20 newsroom layoffs at USA Today; no voluntary buyouts

Yeah, I knew that. Louisiana's the one I'm most familiar with.

I'm hearing some interesting whispers about what might happen to one of the state's five Gannett papers, but it's not solid enough for me to run with here. I suspect I'll know for sure by Dec. 10 or a few days later.

If anyone is hearing similar rumblings, send me a PM. Would like to know what you're hearing.

 

USA Today wrappers? It's been discussed here before.

Why not just roll out Louisiana Today with a few zoned pages?

 

Shhhh. They're listening.

 

I have told the story here of hearing, out of the blue, from a Gannett Louisiana publisher I knew from Way Back When, trying to get me to come to his paper.

Within two weeks, he was gone elsewhere.

I bet I would have been a fine sight trundling into that newsroom.

 

Heard an interesting piece today while talking with someone about Montgomery...
The would-be candidate talked to another former Gannettoid, who said he heard the optimum goal for some of the mid-to-smaller papers is basically to have no writers (or few anyway). Do it all with editors and freelance writers/correspondents.
Makes no sense, until you realize it's Gannett and it makes perfect sense.

 

I can see the slogan now:

The Podunk Press -- All The News That You Submit!

 

If I remember correctly, the 3,000 layoffs are separate from any at USA Today. So these are additional cuts.

 

Has anyone else noticed that The Society for Human Resource Management has recently started running lots of TV ads touting the import of HR? This is obviously a broad PR campaign trying to convince business owners and execs not to downsize them all.

I am sure someone will tell me off, but in my dealings with HR in many industries, I am always amazed at how they repeatedly escape the axes that fall on so many more impactful, more talented individuals. Given that most editors/MEs review and select candidates on their own anyway, why do even small papers insist on having HR departments? I mean, that new employee orientation is really killer, but I'm guessing editorial employees could hand out packets and show how to use the key-cards if they needed to. Why waste resources "helping" employees when the goal is to get them to take voluntary buyouts anyway? Even from a bottom-line perspective, it makes zero sense.

 

Yeah, I've seen those myself. I think the ads are produced by the same company that does the ones about how Chevron helps the birds in the swamps and stuff when the price of gas hits $4.00

 

Going a little Michael Scott on the Toby Flendersons of our world, hmm?