Memphis Commercial Appeal layoffs

This might be a dumb question, but why wouldn't they just add a dedicated beat writer for the Gators who's based in Gainesville? If they don't have one already in place, it would seem like an economical move to put in place a person who can provide that coverage for a number of papers.

 

With the disappearance of Michael Donahue, Beth Gooch, Phil Stukenborg, Jody Callahan and Mark Richens alone, the Commercial Appeal is losing invaluable character and local institutional knowledge

 

Local institutional knowledge is a phrase not thrown around glass offices anymore.

 

That would be logical, but I think they want to be able to control that person (IE have them report to a newsroom and take part in daily/hourly meetings) and it's hard to control someone when they're working from home. They also had someone who covered the Gators, but they laid him off (or whatever the company said they did).

But that will likely be the answer and they'll have that person "stationed" in Melbourne. Unless of course they can ever pull off the Tronc purchase.

 

I'm not certain of the inner workings of reporting to bosses and such, but I know in Mississippi the Ole Miss and Mississippi State beat writers are based in Oxford and Starkville. Been that way for a long time. So it's not unprecedented for Gannett to have a self-governing reporter on a major beat.

 

How do the Gannett Wisconsin papers cover the University of Wisconsin? Where the beat writer(s) live?

Did the one year rule also apply when Gannett bought the Wisconsin properties? They were purchased at the same time as the Tennessee properties. It sounds like it could get very ugly very quickly for those working for Gannett in the Badger State.

 

I don't know where you work, but Advance in Michigan had two rounds of layoffs in 2016.

 

Prior to the Journal Sentinel acquisition, the Gannett Wisconsin papers got their Badgers coverage through an agreement with the Wisconsin State Journal, which would receive Packers coverage. That deal expired not long after the JS joined the Gannett family.

The Gannett papers use the Journal Sentinel's Badgers beat guy ... who I believe lives in Madison and has for a while, but I could be wrong on that.

There is quite a bit of hand-wringing over what's to come the next few weeks. I'd imagine the Packers writers are most nervous of them all. It's true that the state can't get enough Packers coverage, but this is ridiculouls: Contact Us! Packers News staff directory

 

The funny part is how they'll sell it when Green Bay goes to 7 p.m. deadlines, along with the rest of the non-"A markets" at Gannett, and they won't get Packers coverage in print from any prime-time games, only limited coverage from 3 p.m. games. Playoff games are mostly prime-time these days, and if they play in the Super Bowl? Forget it, go online.

From what I've heard, the only times deadlines will be eased are for Presidential elections. No matter that there's arguably more interest in Packers games than elections ...

 

I have trouble believing that Gannett will actually impose a hard 7:00 P.M. deadline for Packers games for the paper the next day.

If the Monday paper in Green Bay does not have the Packers score what is the point of even continuing to a paper that day? As for Gannett continues to publish on Monday, who knows but I think it is probably a question if, not when?

Are all the Advance papers on three times a week schedules now?

 

The website lists someone as the Packers business reporter. I trust that is not a full-time beat but instead someone from the business desk who has other responsibilites.

 

I'll bet you a Wendy's super value meal with large fries and drink they hold for a Super Bowl that involves the Packers.