Hearst will maintain online P-I

No, because you are employed while you received the offer. You haven;t turned down any work because you are still working

 

But it's true they don't have to pay you severance if you're offered a "commensurate" job by the company. If they try to argue that these jobs are commensurate and use it as grounds to deny these folks severance, god help them. The hounds of bad publicity will be released.

 

Does Hearst care?

 

Actually, in this case they have something at stake if they want the website to succeed. They can't totally shit the bed with the public and walk away, because they're not totally walking away.

 

Next question: Do they want it to succeed or are they doing it to save face, then say "See? We tried." when the minimal resources thrown at it cause it to struggle...
I hope for the people involved things work, but is it a sincere effort on hearst's part or lip service?

 

If they don't actually think it can make money, there's no reason they would try it -- they're already ditching the paper, so it wouldn't have been that much worse to close the website with it just like in most closings.

One theory is that they're going to keep the site alive with minimal expenditure, lay in the weeds and see whether the Seattle Times goes under. In that case they could then ramp up in a no-paper town.

 

Better chance newspaper circulation will go up double figures next year than the Times hiring Art Thiel. Much bad blood spilled between the two parties over the years.

 

That is as bad a reason not to hire him as fantasizing about a circulation boost is a good reason to hire him. If a single writer could bring in more reader and ad revenue than he costs in salary and benefits, a newspaper would be stupid and irresponsible not to hire him (assuming minimal professional decorum). It's not whether someone rankled you, it's whether he/she pulls in the audience. Of course, too many bosses can't handle a different point of view from the hired help, even in a business based on points of view.

But throwing money at an individual isn't the way out, either.

 

Had a friend who works there tell me last week at state basketball that they were hearing the 18th as D-Day.

The local news station that does an 11 a.m. midday news today reported that they're hearing tomorrow or Wednesday will be the final print edition. Of course, the TV station has nothing about it on their website.

This week is the end of the 60-day window, though. And considering it was on the late news before the P-I folks knew about it, this would (unfortunately) not surprise me.

Sigh.

 

Does Hearst own the TV station that reported the initial 60-day window story?

 

I'm pretty sure this is a debatable point, but I can't think of any sports columnist or writer these days that could cause an immediate, significant spike in newspaper circulation or revenue. that is the only reason a competing newspaper would hire a Thiel or a Plaschke today ... they're not interested in simply making the product better.

 

Nope.