Falling circulation (down 12% last year alone) and declining advertising revenue have taken their toll.
The Oregonian's Managing Editor Sandy Rowe says that 31 employees have accepted a buy out. But, because of falling revenue the paper is looking to cut around 70 positions total out of a work force of 850. So, layoffs are coming.
"This is where we stand now: 25 full-time staffers and 6 part-time have either accepted the buyout offer or have indicated to us they are going to sign the paperwork."
. . .
"Understandably, throughout this difficult process you wanted to know the number of positions we need to reduce. Early on in this process, we had hoped the number would be lower than it now can be, given our revenue. I now know that will be about 70 positions, or within one or two of that depending on the PT and FT distribution."
2 comments:
Rob Kremer wrote on an aspect of this over at his place.
I would love to read a well-written--and well edited--Oregon newspaper on a daily basis. And I remember when that paper was the Oregonian.
How does twenty-five years seem to go by so fast?
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Always glad to have you visit, OG!
The Oregonian has been sending us a free subscription for the last two weeks or so to get us back as subscribers.
They think the problem is money, and that the free samples will hook us enough to pay whatever bargain subscription price they will offer.
But, it's not the money. We have an extra $20 per month for a subscription. After two weeks of being reminded why we don't take it--incomplete stories, biased stories, no stories on certain issues--we are again in the position of being clearly reminded that the Oregonian is not worth it to us at any price.
Sad, indeed--especially because they just don't understand that the problem is with content not price.
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