Washington Post
The newspaper is telling employees: “We need to adjust our cost structure” and will offer voluntary buyouts this week to reduce headcount
Tue, Oct 10, 2023, 10:29 p.m. BST
In another blow to journalists across the U.S., The Washington Post announced Tuesday that it would offer employees voluntary buyouts this week to reduce its headcount by 240 people.
Interim CEO Patty Stonesifer said in an email to the company’s roughly 2,500 employees that the brand’s “subscription, traffic and advertising forecasts” have been “overly optimistic” in recent years, according to the Washington Post.
“Our previous forecasts for traffic, subscriptions and advertising growth for the last two years – and into 2024 – were overly optimistic,” Stonesifer wrote, adding: “The urgent need to invest in our top growth priorities drove us to do this .” difficult conclusion that we now have to adjust our cost structure.”
An editorial meeting to discuss the acquisitions and their impact is scheduled for Wednesday at 10 a.m. It’s unclear how many of the more than 1,000 people who are part of the newsroom will be affected.
News of the acquisitions comes less than two months after the company quietly laid off seven employees from Arc XP, a technology division that specializes in cloud-based publishing software.
In a statement, a Post spokeswoman told reporter Laura Wagner that the move was part of “organizational changes” designed to support the unit’s future growth “by focusing on the areas that matter most to our customers and the market.” are the most important.”
Eight months earlier, the company conducted layoffs that resulted in 20 employees losing their jobs and an announcement that the company would not fill 30 open positions.
“While such changes are not easy, evolution is necessary for us to remain competitive, and the economic climate has driven our decision to act now,” Post editor-in-chief Sally Buzbee said in January. “We believe these steps will ultimately help us fulfill our mission of challenging power and empowering readers.”
These layoffs affected various editorial departments at the Post and resulted in the elimination of the newspaper’s gaming division, Launcher, and its children’s section, aptly titled KidsPost.
The New York Times also reported back in July that the Post was on track to “lose about $100 million in 2023, according to two people with knowledge of the company’s finances.”
While the Postal Service has certainly experienced steep declines, it joins many other companies that have been hit hard financially in recent years. Earlier this year, NPR and Vox Media reduced their staffs by 10% and nearly 7%, respectively. Gannett, CNN, the Los Angeles Times and BuzzFeed also experienced widespread cuts, while Gawker and BuzzFeed News were shut down entirely.
Poynter, a nonprofit media institute and newsroom, even posited in July, “Is 2023 a turning point for aspiring and young journalists?”
Elsewhere in her email this week, Stonesifer, who took on the role of interim chief executive this summer following the departure of publisher Fred Ryan in August, said she had been working with the leadership team to offer the buyouts “in the hope that , more difficult decisions such as “than layoffs”.
Spokeswoman Kathy Baird told the Post that the acquisitions should put the company “in a strong position for 2024 and beyond,” adding: “This decision is still difficult as we know some of our valued colleagues may choose to do so.” to leave the company at the end of the year.”
The Post provided no further comment to the Guardian on the matter.
The Washington Post Union did not immediately respond to the Guardian’s request for comment.
{{#Ticker}}
{{top left}}
{{bottom left}}
{{top right}}
{{bottom right}}
{{#goalExceededMarkerPercentage}}{{/goalExceededMarkerPercentage}}{{/ticker}}
{{Headline}}
{{#paragraphs}}
{{.}}
{{/paragraphs}}{{highlightedText}}
{{#choiceCards}}{{/choiceCards}}We will be in touch to remind you to contribute. Watch for a message in your inbox. If you have any questions about contributing, please contact us.