Thursday, March 12, 2009

Thursday March 12 -- What are you hearing? (updated)

Leave info in comments.

UPDATE: In comments, an interesting observation -- the announced cuts so far aren't anywhere near the 1,600 layoffs McClatchy claimed in its SEC filing this week.
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22 comments:

Anonymous said...

D-Day in Fort Worth. The names of people taking their forms up to HR is staggering. GREAT PEOPLE, GREAT WORKERS. If you are having second thoughts about staying around - trust me - you won't want to be left behind. It won't be pretty. The people I bumped into up there was nuts. Never did I think they would be leaving. Very sad. Last time they took everyone who turned in a form (just about) and if they do the same this time - WTF?

Try and get your computer fixed. If you think it was bad before, wait until tomorrow. You are on your own!

Anonymous said...

I HEAR America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics—each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work;
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat—the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck; 5
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench—the hatter singing as he stands;
The wood-cutter’s song—the ploughboy’s, on his way in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown;
The delicious singing of the mother—or of the young wife at work—or of the girl sewing or washing—Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else;

Anonymous said...

Spammer Alert!

Anonymous said...

Well, he asked what I'm hearing.

Anonymous said...

I hear an idiot

Anonymous said...

i know, right? so sorry i asked who she was on another post. my apologies.

Anonymous said...

Hey Fort Worth, how are things going today?

Anonymous said...

Lexington's publisher is reportedly planning a new garden trellis and sent his plans to all network users. Too bad important details about their future can't be shared...

Anonymous said...

Some good people leaving Fort Worth, for sure. Also some dead wood finally departing whose absence, frankly, won't be missed. Just glad that so many voluntary buyouts reduced the number of involuntary cuts.

Those staying on to keep fighting will have their work cut out for them, that's for sure.

Anonymous said...

want to say who is leaving? so sad. who's going to get the paper out?

Anonymous said...

Just glad that so many voluntary buyouts reduced the number of involuntary cuts.

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Before you rejoice you need to do some math. There are currently only 820 announced reductions out of a total of 1600 that McClatchy has assured the Exchanges, Creditors and Credit Rating Services.

If they don't get an equal number of voluntary terminations there is going to be hell to pay as McClatchy will be seen as disseminating intentionally misleading information. This is not a good time to be pulling the wool over the eyes of the SEC.

Look for another quick round of cuts or a whole boat load of terminations for cause.

Anonymous said...

a garden trellis for the LEXINGTON PUBLISHER! Maybe Tim Kelly should try getting new vp's instead of trellis' for his garden. Nelson Fonticella is a joke as circ VP, has he ever thought about looking there instead of his garden. Get on your boat Tim Kelly and sail away.

Anonymous said...

Teasers for Tuesday night’s KXAS/Channel 5 news program asked, then asked again, whether the Star-Telegram will survive.

After a round of layoffs announced last week, the repeated promos likely prompted more concern than the speculative news spot itself, which cited a Time magazine item that included us on a list of 10 endangered newspapers.

Turns out Time outsourced the prognostication to a three-man Internet operation, www.247wallst.com. A sign of the times.

Douglas A. McIntyre, who wrote the item, said he based his forecast on his own financial analysis and information gleaned from unnamed "good sources."

The son of a publisher at CapCities, a now-defunct corporation that bought the paper from the founding Carter family, McIntyre predicted that the Star-Telegram would fold or become an edition of The Dallas Morning News by the end of 2010 because of monumental fixed costs unaffected by layoffs or sale of property.

To paraphrase Mark Twain, the report of this paper’s demise is premature, said Gary Wortel, our publisher, adding: "The paper has been around for 100 years and, yes, we are going to survive — in a daily print format."

Often lost in all the bad news about the newspaper industry at large and its parent company, McClatchy in particular, is the fact that the Star-Telegram is still cash-flow positive, Wortel said. That means profitable.

With cost-cutting creating a far leaner operation, Wortel is convinced that revenue from its weekly community papers as well as from new print and online products will keep the institution steady until the general economy recovers.

"When the economy improves, you will see a more robust newspaper," he said.

While keeping the paper afloat, Wortel is also trying to sell Amon’s venerable yacht, The West Texan.

"It comes with two berths," he said.

This article can be found at http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/1253212.html

Anonymous said...

Id. Statesmans D Day is Monday at least that is the word the pub. put out last week.

Anonymous said...

BARNHART AUDITIONING FOR MAHER PR JOB?


Bottom line exposing him again. McClatchy gets a mention. Is Barnhart really considered a Journalist?

http://bottomlinecom.com/kcnews/barnhartmahersprguy.html

Anonymous said...

Fort Worth rumor of the afternoon - an announcement that the paper's executive editor is leaving may come as soon as tomorrow.

Anonymous said...

still no word in charlotte, best guess is an announcement no sooner than the 23rd, would be shocked otherwise.

Anonymous said...

Witt is leaving?????
I always liked him, even though he probaly hasn't been his best self lately.

Anonymous said...

Surprised anyone has been their best at all considering. Driven into the ground, the only thing sprouting up for mcclatchy is noxious weeds. Get the Round-up and be done with the whole stinkin' affair. I'm getting tired and depressed hearing about the "Pruitt pruning". So sad to see so many leave, but as I have discovered, there is a whole new world out there without McClatchy...AND it's in colors you may have forgotten existed.
What's black and white and RED all over...Gary Pruitt's McClatchy!

Beermo said...

what really sucks is that the only people who think they work at a paper is the writers. they're crying the blues when they could work for any company in the world from their house. i have not seen one single comment about any other employee other than the writers bitching about how they will have to sell their house at the lake and maybe miss that trip to europe. my god, what will you say to the others at your dartmouth reunion? you might even have to give back the new volvo wagon. crikey!

what really sucks is that mcclatchy is sucking out all money to give to cali and florida. we are not in the red. you are. because you can't fix your leak you're gonna take our ship down with you. all you fat a**, coasties who've been living large are now gonna take us all down with you.

it has taken me more than a few years to get 5% of my check. mcclatchy gets to take about 6%+ in one fell swoop, if i still have a job come monday. to top it all off we have the special folks who make huge money telling us that they know how we feel when we get that 1% raise every year because they didn't get a raise. they never mention the 6 figure income that they enjoy.

Anonymous said...

Beermo, AMEN TO THAT! Reporters are vital, but so many other people are essential to the success of ANY publication, from the folks who work the presses and slave away in production all the way to the people who are on the streets every day trying to bring in every single cent they can. The sales staff's must have taken the largest hit out of anyone, seeing as how I imagine most of their income is derived from commission. It's not just a reporter's dilemma, and I mean that with all due respect. Everyone involved is on bended knee praying to whichever of the powers that be may be listening tonight...Bless 'em all!

Anonymous said...

I think reporters are well aware it takes an army of people to get the paper out. You just hear from more of them here because they obviously like to write!

I have always been grateful for the people all along the process, especially the carriers! I can't believe there are people who do that every morning like magic.