industry
By the numbers: layoffs and executive paychecks
"While we have sought many ways to reduce costs, I regret to tell you that we will not
be able to avoid layoffs."
U.S. newspapers division President Bob Dickey, in a memo today to employees, announcing 700 layoffs and furloughs for select staff.
$3.4 million
Bulletin: Gannett announces 700 newspaper layoffs
U.S. newspapers division President Bob Dickey distributed the following memo today to more than 20,000 employees at virtually all Gannett's 82 U.S. newspapers.
CONFIDENTIAL: CONTAINS PROPRIETARY BUSINESS INFORMATION -- NOT FOR PUBLIC DISSEMINATION
June 21, 2011
To: All US Community Publishing employees
From: Bob Dickey
As we reach the mid-point of the year, the economic recovery is not happening as quickly or favorably as we had hoped and continues to impact our U.S. community media organizations. We have made continued progress on the many initiatives underway to seek new sources of revenue, build a world class sales force and better serve our customers through watchdog reporting and stronger Sunday newspapers. While we are seeing improved circulation results and audience growth, weakness in the real estate sector, slow job creation and now softer auto ad demand continue to challenge revenue growth in the division.
National advertising remains soft and with many of our local advertisers reducing their overall budgets, we need to take further steps to align our costs with the current revenue trends. Each of our local media organizations faces its own market conditions, challenges and opportunities. Therefore, it has been up to each local publisher to determine his or her unique course of action.
While we have sought many ways to reduce costs, I regret to tell you that we will not be able to avoid layoffs. Accordingly, approximately 700 employees within USCP, or about 2% of our company’s overall workforce, will be let go. Publishers will notify people today and we will make every effort to reach everyone by end of day. It is important to note that these decisions do not reflect individual performance and we thank and respect those employees for their work. We will do everything we can to help them and to minimize the impact on our other employees going forward. In an effort to reduce the number of people being let go, there will be furloughs in the coming months but they will be limited only to those on the USCP corporate payroll who make over a certain salary. You will be notified by your publisher if you are among this group.
These have been extremely difficult and painful decisions to make. I know the impact is felt by everyone within USCP and companywide.
I appreciate and thank you for all that you do to create and deliver award-winning journalism to our customers and communities every day. Even under these challenging circumstances, I know you will continue to do so and your efforts are greatly appreciated by our customers and colleagues within Gannett.
As always, please feel free to email me directly at rdickey@gannett.com with any questions you may have.
Regards,
Bob
Biggest layoff since '09
Today's disclosure of 700 newspaper layoffs is the single largest round since July 2009, when the U.S. newspaper division eliminated about 1,400 jobs, mostly through layoffs. This is the fourth mass layoff since August 2008.
Gannett had 32,600 employees worldwide at the end of last year, according to the most recent figures available. About 22,400 of those were at U.S. newspapers.
Today's cuts came after many newspaper workers took one-week unpaid furloughs during the current quarter; virtually all took a furlough in the first quarter. And they come three months after GCI disclosed that Chairman and CEO Craig Dubow got paid $9.4 million last year -- twice what he earned in 2009. Other senior executives also got huge raises, company documents show.
Dubow's pay included a $1.75 million cash bonus, based partly on his success in reducing costs through layoffs, furloughs and other austerity measures. Bonuses awarded other executives were also calculated according to that same formula.
We're tracking site-by-site layoffs in this read-only spreadsheet. Please see if your site is included and provide updated figures in the comments section, below.
CONFIDENTIAL: CONTAINS PROPRIETARY BUSINESS INFORMATION -- NOT FOR PUBLIC DISSEMINATION
June 21, 2011
To: All US Community Publishing employees
From: Bob Dickey
As we reach the mid-point of the year, the economic recovery is not happening as quickly or favorably as we had hoped and continues to impact our U.S. community media organizations. We have made continued progress on the many initiatives underway to seek new sources of revenue, build a world class sales force and better serve our customers through watchdog reporting and stronger Sunday newspapers. While we are seeing improved circulation results and audience growth, weakness in the real estate sector, slow job creation and now softer auto ad demand continue to challenge revenue growth in the division.
 |
| Dickey |
While we have sought many ways to reduce costs, I regret to tell you that we will not be able to avoid layoffs. Accordingly, approximately 700 employees within USCP, or about 2% of our company’s overall workforce, will be let go. Publishers will notify people today and we will make every effort to reach everyone by end of day. It is important to note that these decisions do not reflect individual performance and we thank and respect those employees for their work. We will do everything we can to help them and to minimize the impact on our other employees going forward. In an effort to reduce the number of people being let go, there will be furloughs in the coming months but they will be limited only to those on the USCP corporate payroll who make over a certain salary. You will be notified by your publisher if you are among this group.
