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In an industry ravaged by the likes of Gatehouse/Gannett, what companies are still good to work for?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by SoloFlyer, Sep 4, 2018.

  1. SoloFlyer

    SoloFlyer Well-Known Member

    We all know how challenging it is to work for outlets owned by the likes of Gatehouse, Gannett, Tronc, Advance, and others. Budget cuts. Layoffs. Ridiculous quotas. Sweeping changes that add busy work and take away from actual newsgathering.

    As the industry trends toward more and more corporate ownership, which companies are still good to work for? There may be some issues with all of them - we're all underpaid and overworked, after all. But which corporate entities or regional networks still try to pair a reasonable wage, offer decent benefits, and have tried to cultivate solid work environments?
     
  2. playthrough

    playthrough Moderator Staff Member

    My brother works at Publix Supermarkets and it wasn't until my third newspaper job that I had pay and benefits as good as his.
     
  3. jr/shotglass

    jr/shotglass Well-Known Member

    Solo, three of the four you mentioned are the three I'm most closely familiar with. You could say my experience with newspapers over the past decade hasn't been real positive.
     
  4. SoloFlyer

    SoloFlyer Well-Known Member

    You're not alone, believe me. Hence the question.

    I actually liked the broader concept that Advance had of prioritizing digital. Then I saw what they were favoring (SLIDESHOWS!) and their other points of emphasis.
     
  5. Hermes

    Hermes Well-Known Member

    We had a reporter leave our staff to go work at Aldi. Worst part is I couldn't argue with the logic. The benefits were way better.
     
    studthug12 likes this.
  6. Severian

    Severian Well-Known Member

    In journalism? Any newsroom that is not owned by a venture fund nor part of a chain.
     
    Tweener and BurnsWhenIPee like this.
  7. Severian

    Severian Well-Known Member

    In management?
     
    2muchcoffeeman likes this.
  8. Matt Stephens

    Matt Stephens Well-Known Member

    We could sit here and argue Gannett complaints and what’s justified for days. Maybe it’s the shop I worked for or the others I’ve considered working for, but having been on the inside, I’ve talked to a lot of former colleagues who’ve left for other publications/ownerships. Majority make Gannett seem like Disneyland.

    Everyone has their own experience, but I’ll say Gannett isn’t half as bad as everyone makes it out to be. Biggest complaint was poor healthcare coverage.
     
    SoloFlyer likes this.
  9. Hearst seems OK, relatively speaking.
     
    SoloFlyer likes this.
  10. Bronco77

    Bronco77 Well-Known Member

    Cox made cuts over the years like everyone else, but I would've called it a pretty good place to work until about 2015 or so. Pay was good, benefits were better than average and there was some degree of stability. Then Austin outsourced its printing (meaning ridiculously early deadlines), Cox outsourced some of its design and copy-editing functions to GateHouse, and it was the beginning of a downward spiral that led to GateHouse's purchases of Austin and Palm Beach.

    Had I not been able to continue my newspaper career, I might have wound up working at the Publix around the corner. Many of the employees have been there for years -- more than can be said for most newspapers anymore.
     
  11. Severian

    Severian Well-Known Member

    I worked at Publix for four years when I was a teenager. More than a decade later, I see the some of the same people still working at that store. What does that say?
     
  12. Alma

    Alma Well-Known Member

    Gannett, on some level, it depends. Gannett properties have continued to do, in some pockets, elite work.

    But what Gannett has done some papers - such as the Des Moines Register - is borderline unforgivable. And the Web sites are, by and large, not fun to use.
     
    franticscribe likes this.
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