Mar 11, 2008

Fallout, part 1

The Pasadena Star-News is losing another reporter. This time, however, the separation is voluntary. Molly Okeon announced today she is leaving to take a job at the Daily Journal in Los Angeles.

That leaves five reporters in the Star-News newsroom - half the number that was there when I left only a couple years ago - and that felt thin enough.

Complicating matters, the Singleton papers have a hiring freeze in place, which will make finding a replacement difficult.

Anytime there are layoffs there is a risk that low morale will cause defections. The problem is exacerbated at papers where the staff has already been depleted. Too few people being asked to do more with less isn't a recipe for success, or even sane.

Unfortunately, there is little anyone can do unless MediaNews decides to reinvest, rather than constantly retrench.

It appears to me that Singleton is holding onto the papers for their name brand more than anything else. The Sun, The Star-News, The Press-Telegram, still mean something. He's parking on domain names, waiting for the magic intersection of trend lines, when rising online ad revenues finally meet the dwindling profits from print ads.

In the meantime, I think he risks turning his Southern California newspapers into cannibals, the journalistic equivalent of the Donner party.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

SAD NEWS!!! Another good one lost...
I feel bad for my fellow friends at the Star News.

Anonymous said...

She could have been honorable and stepped aside, knowing she'd be saving someone else's livelihood.

Anonymous said...

What if she did not know she had a job yet?

Anonymous said...

Anyone who questions Molly's honor def. doesn't know her.
And for those of us who understand the agenda for the Star-News, her stepping aside wouldn't have changed a damn thing.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

The cannabalism has already started. People are already turning on each other, offering up names of their co-workers in exchange for some goodwill from management, in hopes of buying some time for themselves.

Anonymous said...

Whatever that removed comment said I did not catch. But all I have to say is that we all know who the A** kissers are and believe you me, they'll get theirs too. It just angers me that these people bully others with impunity. These are usually those who cannot get along in society, those who have extreme low self confidence and no talent and take out their ineptitude in life out on those who they see as threatening, basically the entire world that they con control. Usually, they are also controlled at home and have no say in what goes on there, so they come to work and try to show their perceived power but we all know that all that it is is just their insecurities lower than the infield grass at dodger stadium.