1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

NYT reportedly sells off regional partners

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Raiders, Dec 19, 2011.

  1. deskslave

    deskslave Active Member

    Yeah. They got rid of either the husband or the wife. But usually not both. And there were quite a few in DB.
     
  2. Tarheel316

    Tarheel316 Well-Known Member

    I have never worked at any shop where married couples working on the same staff. That's interesting.
     
  3. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    Really? I've experienced it at all three of my shops.

    One couple I knew a few years ago experienced the situation deskslave described. Both were sports writers and worked together often -- and well. She was laid off. He was kept on (and given increased duties, though I'm not sure if his pay was increased). She quickly was hired by a smaller competing paper. She's since moved to a paper less than an hour away with a circulation that falls between the two competing shops. He's still with the original paper.

    Another shop I worked at recently laid off a husband while his wife continues at the newspaper. The husband was certainly paid more and might even have technically been the wife's boss. I'm not sure what the husband is doing now.

    Aside: In both cases, the more-talented spouse was the one laid off.
     
  4. HanSenSE

    HanSenSE Well-Known Member

    "Countdown" on in Santa Rosa:
    http://santarosa.towns.pressdemocrat.com/2011/12/news/an-anxious-48-hours-for-us-at-the-pd/
     
  5. deskslave

    deskslave Active Member

    If memory serves, it was particularly common in DB. I think that was one of the unique things about it under the family management.
     
  6. deskslave

    deskslave Active Member

    Should anyone here be at any of these papers, be aware that should Halifax offer you a job, you will have very little time to decide whether to accept. A friend who worked in DB said it was 32.5 hours. If you didn't accept, you were gone. And whatever is offered will almost definitely have a noncompete attached to it.
     
  7. Prospero

    Prospero Member

    Hadn't seen this on this thread, so here's Romenesko's post re. the sale from yesterday. The Q&A is ... ridiculous.

    http://jimromenesko.com/
     
  8. Tarheel316

    Tarheel316 Well-Known Member

    Deskslave, 32.5 hours to accept or 32.5 hours a week? Or both?
     
  9. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    One of the preps writers at my last stop was the worst writer on staff without question. He's in his late 40s and he's a dick to the desk, he files late and in the words of the former SE, "His writing is as bad as his attitude."

    His wife is a top editor there and is arguably the most-talented person on staff. In the last few years, the sports staff has lost 12 people, and every time there is a layoff, the only person in the building who isn't worried is that guy.

    Every paper I worked at had a married couple on staff. The only place where it was ever an issue was at the last place, because that guy never would have been hired, much less stayed around as long as he has without his wife being there...
     
  10. Lollygaggers

    Lollygaggers Member

    Know a lot of people at a lot of these papers. Everyone is pins and needles, and who knows what they mean when they say the plan is to retain "the vast majority of employees." I would imagine Halifax is taking on a lot of debt to pull this off, so they're going to be looking to cut expenses as much as possible. I'm thankful more and more each day that I got out of this business when I did.
     
  11. Rockbottom

    Rockbottom Well-Known Member

    The breath-holding in west-central Alabama is palpable, folks. A certain newsroom there has gotten by almost without layoffs (in fact adding staff in sports the past couple years ...), and methinks there will certainly be some casualties there.

    Thoughts to all affected ...

    rb
     
  12. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I have a friend at one of the Florida papers and he said the popular feeling there is that every single paper is going to get "gutted"
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page