tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post8627775123762036717..comments2023-11-05T06:26:51.316-05:00Comments on Gannett Blog: Documents reveal double-digit profit margins at scores of papers now on verge of massive layoffsJim Hopkinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comBlogger119125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-82962451361083978142011-04-27T14:34:26.037-04:002011-04-27T14:34:26.037-04:00Wow, I'm reading these posts now because I'...Wow, I'm reading these posts now because I'm working on a research paper for school. Nothing he posted is top secret information. I guess that just goes to show how bad journalism has gotten that anyone thinks this information is hard to find or is top secret.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-74357682408786169862011-03-09T13:05:19.827-05:002011-03-09T13:05:19.827-05:00Yes, newspapers have traditionally enjoyed very hi...Yes, newspapers have traditionally enjoyed very high profit margins. Being that our country was founded on capitalism, I have no urge to diminish them for it. The goal of any successful business is to make a profit. Soft drink makers, electronics companies, radio stations, insurance companies and banks don't exist to improve the conditions of the working men and women in the world: they existAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-11757456555197998442008-12-10T16:57:00.000-05:002008-12-10T16:57:00.000-05:00Severinsson:Like it or not, that was the 'deal wit...Severinsson:<BR/><BR/>Like it or not, that was the 'deal with the devil' when Gannett went public decades ago.<BR/><BR/>Whether you like the fact or not, corporations do exist solely to provide dividends to their shareholders. As law courts constantly point out, it is a corporation's fiduciary duty to do so. It isn't the corporations' duty to put out good newspapers, serve the community, etc.<BR/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-39574827401687392882008-12-07T16:30:00.000-05:002008-12-07T16:30:00.000-05:00re Gannett's corporate debt: So what? So the corpo...re Gannett's corporate debt: So what? So the corporate side the of the company piles up a huge debt load acquiring profitable newspapers that, it turns out, aren't profitable enough to support the debt load. Then the company goes about axing jobs and journalists to make the profitable papers even more profitable to support the debt load.<BR/>.<BR/>Is this the journalists' fault? Is this the faultC. Severinssonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12522135074098469879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-69834178769888496862008-12-03T23:59:00.000-05:002008-12-03T23:59:00.000-05:00Point-of-Order, Mr. Chairman:In none of the above ...Point-of-Order, Mr. Chairman:<BR/><BR/>In none of the above does anybody ask how much of the newspapers' profit margins go to pay Gannett's huge debts. Does everybody simply think that those newspapers' profit margins are end profits that just go into the pockets of the company's executives and stockholders?<BR/><BR/>Follow the money to the end, not to some mid-point, such as the newspaper Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-14562666969538013482008-12-03T01:40:00.000-05:002008-12-03T01:40:00.000-05:00Thank you!Thank you!Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16651269559205765985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-91309542129675646122008-12-03T01:36:00.000-05:002008-12-03T01:36:00.000-05:00This report tells me bloggers can be legitimate, i...This report tells me bloggers can be legitimate, indispensible news sources. Mr. Hopkins has scored a huge scoop on this blog. I never thought I'd see the day where individual Gannett property profit margins would be published. I'm pleased the story broke on this blog -- it is inspiring to see a true reporter and one-man online operation cultivate such a crucial source. <BR/><BR/>It's one more Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-63428723536347551432008-12-03T00:14:00.000-05:002008-12-03T00:14:00.000-05:00Sorry to join the fray so late in the thread.1.) t...Sorry to join the fray so late in the thread.<BR/><BR/>1.) these figures are seriously out of date, considering the downturn so far this year. Your source needs to give you more recent numbers.<BR/><BR/>2.) Some people, including some journos, immediately switch into stereotyped thinking whenever they see the word 'profits.' There is no confirmation in this blog that these are bottom-line Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-32078410499237370242008-12-02T23:10:00.000-05:002008-12-02T23:10:00.000-05:00Nice job on this. This is fantastic. Please post t...Nice job on this. This is fantastic. Please post the profit margins for the papers that were owned by Gannett in 2007, yet they're no longer Gannett papers (e.g. the Norwich Bulletin, Utica Observer Dispatch, etc.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-43531007384388133302008-12-02T18:07:00.000-05:002008-12-02T18:07:00.000-05:00I realize this is Gannett Blog, but I would love t...I realize this is Gannett Blog, but I would love to see how McClatchy compares. I took a buyout from one of its papers, which had been pulling in a lackluster 15-17 percent, down from the low 20s a few years ago. Embarrassing, I know.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-64572654678641128492008-12-02T09:04:00.000-05:002008-12-02T09:04:00.000-05:00As far as the person who contends you're not doing...As far as the person who contends you're not doing "God's work," I heartily disagree.<BR/><BR/>I have watched Gannett destroy my hometown paper over the last four years, and some of the most experienced, most talented journalists have left because of buyouts and contentions that the paper has to cut, cut, cut. And to see that the paper has double-digit profits is outrageous. The paper's Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-62769537062122204042008-12-01T17:15:00.000-05:002008-12-01T17:15:00.000-05:00I was in Salem during this time period and there w...I was in Salem during this time period and there was a corporate wide hiring freeze during the same time period - at least that's what the suits told us. Anyone that worked there knows how to pronounce the company's name "Gan-Net" with the emphasis on net. They were terrible to work for. In fact, worse than any other company I worked for in 10 years and that is a very bold statement.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-22829409772230387292008-12-01T15:27:00.000-05:002008-12-01T15:27:00.000-05:00I have no problems with profit margins...as long a...I have no problems with profit margins...as long as:<BR/>1. the company is also concerned with the quality of its product, especially in journalism, which is considered an important enough product to be protected by the U.S. Constitution.