Media: GateHouse roundup
Editor’s note: Frequent commenter Bookwoom left the following comment on another post. I thought it important enough for a post. I’m reprinting the whole thing, but I’m embedding the links.
Speaking of media issues, not sure this belongs here, but there have been some new developments on the GateHouse Media death watch beat in the past week (surprised you haven’t been following them, Billy):
1. The GateHouse-owned Rockford Register Star laid off 13 people on Aug. 18, including Springfield bureau chief Aaron Chambers. The news was announced via a rather callously worded story in which the managing editor quoted herself but never named any of the people who were laid off, or bothered to mention what jobs most of them had. The story is here.
For more thoughtful commentary on this and other manifestations of GateHouse’s “hyper local failure,” visit here.
2. Gatehouse CFO Mark Thompson announced his resignation on Friday for “personal reasons.” Taking his place as interim financial officer is Mark Maring, who joined the company just 6 months ago, and also serves as vice president of investor relations and strategic development. I found a story about this posted on the Business Week website but the link was too long to post here.
[I found it.]
3. The NYSE notified Gatehouse on Friday that it has 10 days to submit a plan for “correcting” its financial “deficiencies” or it will be officially booted off the Big Board. You can read the text of the notice here.
August 25th, 2008 at 11:02 pm
Gatehouse is not alone among media groups with local ties who are in danger of being delisted.
August 25th, 2008 at 11:16 pm
*yawn* zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
Does anyone have any doubts that no matter what happens to GateHouse, that there will be a Journal Star on your doorstep the next morning?
Can we talk about something else? Like… LaHood and Lyons?
August 26th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Hey Billy, a blurb from an AP article about the bidders for the Cubs…..
To trim costs, Tribune has made hundreds of layoffs at its papers and decreased the page count of print editions.
Zell said the company is still trying to figure out “what a newspaper of the 21st century should look like.” While redesigns should produce “more exciting and cheaper” versions of its papers, he said the company would have to readdress the matter if the revamped papers don’t get a positive response.
Fitch Ratings cut Tribune Co.’s credit rating further into “junk” status Friday — to “CCC” from “B-” — and said more reductions may come within a year if newspaper advertising revenue declines keep accelerating.
August 26th, 2008 at 9:50 pm
Septboy, speaking of the Trib. they laid off 80 (that’s right, 80) people on Aug. 15, including dozens of reporters, some who had been there nearly 40 years. Some of their farewell letters can be read at a site called “Tell Zell” founded by a disgruntled LA Times reporter.
Among those canned by the Trib was Statehouse reporter Jeffery Meitrodt, who moved to Illinois from Louisiana less than two years ago. His farewell comment at Capitol Fax says it all:
“We moved to Illinois after Hurricane Katrina because we didn’t want our lives disrupted again by huge forces beyond our control. But I guess we underestimated the destructive potential of Cyclone Sam.”
August 28th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
[...] Media has been threatened with delisting from the New York Stock exchange if it doesn’t come up with a plan to get it’s stock [...]