27 employees at the Plain Dealer were dismissed on Monday as part of the company’s effort to eliminate 50 jobs in the newsroom. The balance of the cuts were achieved through buyouts. In the photo department longtime staffers Roadell Hickman and Brynne Shaw were laid off. Chris Stephens is also leaving, but is one of the 23 employees who accepted a buyout.
The incredibly shrinking Gannett has eliminated nearly 1,800 jobs in its latest downsizing so far this week. No specifics have surfaced on how Ohio properties have been affected. Reports from the Gannett blog put the number between 45 and 50 jobs eliminated at the smaller Ohio newspapers.
In Ohio Gannett owns the Cincinnati Enquirer, The News Journal in Mansfield and dailies in in Newark, Chillicothe, Coshocton, Lancaster, Marion, Fremont, Bucyrus and Zanesville. The company also owns Cleveland NBC affiliate WKYC-TV.
While the mass exodus at Gannett would naturally draw a lot of headlines the leak of profit margins at Gannett properties have raised many eyebrows. Just how much profit is too much profit is the general theme of many of the stories. One of the more pointed attacks comes from Paul Oberjuerge who shares his opinion of Gannett and in Gannett speak its “profit centers”.
These are difficult days in our industry and we wish nothing but the best for those who have lost their jobs. Having narrowly escaping the same fate three times in the last eight years I know the emotional strain it puts on a workplace. Most of us are in this profession because it is supposed to be fun. Well the last several years it has been anything but.