North County Times? You're up

I just got word from the Birdscribe Pipeline (pat. pending/a Class AA version of the vaunted Moddy Pipeline) that the North County Times is eliminating 25 positions -- effectively today.

That's 25 people out of a 100-person newsroom covering a large, populated area of a dynamic region in SoCal that includes a huge Marine base, tons of small business, industry (many of the golf equipment mfgs are located there), resorts and what was one of the fastest growing areas of SoCal.

The question here -- easily applicable elsewhere -- is why bother? If you're at the point where whacking 25% of your newsroom is a good idea, why exist? Why not just throw up the white flag? Because at this point, you have abrogated your responsibility as a news organization.

Yeah, it doesn't directly affect me, but the avalanche of bad news and horrific management has finally pushed my A-hole button.

I know we have some NC Times folks on here. Hopefully, they're safe.

 

JFC! If this paper lives for another year, I'll be rather surprised.

 

Not safe!

 

I feel bad for anyone who might be affected (and I know a few on the Escondido staff), but this product has never worked for me. It reads much smaller than its reach, population and demographics would presume, and its toxic story-comment sections are legendary. The paper just didn't take off with the combining of coastal and inland products.

 

They eliminated the community news staff of 4 or 5, at least two from the copy desk, at least two from sports and at least one photographer.
The Californian, the southern Riverside County edition of the paper, whacked five and its one remaining copy editor was moved to a universal desk in Escondido. The Cal is down to three reporters, a columnist, three in sports and no photographers.

 

The NC Times has a shockingly bland design and their website, while admirable, swings and misses in a lot of key areas (like prep sports). Personally I don't find their comments section to be anything out of the ordinary. That is, full of vile, hatred, racism, homophobia, anonymous insults and the rare compliment. It's bad but comments sections are bad everywhere.

North County is home to a lot of people and I think a well-run paper has a shot to dig in and do OK there. I don't think slashing 25 percent of your newsroom is a step in the right direction.

Of course, the fact that half of North County doesn't speak English probably doesn't help circulation.

 

Hearing that four went in sports.

From the paper's own story on the cuts:

Most of the layoffs came in the newsroom, where the staff of reporters and editors was reduced by 20 percent, or 25 employees. Across the rest of the newspaper, including advertising and circulation staff, nine employees were laid off.

"Advertising is our revenue generator," said Peter York, publisher of the North County Times. "The newsroom, while critical to our mission ... it is the biggest individual department."

Fewer advertisements have diminished the newspaper's revenues, and layoffs were needed so that the newspaper would remain viable, York said.

 

Names of those cut?

 

The advertising department's job of generating revenue just got a lot harder. Good luck selling ads for an extended period of time at a paper where the newsroom just lost that high a percentage of its staff.

 

And keep an ad staff that can't sell ads?

 

The publisher is a former Ad guy, so you think he would get rid of his own?

 

Yikes. The SE is definitely one of the good guys in this business.