Thursday, September 05, 2013

How to NOT focus on high-impact local journalism

With a masters degree in cellular and molecular biology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Kelly Tyrrell is just the sort of reporter The News Journal in Wilmington, Del., needs for a story with far-reaching consequences: Obamacare.

That healthcare reform law enters a critical stage Oct. 1 as Corporate pushes community papers to "focus entirely on the unique, high-impact local journalism needed to compete in today's crowded media world."

So, how did the News Journal prep for Obamacare last week? It laid off Tyrrell. Hers was one of more than 400 newspaper jobs Gannett scrapped in its latest round of cost-cutting. Nearly 30 were in Wilmington alone.

"It was a shock," Tyrrell writes in a fresh blog post that renews questions about the company's commitment to community news.

19 comments:

  1. Gannett doesn't care about local anymore. I don't know why the company pays lip service to it. Instead, corporate/USAT is sending out a drop-in package of stories and infographics on Obamacare (whether those apply to a site's particular situation or not).

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  2. Hers is a talent that we can't afford. Must post photos/videos/brief on that fender-bender on I 95. That's where the page views are!

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  3. I have said this over and over for the last 10 years: Gannett has no plan and Gannett bosses have no clue.

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  4. Andrew Melnykovych9/05/2013 10:55 AM

    Institutional memory such as Kelly Tyrell's is expensive to create and to retain. It used to be that the better state/regional papers such as Des Moines and Louisville would lose experienced reporters and institutional memory to the NY Times, WS Journal and other big city or national publications. This was considered both a loss and a point of pride - proof that those papers could attract and nurture top talent. Then Gannett took over and started systematically trying to rid itself of long-tenured and thus higher-salaried journalists. Even before the layoffs and buyouts started, veteran reporters and editors were bailing out because they were no longer willing to work for an organization that treated journalism as widget-making that should be done in accordance with some ever-changing dictate handed down from on high (News 2000, First Five Grafs, etc), rather than based on a thorough knowledge of issues and communities.

    Institutional memory no longer matters. Its loss is reflected in the steadily diminishing quality of Gannett's publications.

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  5. Why anyone would want to read a Gannett publication either in print or online is beyond me. Gannett executives should not be allowed to read newspapers and view websites-let alone work for a media company.

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    1. 11:20 - you make too much sense. USAT needs to hire MORE worthless, high paid managers.

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    2. True for Gannett in general 11:47

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  6. Sorry. When someone writes on and on about how shocked she is about her layoff and how indispensable she was sure she was, I have to wonder, did she think everyone else who lost their jobs since 2009 were no-talent losers? Sorry, join the real world.

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    1. You're right, she should have known when she was hired that she was just a worthless, overpaid commodity. She should have known that if she did a good job and got a decent raise she would have been laid off in oh-so-many months. She should have known that her career with Gannett would be nasty, brutish, and short. Silly girl!

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    2. Did you read her entire post? She acknowledges it's not personal. She knows how many other people have been laid off alongside her. She understands the volatility of the industry. Why jump to that kind of conclusion after reading a thoughtful, intelligent blog post from someone whose livelihood has just been snatched from under her without warning? If you worked as hard as she did and still got canned, wouldn't you be sour about it? Just because she worked in an industry that's notorious for layoffs doesn't mean she walked in there every day expecting to get pink-slipped. She walked in there every day expecting to WORK, because that's what she loved to do. Your baseless judgments and negativity are not welcome here.

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  7. I admire and respect her. She was young, bright and had the intelligence and drive Gannett should of respected and not discarded. This is a perfect example of why the Gannett executives have no clue when they check their numbers sheet of people to lay off. It makes utterly no sense what so ever and that is why she was blind sided. She did everything they asked — blogged, tweeted, social media, print. As someone else posted— it has nothing to do with keeping current, it has nothing to do with your talent or knowledge. It has to do whether you got picked out of the mix to be let go. Nothing to do with your work ethic, your time of service, your age — nothing. You are just a number with Gannett and remember as your publisher and editor says you MUST say positive even after losing life long friends and new friends such as Kelly. We were told by Ellen there would be no negative feelings or emotions. We were told to never feel a thought or emotion or to care for our fellow workers. This is what corporate america has become and it will soon change because Ellen we do have emotions, we do care about our fellow workers and we do care about Kelly. So take your dried up worthless piece of crap emotionless self and get the hell out of Wilmington! See we are being positive — once you and people who don't care about people are gone. How the hell do you live with yourself each and everyday.

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  8. Jim, you should see if she wants to take over the blog. I have little doubt that her single blog post far eclipses your entire body of work.

    Give serious thought to it.

    12:39: Go away.

    11:41: Seriously? The last half of your post is a textbook for the "Before" section of an anger-management seminar.

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  9. Iceberg dead ahead? Full speed ahead9/07/2013 7:25 PM

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  10. What does having a masters degree in cellular and molecular biology have to do with insurance management and hospital administration? I mean, I am sad she was laid off but I am really just asking Jim how he made that connection. Science vs.business?

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    1. It shows a more than passing interest in healthcare.

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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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