<BR/>2. When the profit margins are made by dumping older, higher-paid employees who provide needed experience and replacing them with recent college graduates Rays profilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13375762252351537791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-27468359788662763062008-12-01T13:13:00.000-05:002008-12-01T13:13:00.000-05:00I've never worked for Gannett (and maybe never wil...I've never worked for Gannett (and maybe never will) but I really don't understand the hostility employees have about profit margins.<BR/>Your company is a business and is supposed to be profitable. Your corporate staff is paid to make the company as much money as possible. How is that greedy? Its what they're paid to do. Have they ruined people's lives to maximize profits? Yes. Have Gannett Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-87029237993962380502008-12-01T12:46:00.000-05:002008-12-01T12:46:00.000-05:00these numbers, even if higher than exist now, are ...these numbers, even if higher than exist now, are a compelling argument for the obvious way forward for print news - private ownership.<BR/>Even at half these margins the return would be a wet dream for 75% of American business owners. <BR/>Enuf with wall street's "jump higher and hang there" dictates. Take 'em private, as it was back in the day, and let chain ownership go the way of eight-track Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-10024509458109523652008-12-01T12:28:00.000-05:002008-12-01T12:28:00.000-05:00Thank you, 12:26 pm!Thank you, 12:26 pm!Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16651269559205765985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-76292001703966596472008-12-01T12:26:00.000-05:002008-12-01T12:26:00.000-05:00Thank you Jim. It seems like you are getting back ...Thank you Jim. It seems like you are getting back to the heart of journalism with the work you are doing here. It is much appreciated, especially to those of us who are being told (arrogantly) that we are lucky to have jobs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-44449734218075425572008-12-01T12:18:00.000-05:002008-12-01T12:18:00.000-05:00Why is it that no one ever discusses the idea of a...Why is it that no one ever discusses the idea of a "blue flu" at Gannett's newspapers? I think it's time for the newspaper talent to push back. Let the bosses try to put out a paper with 10 percent of the staff around to write, edit and design it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-86993194511583152012008-12-01T10:24:00.000-05:002008-12-01T10:24:00.000-05:00As to whether these numbers are out of date: In 2 ...As to whether these numbers are out of date: In 2 ways, they aren't. <BR/> <BR/>1) Newspapers go through business cycles like every other segment of the economy. So even if results at the moment are poor, relative to other segments, newspapers are still probably doing fairly well. And keep in mind, the figures are current enough in the sense they apply to the heart of a period when we've heard C. Severinssonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12522135074098469879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-26084024015006132402008-12-01T10:02:00.000-05:002008-12-01T10:02:00.000-05:00Speaking as a Gannett layoff victim (in '06 - I be...Speaking as a Gannett layoff victim (in '06 - I beat the rush) I'm not surprised to hear this, and I echo what was said about older, veteran reporters being dumped in favor of entry-level grads. Green Bay also had the advantage of taking a few people from the old News-Chronicle (R.I.P.) who were making nowhere near Gannett wages and bringing them on at the same pay. (To be fair, they were among Rays profilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13375762252351537791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-64178314831903024212008-11-30T22:18:00.000-05:002008-11-30T22:18:00.000-05:00These are undoubtedly the "operating margins" or "...These are undoubtedly the "operating margins" or "gross margins."<BR/><BR/>They do not include such things as depreciation, interest payments on debt, etc.<BR/><BR/>Still, the point is that newspapers generally remain profitable, even highly profitable. And the real adjustment going on is from the Green Bays, with a 40 percent plus budgeted margin, to those in the 8-10 percent range. As that Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-20395616243864750042008-11-30T17:05:00.000-05:002008-11-30T17:05:00.000-05:00to the question from 11/29/2008 8:13 PM"If I make ...to the question from 11/29/2008 8:13 PM<BR/><BR/>"If I make $150,000 in revenue on $100,000 in expenses, my profit margin is 50%, isn't it? But I'm only keeping 33% -- my $50K profit out of $150K in revenue."<BR/><BR/>Answer: Your profit margin is 33%. Your mark-up is 50%. Your profit is the percentage of revenue you keep after all expenses. In this case you kept $50,000 or 1/3 of the revenue Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-67772561966908605302008-11-30T11:49:00.000-05:002008-11-30T11:49:00.000-05:00Speaking of profit margins, why does the company m...Speaking of profit margins, why does the company make annual contributions to the UK retirement plans, but not the ones in the US?<BR/><BR/>Here are the UK contributions:<BR/>2008 - $14.6 million (planned)<BR/>2007 - $22.2 million<BR/>2006 - $9.7 million<BR/>2005 - $10.0 million<BR/>2004 - $37.2 million<BR/><BR/>Gannett last contributed $50 million to the US plan in February, 2004, and $36 Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-89540736674291622472008-11-29T20:27:00.000-05:002008-11-29T20:27:00.000-05:008:13 pm: I have read several definitions of profit...8:13 pm: I have read several definitions of profit margin -- both net and gross. None of them defined margins the way you do.Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16651269559205765985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-12681712823412889052008-11-29T20:13:00.000-05:002008-11-29T20:13:00.000-05:00Also ... Jim? As I understand a profit margin, if ...Also ... Jim? As I understand a profit margin, if you're making a 43% margin, you're not keeping 43 cents of every dollar you're earning. You're keeping 43 cents of every $1.43. No?<BR/><BR/>If I make $150,000 in revenue on $100,000 in expenses, my profit margin is 50%, isn't it? But I'm only keeping 33% -- my $50K profit out of $150K in revenue.<BR/><BR/>Speaking of profit -- since you've Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com