Black Monday - Is this the worst day for print journalism?

Is this the worst hit our industry has taken in one day? Thoughts?

Monday, March 23
-AA News announces they will close. Job cuts "unavoidable."
-Booth announces pay and benefit cuts in Kalamazoo, Jackson, Muskegon and Grand Rapids.
-Bay City, Flint and Saginaw scaling back to 3-days of print editions.
(that's just Michigan folks)
-Gannett announces second week of furlough company wide. One week for most, but 2 weeks for people making more than 90k. Also one week, and week less of pay (someway or another for Gannett digital employess).
-Newhouse announces 10 day furloughs and pension freezes at all papers outside Michigan.
-Charlotte Observer announces more layoffs and pay reductions.
-Lexington Herald-Leader lays off 53 announces wage cuts.
-Forum Communications suspends 401k match.
-LA Times cuts - 50ish according to some blogs I've never heard of.
-Houston Chronicle cuts 12 percent of staff

Continuing the count-----

Tuesday, March 24....
Glen Falls Lays off 11

Wednesday, March 25...
Atlanta Journal Constitution cuts 30 percent of newsroom - around 93 positions.
"The company also announced it will eliminate distribution to seven more outlying counties, reducing its circulation area to 20 metro Atlanta counties, effective April 26. The cutback will pare daily and Sunday circulation by 2 percent."
Arlington Heights, Daily Herald in Illinois cuts 24 positions
Chattanooga lets go of at least four staffers
Newseum lays off 13 staffers (second round of cuts in five months) does this count?


Thursday, March 26...
NYT cuts 100 positions, and cuts wages by 5 percent.
South Bend Tribune cuts pay by 5 percent
Washington Post offers early retirement packages, or "buyouts (fourth time since 2003)
Fayetteville Observer cuts 18 staff members (non-newsroom)
Caller-Times (TX) lays off 19 people
Corpus Christi and The Business Times of the Rio Grande Valley to close (seven more layoffs) (they will create a regional
Scripps will create a regional copy editing and design hub for the Caller-Times, the Wichita Falls Times-Record News, the Abilene Reporter-News and the San Angelo Standard Times
Blender Magazine announces they have published their final issue and will fold.

Friday, March 27...
Pittsburgh Post Gazzette cuts back on delivery area; announces 167 employees must take one week furloughs.

 

The day Gannett first announced the 3k layoffs beat it.

But there are worse days coming.

 

Unfortunately, there are lots of candidates for this dubious title.

 

I'm optimistic this may be the last big one; but I know that's foolish thinking. It's the end of a quarter, and the stock market is rallying, home sales were up 5.1 percent last month. There are some positive signs. The interest rate is low, people may start purchasing homes, cars are cheaper than ever, hopefully things start to change.

 

Let's hope this is a far worse scenario than the one that could play out three months from now, at the end of the fiscal year for most places.

 

This isn't the worst day for print journalism this month.

 

My thoughts are....this is crappy news. No one will disagree with that. Not sure we needed ANOTHER thread about it, though.

It's a bad day, yes, but who cares if it's the worst day for print journalism? It's all bad in my opinion.

 

Without dragging this into a Paul Krugman-esque discussion, I would simply say, "Don't get your hopes up."

We haven't hit bottom yet. Unemployment is going to flirt with double-digits nationally. Employers are going to continue shedding jobs and cutting expenses, not adding, for the rest of this calendar year.

MAYBE we'll be looking at a turnaround by mid- to late 2010. How many newspapers will still be around in their present format by then?

 

Let's all hope if and when the economy does bounce back and the newspapers recover, they restore some of the many things they've taken away, and not say, "look how much we're making now."

 

I have a feeling jobs won't be something that is restored. Or higher entry level pay. Or 401k matches not in the form of crappy company stock.

 

Journalism will bounce back. Media companies will bounce back. The need to communicate reliable news to the masses via some format will bounce back.

Newspapers, however, will probably just continue their death spiral. ... The descent might level off at some point, even for an extended period, but I don't think we'll ever see newspapers grow back to the size or circulation they used to be.