These have been extremely difficult and painful decisions to make. I know the impact is felt by everyone within USCP and companywide.
I appreciate and thank you for all that you do to create and deliver award-winning journalism to our customers and communities every day. Even under these challenging circumstances, I know you will continue to do so and your efforts are greatly appreciated by our customers and colleagues within Gannett.
As always, please feel free to email me directly at rdickey@gannett.com with any questions you may have.
Regards,
Bob
Biggest layoff since '09
Today's disclosure of 700 newspaper layoffs is the single largest round since July 2009, when the U.S. newspaper division eliminated about 1,400 jobs, mostly through layoffs. This is the fourth mass layoff since August 2008.
Gannett had 32,600 employees worldwide at the end of last year, according to the most recent figures available. About 22,400 of those were at U.S. newspapers.
 |
| Dubow |
Dubow's pay included a $1.75 million cash bonus, based partly on his success in reducing costs through layoffs, furloughs and other austerity measures. Bonuses awarded other executives were also calculated according to that same formula.
We're tracking site-by-site layoffs in this read-only spreadsheet. Please see if your site is included and provide updated figures in the comments section, below.
Sioux Falls | In a rare layoff memo: 12 job cuts
A Gannett Blogger says Publisher Randell Beck distributed the following memo today to employees of the Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, S.D. The memo also is noteworthy because fewer and fewer publishers and general managers disclose this sort of news in writing.
To all:
Today we are eliminating nine fulltime and three parttime positions at Argus Leader Media as the economy continues to present challenges to our business. I considered a number of options to reduce expenses as we focus on building revenue. While all Gannett markets are dealing with many of the same economic forces, including a recovery that has been much slower than anyone anticipated, our plan and reductions in force represent a local decision.
It was a difficult one -- and I want to sincerely thank those affected for their service to this company. We are seeking to notify affected employees as quickly as possible to minimize any uncertainty. Human resources and department heads from news, production and circulation will be working to make sure this occurs.
At Argus Leader Media, we are doing many of the right things throughout our organization that will drive success in the future. I am optimistic that our strong journalism, multimedia solutions for advertisers and exceptional distribution network will ensure that success.
I will be hosting town hall meetings for employees at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Wednesday in the training center to discuss more details about our efforts going forward. I'll do my best to answer your questions at each session.
Again, I want to express thanks and best wishes to those affected by these moves. And thanks to all employees for your commitment, talent and hard work. For further explanation, a letter from Bob Dickey, president of Gannett's community newspapers, is attached.
Randell Beck
President & Publisher
To all:
Today we are eliminating nine fulltime and three parttime positions at Argus Leader Media as the economy continues to present challenges to our business. I considered a number of options to reduce expenses as we focus on building revenue. While all Gannett markets are dealing with many of the same economic forces, including a recovery that has been much slower than anyone anticipated, our plan and reductions in force represent a local decision.
It was a difficult one -- and I want to sincerely thank those affected for their service to this company. We are seeking to notify affected employees as quickly as possible to minimize any uncertainty. Human resources and department heads from news, production and circulation will be working to make sure this occurs.
At Argus Leader Media, we are doing many of the right things throughout our organization that will drive success in the future. I am optimistic that our strong journalism, multimedia solutions for advertisers and exceptional distribution network will ensure that success.
I will be hosting town hall meetings for employees at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Wednesday in the training center to discuss more details about our efforts going forward. I'll do my best to answer your questions at each session.
Again, I want to express thanks and best wishes to those affected by these moves. And thanks to all employees for your commitment, talent and hard work. For further explanation, a letter from Bob Dickey, president of Gannett's community newspapers, is attached.
Randell Beck
President & Publisher
Layoffs | Just in: report of Cincy newsroom cuts
Anonymous@10:10 a.m. just posted the following: "Reports of 15 layoffs in Cincinnati newsroom today." Note: That would be at the low end of a figure I was given several weeks ago by one of my better-placed readers.
Yesterday, meanwhile, The Indianapolis Star laid off 11 advertising department employees, mostly in sales, according to a Gannett Blogger.
