But with the purchase of 20-station TV company Belo in late December, Gannett is no longer the same company. Corporate projects broadcasting will eventually account for more than half of all earnings; throw in digital, and the figure is forecast to rise even higher. In other words, Gannett is now a TV giant with a side interest in newspapers, its mainstay business since 1906, when Frank Gannett founded the company with a single daily in Elmira, N.Y.
Gannett is also a much smaller enterprise. It has eliminated more than 20,000 jobs since the workforce peaked at 53,000 in 2003. Revenue fell to $5.2 billion last year vs. a record $8 billion in 2006. GCI shares trade for $28 vs. an all-time high of $90 in 2004.
And now Wall Street is raising pressure on Corporate to spin off the troubled newspaper division. I had much of this in mind in early December, when I wrote about Gannett's digital efforts in a lengthy post that also serves as a history of this blog.
There are other reasons for me to quit now. I turned 57 years old on Sunday, a turning point to pursue new adventures while saying goodbye to old ones.
I've thoroughly enjoyed publishing Gannett Blog -- so much so, I returned in late 2009 after taking a five-month break I initially thought would be permanent. This time, I won't change my mind.
What this means
You can continue posting comments through tonight, when I'll disable commenting for good. The site will remain available on a read-only basis as long as Google supports the Blogger software platform I use. There's plenty to read from the past six years: more than 7,000 posts and nearly 140,000 comments.
I'm no longer seeking gifts from readers. You've been tremendously generous over the years and for that I continue to be grateful. I will refund any contributions I've received since Jan. 1 where I have contact information for donors. (Readers with auto-renewing subscriptions should use the "Unsubscribe" link near the top of the green sidebar, right.)
Thank you.
Jim Hopkins
Publisher and Editor
San Francisco
I'm no longer accepting comments here or anywhere else on this site. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot.com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green rail, upper right.
