A short while ago I briefly alluded to changes we could anticipate at the Courant thanks to Sam Zell’s keen appreciation for journalism. Today Editor and Publisher gives us the grisly details:
In a memo to staff, first posted on the Poynter.org Romenesko site, Editor Cliff Teutsch has revealed plans to cut news pages from 273 per week to 206, while cutting staff positions from 232 to about 175.
“Perhaps these are the numbers you were expecting. Perhaps they are a shock,” the memo says, in part. “I have had a little time to wrap my head around them; many of you will need to do that too. They will be life-changing for some, and they add a sober reality for all as we continue to remake the paper for a September launch.”
…
On the page cuts, Teutsch stated: “In general, we plan to build a more compact paper for weekdays, when readers are pressed for time. We will present information in short form whenever feasible and go in-depth for the most important, relevant stories. On Sunday, when many people spend more time reading, the paper will stay about the same size it is today. Daily and Sunday, we will add new content and new approaches. There will also be takeaways, and we will be as smart as we can about making them. The paper will be completely redesigned. We will fully integrate print and online, and increase interactivity with readers.”
So we will be getting less news, with fewer reporters, and what we get will be dumbed down even more than it has already been. Sounds like the “new” Courant will have all the allure of new Coke. To put the page cuts in perspective, the article from the New York Times to which I linked in my previous post had this to say:
At Tribune’s largest paper, The Los Angeles Times, Mr. Zell’s plan would mean cutting the news content by 82 pages weekly — more than the amount many small papers produce. Smaller reductions could be expected at the company’s other papers, including The Baltimore Sun, The Orlando Sentinel and The Hartford Courant.
The reduction at the Courant is smaller, but it still amounts to 67 pages of news. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any data on the percentage cut at the Times, so I can’t provide an exact comparison, but I think it’s safe to say the proportional cut at the Courant is equal or greater than that at the Times. If my wife and I keep getting the Courant, it will be only for the comics, so if they cut those they will lose us for sure.
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