crunchtastic Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 I mentioned it in another thread, but figured it deserved its own:http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6336903.htmlThe Houston Chronicle today began layoffs of approximately 12 percent of its employees in an effort to reduce costs amid unprecedented change in the newspaper industry, Chronicle Publisher and President Jack Sweeney announced.Of course it was buried in the both the 'Houston' and 'Business' sections. I heard it on KUHF during the NPR broadcast this afternoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidegate Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 i was wondering when this was going to happen. The Chron has shrunk to the point I can't tell the difference between it and the River Oaks Examiner when I pick it up off the lawn in the morning. In some respects the ROE is a better read at this point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmsry Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 i was wondering when this was going to happen. The Chron has shrunk to the point I can't tell the difference between it and the River Oaks Examiner when I pick it up off the lawn in the morning. In some respects the ROE is a better read at this point.As a former Chronista and a Post Toastie, I'd have to agree with you. My condolences to all the fine people and many friends that got shafted by Hearst today.Does anyone have a list of the recently departed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cottonmather0 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 As a former Chronista and a Post Toastie, I'd have to agree with you. My condolences to all the fine people and many friends that got shafted by Hearst today.Does anyone have a list of the recently departed?http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/20...ayoff_names.phpWhat strikes me is that they got rid of all of the local college sports beat writers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 This has been in the works for quite a while. The Chron employees are the definitely on their way out over the Hearst employees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsb320 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 I'm sorry to hear about layoffs, but maybe now, they'll be able to afford to fix their building. It's still missing exterior panels taken off by Ike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arisegundo Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 I'm sorry to hear about layoffs, but maybe now, they'll be able to afford the fix their building. It's still missing exterior panels taken off by Ike.To what end? Better to leave that to whoever buys 801 Texas when the paper folds in 2011. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FilioScotia Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 The Houston Chronicle today began layoffs of approximately 12 percent of its employees in an effort to reduce costs amid unprecedented change in the newspaper industry, Chronicle Publisher and President Jack Sweeney announced.Here's an incomplete list of those laid off, as of 5pm today. The Houston Press is keeping the list.http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/20..._names.php#moreWhatever our opinion of the Chron as a paper, there are a lot of very fine people working there. Please let us remember that many have families, children, mortgages and all the rest, and they're being kicked to the curb at a time when most if not all of them will have a very hard time finding a job with another newspaper. I'm keeping them in my prayers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jb4647 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 From what I understand, the most expensive part about putting out a daily newspaper is printing and distributing it. There still is a huge need/demand for news. I would think that the Chronicle would do well and follow the lead of The Seattle PI/Christian Science Monitor move to online exclusively & beef up their reporting staff rather than slashing them. Another good example is "The Politico"Some people will gripe about not getting the daily paper on their doorstep but they will just have to move to read the news online. Both my parents are 75 and look forward to their paper everyday so I know how hard this will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FilioScotia Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 From what I understand, the most expensive part about putting out a daily newspaper is printing and distributing it. There still is a huge need/demand for news. I would think that the Chronicle would do well and follow the lead of The Seattle PI/Christian Science Monitor move to online exclusively & beef up their reporting staff rather than slashing them. Another good example is "The Politico" Some people will gripe about not getting the daily paper on their doorstep but they will just have to move to read the news online. Both my parents are 75 and look forward to their paper everyday so I know how hard this will be.I would really like to hear a Chron executive explain how they can justify firing one of the best space, science and technology reporters in the country. I'm talking about Mark Carreau, who covered the NASA beat for years, and established a level of credibility most reporters can only dream about. I'm just flabbergasted that the Chron can let him go, but keep paying those useless appendages Rick Casey and Lisa Falkenberg, and the utterly unexplainable Ken Hoffman. Those three have never contributed a single thing to the local discourse that's worth thinking about for more than 30 seconds. I've been trying for years, with no success, to figure out precisely why Hoffman is on the payroll in the first place. Does he really think he's funny? I've never thought so.Knowing the Chron suits prefer him to a fine and solid reporter like Carreau just makes me want to run screaming into the night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 I would really like to hear a Chron executive explain how they can justify firing one of the best space, science and technology reporters in the country. I'm talking about Mark Carreau, who covered the NASA beat for years, and established a level of credibility most reporters can only dream about. I'm just flabbergasted that the Chron can let him go, but keep paying those useless appendages Rick Casey and Lisa Falkenberg, and the utterly unexplainable Ken Hoffman. Those three have never contributed a single thing to the local discourse that's worth thinking about for more than 30 seconds.It's not about thought. It's not about journalism. It's a vehicle for advertising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgriff Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 I'd read The Chronicle and watch local news more often if they'd stop covering national and international stories. We already have plenty of coverage of those stories. Everytime I pick up a Chronicle I'm reading stories that I heard about in the national media the day before. Also. One of the main reasons I stopped having The Chronicle delviered was the sheer size of it. It made me have to take out the garbage twice as often. I don't need 10 pounds of advertising flyers added to my garbage every day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsb320 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 I'd read The Chronicle and watch local news more often if they'd stop covering national and international stories. We already have plenty of coverage of those stories. Everytime I pick up a Chronicle I'm reading stories that I heard about in the national media the day before. Also. One of the main reasons I stopped having The Chronicle delviered was the sheer size of it. It made me have to take out the garbage twice as often. I don't need 10 pounds of advertising flyers added to my garbage every day. What? Garbage? Did you not recycle your newspapers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgriff Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 What? Garbage? Did you not recycle your newspapers? Nope. I pretty much work as much as I want so anything that doesn't pass my cost/benefit analysis doesn't get done. If I can make more money in the amount of time that it takes to do an activity than that activity is worth then I don't do it. The newspaper isn't worth the time it takes me to even think about recycling it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 What? Garbage? Did you not recycle your newspapers? Recycling paper has become nearly unprofitable lately, with wood and energy costs so much lower. It takes the combined effort of about a 250-unit apartment complex actively recycling paper in order to break even on the cost of renting a single dumpster from the recycling company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsb320 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 I was just kidding. I'm currently not recycling either, but I don't take the paper. Also, I give my aluminum to the Can Man, Dumpster-Diver Dude. So, at least that's being recycled and gives someone some pocket change. Until I moved recently, I had curbside pickup and recycled regularly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 the numbers are very skewed. spoke with some chron peeps tonight.......37% of the sports dept is gone. and what's even more amazing....those laid off can't talk to the other employees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Probably made all of the laid off employees sign some sort of "no talk" agreement to get their severance. I would hope that's not enforceable. I also wonder wha thappens when one of hte folks who kept their job HAS to talk to one of the former employees to find something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstonmacbro Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Not sure if I mentioned this, but my company normally places ads in Chron. We were just notified that one of their zoned sections (Zone 11) is going away. It will now be online only. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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