The Capital is now the latest casualty in the apparent collapse of the American news media...and the real collapse of our economy. CP had known about this and was aware of the "bad news" meeting at the local newspaper today, but refrained from breaking the story for many reasons. Let me repeat...This is NOT good news for anyone, but it will also mean a further erosion of our public news "contagion" or news "arena" for lack of a better choice of words at the moment. People are hurt--of this there is no doubt. However, despite one's views of the local newspaper, we are all diminished by what will certainly be an even further constrained news budget. CP will do what I can, but hey--I can't keep doing this for free either. I do invite any reporters, editors, or other staffers to personally contact me and discuss how we may be able to continue reporting the news together. Here is what came from the newspaper:
- 27 full-time positions and 2 part-time positions – about 12 percent of the work force -- have been eliminated. Four of the positions were already vacant. Today is the last day for the affected employees.
- Full-time employees with at least 5 years of service were eligible for a severance package that included a minimum of 12 weeks pay, plus two weeks for every year worked up to a maximum of one year. Part-time employees with less than 5 years of experience were eligible for a two-week bonus.
- The positions cross all departments and include employees at the company’s offices in Glen Burnie and Bowie. Editor Tom Marquardt said he does not expect the changes, which included no reporters, to impact news coverage.
IT JUST GOT WORSE.... CP learned this afternoon that Capital Gazette Communications (CGC) will transfer its printing to Comprint Printing, a production facility owned by Post-Newsweek Media, a division of The Washington Post Company. The Capital and CGC’s other newspaper publications will be printed at the Laurel facility starting March 2. The decision means the closing of CGC’s press and mailroom operations and the elimination of 31 full-time and 51 part-time positions......I need an Alka Seltzer...
Yikes--further local job losses....I believe we are witnessing a transformative moment in mass media....not because of The Capital you silly.....they are basically shutting their own press...so--where will advertising be shifting to.....blogs?
Please send comments, subscribe, share with your friends, and support our sponsors. Join us at Ahh Coffee! in Eastport almost every Thursday from 8-9 am.
2 Comments:
This is bad news and certainly not unprecedented. There are many papers across the country right now that will simply be out of business in the coming months--major papers.
What is left of them will focus on the electronic media and shed the massive overhead inherent with a traditional paper.
Several weeks ago, I mentioned at Ahh Coffee that it would not surprise me to see The Capital become a victim. I suspect this may be the first step!
There's word that even the NY Times could end up going under this year. "Old" media needs to figure out how to re-structure itself for a new age.
Post a Comment