More from Lean Dean

[rpmmutant]

Last I checked, IVDB and SB Sun were the same place. They share a lot of the same staff. If it hits one, it will hit the other.

[MileHigh]

Certainly from a desk standpoint. Hoping it's not a Long Beach/Torrance situation, but ...

[Cadet]

God, I love Bill Dwyre.

[steveu]

Don't hold back, Bill... tell us how you REALLY feel.

In this case, it's welcome. (winks)

[MileHigh]

At least four have been cut today from LANG properties today.

http://reporter-g.blogspot.com/2008/03/ax-is-swinging-in-san-gabriel-valley-at.html

[DanOregon]

This thing is like a cancer that has metastized and the treatment is doing more damage to the body than the original disease. Newspapers used to have status and authority attached to them. It was any newspaper's greatest asset, but now its like  Buick figuring they need to start competing with KIA.
People are getting the message that they don't NEED newspapers anymore and the industry responds by reinforcing that belief.

[Tom Petty]

This thing is like a cancer that has metastized and the treatment is doing more damage to the body than the original disease. Newspapers used to have status and authority attached to them. It was any newspaper's greatest asset, but now its like  Buick figuring they need to start competing with KIA.
People are getting the message that they don't NEED newspaper's anymore and the industry responds by reinforcing that belief.

nicely worded, dan.

[MMatt60]

Any more departures today in NorCal?

[joe]

First appearance of the joe pipeline says 31 cuts across Daily Bulletin, San Berdoo, San Gabe and Redlands. Word is 11 of them came from the San Berdoo Sun.

Fucking blood in the streets in the Inland Valley and elsewhere across SoCal.

[MileHigh]

Hearing the same thing. Incredibly sad. I still knows lots of people there and know of at least one who didn't make it, someone who I owe a huge debt to in terms of my career.

[MileHigh]

Any more departures today in NorCal?

Tomorrow at San Jose. Folks have been told to sit by their phones. If they don't get a call before 10 a.m., then they can come into work.

[Editude]

Bad times in Redlands, S.B. and Ontario. Each used to be distinctive products (and areas) that served specific audiences.

[Joe Williams]

People are getting the message that they don't NEED newspaper's anymore and the industry responds by reinforcing that belief.

There it is, the moral  of this horsebleep story.

By shedding journalists who know their audience/communities and whose bylines are known by the readers, nimrod bosses and owners are telling their (ugh) "customers" that the product is more dispensable now than it was a month or a year ago. Then they're scratching their heads wondering where the people went.

[Appgrad05]

A former employee at my shop went to the cluster. He's since moved on, but this is very sad news for all involved.

[DanOregon]

At this point, who is better off, those still at those papers or those let go? I know it sucks. I've seen a paper shut its doors and seen papers that appear to be in hospice - I just don't see a way back. Each week it seems, already precious newshole it taken up with an editor's note about changing figurations and features to better serve investors, I mean readers. Reading newspapers today is like watching Unitas play for the Chargers and Mays play for the Mets. It's just plain sad and you'd like to see them go out with some dignity.
The role of the newspaper will be taken up by some smart person who is able to figure out a way to channel specific news to specific readers that are served by specific advertisers, but I really, really doubt it will be by the current leadership running newspapers.

[Gold]

With these cutbacks, it almost seems like they will close the sports section.   What is left to cut?

[MileHigh]

My understanding there are nine people left in sports to put out Ontario/San Bernardino.

[Moderator1]

Some of this is probably a repeat, sorry for the within thread D_B.  Trying to sort it all out and not throw shit in anger at what is going on out there:

31's the magic number. That's across the board -- all got hit. 11 from San Berdoo, 7 from Ontario, 10 from San Gabriel and 3 from Redlands.

No buyouts. Straight cuts -- but they all got severance packages similar to the buyouts offered to the Daily News people last week.