And Arizona Republic Publisher John Zidich announced the closing of the Phoenix Offset Plant in nearby Chandler, which prints USA Today; internal Republic work, and some commercial jobs. A blog reader there estimates the closure will eliminate about 40 jobs by the end of July.
These austerity measures follow weeks of speculation that Gannett was about to bump up its ongoing payroll trimming. GCI has been in a nearly constant layoff mode for more than a year now, interrupted only by sudden increases in cuts.
Yesterday's moves bring to 135 the estimated number of job cuts announced at 15 U.S. sites in the current quarter, which ends June 30. Worldwide, Gannett employs more than 30,000 workers.
Is your worksite represented on this read-only layoff spreadsheet? If not, please add your paper's information in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
[Image: today's front page, Newseum]
Cutlines Only | An intriguing photo, and a question
MSNBC unravels the mystery of what happened that night. And Anonymous@7:39 a.m. wonders: "Why didn't USA Today have this 'Riot Romeo' story? It's all over the Web and on the front page of The New York Times."
Getty's Richard Lam took the photo. Here's this morning's NYT, with its story circled:
Deal Chicken | The naming mystery is solved!
"The service, Deal Chicken, works with retailers, restaurants, and service providers, to promote daily deals to registered members. The deals 'hatch,' or become active, if enough people purchase them within a set time frame of 24 to 48 hours, although buyers have several months to redeem them." (Emphasis added.)
Phoenix | Republic whacks customer service hours
In an e-mail, a Gannett Blogger writes:
As you know, after the closing of the Center of Excellence customer service center in March, The Arizona Republic was forced to take back its customer service operation. While operating from Tulsa, their phones were manned from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday.
Phoenix then instituted the unfriendly customer service hours of 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Now, they've realized they are way over budget and will shift their weekday hours to 7 a.m. to noon.
As you know, after the closing of the Center of Excellence customer service center in March, The Arizona Republic was forced to take back its customer service operation. While operating from Tulsa, their phones were manned from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday.
Phoenix then instituted the unfriendly customer service hours of 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Now, they've realized they are way over budget and will shift their weekday hours to 7 a.m. to noon.
Monday, June 20, 2011
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 2
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.)
Sponsors | From this side of the rainbow: $20
- Reader donations: $819
- Advertising: $1,920
Commentz Korner | The 'under-belly' vs. the law
But Shiamili lost that case in a close decision handed down last week from New York State's highest court, according to this New York Times story today. The State Court of Appeals held that the blog's operators are protected under the Communications Decency Act, which shields such operators from liability when they publish and edit material, rather than author it.
USAT | A hire bearing Banikarim's fingerprints
USA Today has hired a new senior marketing executive -- Sandra Micek -- from the same NBCUniversal unit where Maryam Banikarim worked before she was named Gannett's first chief marketing officer three months ago.
Micek, with the title of senior vice president, will oversee marketing, brand development, communications and research, the newspaper said today in a statement. It appears Micek is replacing Jeffrey Wilks, who held the SVP marketing title for just seven months prior to his unannounced departure in early May.
Micek joins USAT from NBCUniversal, where as part of the Integrated Strategic Marketing Team she led the “Women at NBCU” initiative, according to USAT.
For her part, Banikarim was the New York-based network's SVP of integrated sales marketing at the time GCI announced her CMO appointment.
The timing of Micek's hiring is noteworthy. Only two weeks ago, USAT disclosed it had appointed Susie Elwood as the paper's deputy publisher. Ellwood has a long background in marketing, so would certainly take a keen interest in any marketing-related hires. Perhaps one of her first decisions included blessing Micek's appointment. (Or she wisely didn't want to cross the more powerful Banikarim. In any case, there are plenty of potential Corporate politics at play here.)
In its statement, USAT said that, prior to joining NBCUniversal, Micek spent nearly 10 years in Silicon Valley, holding a variety of jobs at Yahoo, including guiding consumer and partner marketing for some of Yahoo’s key businesses such as Yahoo Mobile and the subscription-based Yahoo Personals.
 |
| Micek |
Micek joins USAT from NBCUniversal, where as part of the Integrated Strategic Marketing Team she led the “Women at NBCU” initiative, according to USAT.
For her part, Banikarim was the New York-based network's SVP of integrated sales marketing at the time GCI announced her CMO appointment.
