Posted by chicagomedia.org on August 16, 2008 at 09:32:26:
Chicago Tribune completes newsroom layoffs
The Chicago Tribune shed more than 40 newsroom employees today, which, coupled with last week's voluntary exit of more than 30 journalists, means the paper has cut 80 people from its editorial staff as part of cost-cutting campaign at all of parent Tribune Co.'s newspapers.
"Endings are never easy," Tribune editor Gerould W. Kern said in a note to staff, adding that "with the departure of 80 individuals through today, the editorial staff of the Chicago Tribune stands at 480, the largest news organization in Chicago by a wide margin and one of the largest and most accomplished in the United States. ... While painful, these staff reductions are necessary to establish the foundation for a sustainable future."
The latest round of cutbacks is the paper's fourth since late 2005, when the newsroom was said to have had 670 positions. Other departments at the paper have been making cuts, as well.
The reductions are consistent with a trend common not just to Tribune Co. properties but newspapers across the nation, including the New York Times and Washington Post, related to online businesses growth failing to offset accelerated declines in print ad revenue.
Tribune Co., which went private late last year in a heavily leveraged transaction, earlier this week reported a $4.53 billion second-quarter net loss, largely the result of a $3.84 billion accounting-related charge to write down the value of intangible assets known as goodwill. Overall revenue dropped nearly 6 percent to $1.11 billion from $1.18 billion in the year-ago quarter. Its second-quarter publishing revenues were down 11 percent compared to the same stretch in 2007.
(Phil Rosenthal)