From San Bernardino, recent cuts included  6 in Metro, 3 in Sports -- Paul Oberjuerge, a 32-year vet (including 23 as SE here; now the main sports columnist); a full-time desker and a part-time agate clerk -- plus 2 photogs.

San Bernardino is down to 9 full time -- from 16 three years ago.  Do the math. About half the staff now gone in three years.
Don't know much about Ontario.

Big hit in San Gabe was executive editor, O'Sullivan. Redlands also lost its editor. So it wasn't just the part-timers, like it was last week when the L.A. Daily News got hit.


Lord.  What a fucking business.

[suburbia]

People are getting the message that they don't NEED newspaper's anymore and the industry responds by reinforcing that belief.

There it is, the moral  of this horsebleep story.

By shedding journalists who know their audience/communities and whose bylines are known by the readers, nimrod bosses and owners are telling their (ugh) "customers" that the product is more dispensable now than it was a month or a year ago. Then they're scratching their heads wondering where the people went.

But by then, the Singletons and Jelenics of the world have further fattened their personal bank accounts. Which is all this is really about, anyway.

[MileHigh]

Some of this is probably a repeat, sorry for the within thread D_B.  Trying to sort it all out and not throw shit in anger at what is going on out there:

31's the magic number. That's across the board -- all got hit. 11 from San Berdoo, 7 from Ontario, 10 from San Gabriel and 3 from Redlands.

No buyouts. Straight cuts -- but they all got severance packages similar to the buyouts offered to the Daily News people last week.

From San Bernardino, recent cuts included  6 in Metro, 3 in Sports -- Paul Oberjuerge, a 32-year vet (including 23 as SE here; now the main sports columnist); a full-time desker and a part-time agate clerk -- plus 2 photogs.

San Bernardino is down to 9 full time -- from 16 three years ago.  Do the math. About half the staff now gone in three years.
Don't know much about Ontario.

Big hit in San Gabe was executive editor, O'Sullivan. Redlands also lost its editor. So it wasn't just the part-timers, like it was last week when the L.A. Daily News got hit.


Lord.  What a fucking business.

And San Bernardino's cut in sports down to nine includes putting out TWO sections. They put out the Ontario section there as well.

No doubt, a clear bloodletting. And the dropping of Oberjuerge is a complete and utter joke and disaster. It's clear that all that matters is what you make on your pay stub, not the work you put in. And the work Paulo put in on a daily basis not only was the best for San Bernardino, but all of LANG.

[Definite Article]

Any more departures today in NorCal?

From what I hear, BANG-East Bay (the CC Times, Oakland Trib and various weeklies) accepted 107 buyouts. They'll be able to avoid layoffs, which is good news, all things considered. Of the 107, I think half of that number are actually newsroom employees. Five guys in sports - three prep writers, a copy editor and I'm unsure of the fifth.

[robo]

The cuts in the IE is obviously not about journalism but about money. We all use to say we had ink running in our veins and if you knew Paul Oberjuerge -- whether you liked him or not -- the one thing was obvious the guy cared about journalism and putting out as great a section he could despite the lack of resources. It's apparent Lean Dean doesn't have any blood because he certainly doesn't have a heart for journallism.

[MileHigh]

Meanwhile ...

Mandatory meeting at San Gabriel today.

http://www.laobserved.com/archive/2008/03/mandatory_meeting_in_san.php

And 50 job cuts in San Jose.

http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_8490401

And MediaNews' credit rating gets cut for the second time in a week.

http://www.minnpost.com/davidbrauer/2008/03/07/1101/pipress_parents_credit_crunch_worsens

[Angola!]

Is this just the stock paragraph that all newspapers put in their stories to try to justify the cuts?

  Across the country, newspapers are reducing staff and making other cost savings to weather recession and the loss of advertising to the Internet.

[poindexter]

The Press Telegram:  We're Here to Stay!

http://www.presstelegram.com/opinions/ci_8481730?source=email