The timing of Micek's hiring is noteworthy. Only two weeks ago, USAT disclosed it had appointed Susie Elwood as the paper's deputy publisher. Ellwood has a long background in marketing, so would certainly take a keen interest in any marketing-related hires. Perhaps one of her first decisions included blessing Micek's appointment. (Or she wisely didn't want to cross the more powerful Banikarim. In any case, there are plenty of potential Corporate politics at play here.)
In its statement, USAT said that, prior to joining NBCUniversal, Micek spent nearly 10 years in Silicon Valley, holding a variety of jobs at Yahoo, including guiding consumer and partner marketing for some of Yahoo’s key businesses such as Yahoo Mobile and the subscription-based Yahoo Personals.
Commentz Korner | NYT cuts comments length
I believe Gannett already imposes a 2,000-character limit on its newspaper website comments.
Earlier: A year later, is your comment system working?
June 20-26 | Your News & Comments: Part 1
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.)
Sunday, June 19, 2011
June 13-19 | Your News & Comments: Part 7
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Clarksville | Long-vacant pub's job filled with GM
The Leaf-Chronicle's executive editor has been given the additional responsibilities of overall general manager, filling a position that's been vacant eight months -- and further blurring the ethical lines separating the business and editorial sides of a Gannett newspaper.
Richard Stevens, 56, the paper's top editor since 1999, replaces Andrew Oppmann, who left the paper's top executive job in late October for a position at a local university. The Tennessee paper disclosed the change in a story today.
Stevens had also been acting GM since Oppmann's departure. The GM position increasingly is replacing those of higher-paying publisher's positions. GMs basically do the same work, but for less money.
What's particularly worrisome about Stevens' appointment is that he will be responsible, according to the story, for "news, advertising and all day-to-day operations of the Leaf-Chronicle, its websites and other products under the banner of the Leaf Media Group. He will lead the company's Operating Committee and the newspaper's Editorial Board."
Money-saving move
Traditionally, newsrooms are overseen by an editor who is not directly responsible for business operations, most especially advertising sales. That separation is meant to guard against advertisers having undue influence over news coverage. (Indeed, in the most traditional arrangements, the top news executive has nothing to do with editorials. A separate editorial page editor reports to the publisher.)
The new arrangement at the Leaf-Chronicle appears to be driven at least partly if not wholly by money: Where there were two positions -- an executive editor and a publisher -- there is now one.
Stevens came to the paper as executive editor in 1999 after working as assistant managing editor of The Tennessean in Nashville. He has been a reporter, editor and newspaper manager since 1980, today's story says.
Carol Hudler, president of the regional South Group of newspapers, and publisher of the Tennessean, announced the appointment. "Clarksville is a dynamic community and the Leaf-Chronicle deserves to have a leader as locally invested as Richard,'' she is quoted in the story as saying. "Richard has shown he can manage the business and lead the staff, and I look forward to the Leaf-Chronicle's future successes."
 |
| Stevens |
Stevens had also been acting GM since Oppmann's departure. The GM position increasingly is replacing those of higher-paying publisher's positions. GMs basically do the same work, but for less money.
What's particularly worrisome about Stevens' appointment is that he will be responsible, according to the story, for "news, advertising and all day-to-day operations of the Leaf-Chronicle, its websites and other products under the banner of the Leaf Media Group. He will lead the company's Operating Committee and the newspaper's Editorial Board."
Money-saving move
Traditionally, newsrooms are overseen by an editor who is not directly responsible for business operations, most especially advertising sales. That separation is meant to guard against advertisers having undue influence over news coverage. (Indeed, in the most traditional arrangements, the top news executive has nothing to do with editorials. A separate editorial page editor reports to the publisher.)
The new arrangement at the Leaf-Chronicle appears to be driven at least partly if not wholly by money: Where there were two positions -- an executive editor and a publisher -- there is now one.
Stevens came to the paper as executive editor in 1999 after working as assistant managing editor of The Tennessean in Nashville. He has been a reporter, editor and newspaper manager since 1980, today's story says.
Carol Hudler, president of the regional South Group of newspapers, and publisher of the Tennessean, announced the appointment. "Clarksville is a dynamic community and the Leaf-Chronicle deserves to have a leader as locally invested as Richard,'' she is quoted in the story as saying. "Richard has shown he can manage the business and lead the staff, and I look forward to the Leaf-Chronicle's future successes."
