Digital First Media laying off at least 24 journalists

http://jimromenesko.com/2014/03/20/digital-first-media-newspapers-give-layoff-notices-to-24-journalists/

 

Unbolt yourself (from employment)!

 

Yeah, smelled that a mile away after Paton's last screed.

 

Other cuts coming across the chain.

Several contract agreements imposed last year put a 12-month embargo on further newsroom staff cuts, and the instant those 12-month embargos run out, it's chainsaw city.

 

But, but, I thought if everyone bolted, they'd remained employed!

 

Thunderdome is getting killed, DFM may sell papers: http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/mediawire/245798/digital-first-media-axes-thunderdome-may-sell-its-newspapers/. Bad news for those at Thunderdome.

 

Unbolt is unbolted, then?

 

Just like that, Thunderdome is dead.

Digital First has left the building.

On a brighter note, it's great to see the Long Beach Press-Telegram (one of DFM's properties) moving its ops back ... to Long Beach, back into the 6-story building on Pine Avenue.

 

What I find interesting- and depressing about San Diego- is that the ownership group bought the paper for someething like 55M. Then they were able to buy the North County Times for around 10M but they sold the headquarters for bacsically the purchase price when they merged the papers so the net cost was basically zero and the company gained a monopoly.

If a publisher can not a decent return on his investment in San Diego COunty, with a population of three million and no competition, then the ships are sinking rapidly. Admittedly I am speculating that the group is selling because they are struggling. Maybe they are profitable and want to cashl out.

 

I think this is interesting, considering this ad.

http://www.journalismjobs.com/job_listing.cfm?jobid=1572380

Word is, they're going to add to their staff in LA because the OC Register is starting an LA paper in a couple of weeks. They did the same thing in Long Beach when the Register started its Long Beach paper.