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AJC cuts 16 newsroom jobs

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by novelist_wannabe, Oct 14, 2015.

  1. Fran Curci

    Fran Curci Well-Known Member

    Maybe they cut 10 people and replace them with eight at far lower salaries. And, as noted above, all the vacancies remain open for a few months each.
     
  2. BTExpress

    BTExpress Well-Known Member

    Then they are simply paying $75,000 salaries to jobs that no one is doing for a few weeks/months. They don't GAIN anything financially by the layoffs until these people come off the books. It'll take one year minimum and, based on when the new hires are made, could take much longer.

    Just doesn't seem like something that would show immediate benefit to bean counters who live on quarter-to-quarter financial reports.
     
  3. LanceyHoward

    LanceyHoward Well-Known Member

    I think seeing is believing as far as replacements.
     
  4. Fran Curci

    Fran Curci Well-Known Member

    Bean-counters will like the looks of a lower 2016 budget even if they take a hit for a few months and charge it against 2015. I think that's pretty common practice.
     
  5. DanOregon

    DanOregon Well-Known Member

    Accountants can do amazing things. I'd be surprised if those bought out are on their paper's books, probably transferred to some other corporate entity. And if a company has recently bought another chain, maybe you put those salaries on the bought out companies final books to make you look better to Wall Street. Nobody from the bought out company will be around to complain.
     
  6. BTExpress

    BTExpress Well-Known Member

    Stock prices of various media chains tell me Wall Street isn't that stupid. Our company keeps having to buy back stock to keep from getting de-listed. Yeah, that's really accomplishing something.
     
  7. Fredrick

    Fredrick Well-Known Member

    Digital knowledge? Cmon. the veterans that get cut have digital knowledge. Tweeting? Real difficult. Doing a ridiculous podcast if the higher ups make them? Real difficult. You sit there and talk. Newsrooms that make the excuse they need people with digital knowlege are just lying. The truth is they need an excuse to get rid of salaries! Veteran reporters can do digital even though they realize it's ridiculous to tweet information that scoops their own news organization. ... Co managing editors?? 150,000 apiece? My gosh what a horrible journalistic world we live in. I bet that place is pleasant with co managing editors trying to one up each other on the amount of 9 a.m. meetings they can schedule for reporters who do the bulk of their work after 6 p.m., when the co-editors are sipping martinis or getting ready for their 9 p.m. bedtime.
     
  8. Fran Curci

    Fran Curci Well-Known Member

    Just curious ... who are these "co-managing editors?" Maybe they're really good?
     
  9. Bronco77

    Bronco77 Well-Known Member

    They're nice enough people and I have nothing against them personally, but neither is worth $150K annually. Both got where they are by being skilled at playing politics and saving their own arses through years of newsroom reorgs. The head of the print production desk is better qualified -- but still not worth $150K.

    Also, to address the point about jobs going unfilled even after management vows to fill them at lower salaries ... at my shop, the managers make a huge push to fill openings as quickly as possible (we've managed to make a few part-time hires in the past year), lest someone higher up eliminate the jobs.
     
  10. YorksArcades

    YorksArcades Active Member

    The gold medal factory is filling an order for your "shop" right now.
     
  11. deskslave

    deskslave Active Member

    It's simple enough. You take a one-off "restructuring charge" in the fourth quarter, big up your "underlying" profit pro forma for the changes (in other words, the money you would have made if it weren't for all the money you lost), put together a few nifty slides about the new, lower "run rate" for expenses, and Wall Street eats it up.

    Or, you know, not. But that's the logic anyway.
     
  12. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    Being able to tweet or do a podcast is pretty simple. Being effective or willing is different.

    That said, unless they are demtermined not to work in journalism, most "dinosaurs" are able to put valuable, unique content out into the digital world.

    But two managing editors? In most papers, that's the first position to go.
     
    Last edited: Oct 26, 2015
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