Saturday, June 18, 2011
June 13-19 | Your News & Comments: Part 6
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Fortune: 'Grim news' in daily deal sites study
The new Rice University study found that only 20% of coupon users become repeat customers of businesses offering deals through services like Groupon and LivingSocial, according to this Fortune magazine story. Other companies like Google are targeting the space -- as is Gannett, of course, through its still-developing Deal Chicken site.
As competitors pile into the market, Rice management professor Utpal Dholakia found, the business will only get tougher, especially if perception grows among small companies that daily deals don't generate much new business.
The study, published this week, comes as Gannett is expanding its Deal Chicken site to dozens of GCI markets. So far, it's only offered in Phoenix, where it was launched in September.
"Over the next few years," Dholakia wrote, "it is likely that daily deal sites will have to settle for lower shares of revenues from businesses compared to their current levels, and it will be harder and more expensive for them to find viable candidates to fill their pipelines of daily deals."
Dholakia surveyed 324 businesses that offered deals from August 2009 to March 2011 from five coupon services: Groupon, LivingSocial, OpenTable, BuyWithMe and TravelZoo.
Earlier: Dozens more jobs point to Deal Chicken expansion.
The study, published this week, comes as Gannett is expanding its Deal Chicken site to dozens of GCI markets. So far, it's only offered in Phoenix, where it was launched in September.
"Over the next few years," Dholakia wrote, "it is likely that daily deal sites will have to settle for lower shares of revenues from businesses compared to their current levels, and it will be harder and more expensive for them to find viable candidates to fill their pipelines of daily deals."
Dholakia surveyed 324 businesses that offered deals from August 2009 to March 2011 from five coupon services: Groupon, LivingSocial, OpenTable, BuyWithMe and TravelZoo.
Earlier: Dozens more jobs point to Deal Chicken expansion.
Friday, June 17, 2011
June 13-19 | Your News & Comments: Part 5
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Thursday, June 16, 2011
June 13-19 | Your News & Comments: Part 4
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Monroe | Print shifts to Shreveport; 27 jobs cut
"New positions will be added in Shreveport with the consolidation," the story says, "and Monroe employees will be given first option for those positions."
The Times installed a Berliner press last year that produces a newspaper with an 18-inch depth. In addition, the Berliner press allows advertisers to place color advertising on every page, "which is important in today’s changing media environment,'' the paper says.
With this cost-saving step, Monroe becomes the latest paper to consolidate printing at a nearby sister site, or one owned by another publisher. As of December, the latest period available, 68% of Gannett's 82 U.S. papers had moved printing off-site.
Monroe's circulation weekdays is 29,245. Sunday's is 28,500.
Related: So far in the current quarter, GCI has eliminated an estimated 52 jobs at 10 sites, according to Gannett Blog reader reports. This spreadsheet gives a site-by-site count.
I gather this means the Monroe paper will become a Berliner? Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
[Image: today's News Star, Newseum]
Newsquest | In strike, bosses said changing venue
[Strikers dressed as cowboys to spotlight "Wild West" of publishing]
Newsquest managers changed the location -- twice -- for a "think tank'' meeting today, rather than face unionized employees conducting a two-day strike of the Gannett U.K. newspaper subsidiary, a Guardian report says today. The meeting was to include 11 Newsquest managers, says Guardian media columnist Roy Greenslade.
The two-day strike by employees at papers in Sutton and Twickenham is protesting a proposal to close the papers' sports and leisure department, costing nine jobs, according to Greenslade.
The picket
His column continued: "NUJ members are becoming ever more inventive to publicise their plight. Two months ago, journalists in Enfield working for Tindle Newspapers staged a mock funeral as a way of demonstrating to local people the danger their papers were facing."
About Newsquest
The division employs about one in seven of Gannett's 32,600 global employees -- a total of 4,800 -- at 17 dailies and hundreds of weeklies. Newsquest cut nearly 6% of its jobs last year, according to GCI's just-filed annual 10-K statement to U.S. regulators. GCI bought the U.K. operation in the summer of 1999 for about $1.5 billion.
Related: see the NUJ's strike blog.
[Photo: NUJ]
Do you know about the Content Evolution Team?
Related: Corporate's News Department in September 2003 unveils the latest quality improvement program: Real Life, Real News.
Heard about this team? Please tell us more. Post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
[Image: "Homersapien" Simpson]
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