Digital First Media now a MediaNews and Journal Register mashup

Digital First Media's inhalation of the MediaNews Group and the Journal Register Company has resulted in a new management team, with executives from the two newspaper companies being reassigned as Digital First officers under CEO John Paton.

Journal Register CFO Jeff Bairstow was named president of Digital First Media; Jim Brady becomes editor in chief, having previously served as the Journal Register's editor-in-chief, and David Butler, who headed MediaNews Group's California papers, is now executive editor of Digital First.

The three members of the Journal Register's journalism advisory board also become the advisory board for Digital First. They are well known media critics Jay Rosen of New York University's journalism program, CUNY professor and BuzzMachine blogger Jeff Jarvis, and Emily Bell of Columbia University's Tow Center for Digital Journalism.

Here's the memo announcing the changes:

Digital First Media, which jointly manages MediaNews Group and Journal Register Company, announced today the appointments of key executives in sales, content and operational positions.

“With today’s announcement we are putting into place the very best team to lead both MediaNews Group and Journal Register Company in implementing our Digital First strategy,” said John Paton, CEO of Digital First Media. “I am excited about the depth and breadth of talent we have assembled from both companies as we continue to work to serve our communities and growing audience. Like all legacy media companies making this important transition to Digital, we have a long way to go to fulfill that promise. Today marks an important first step.”

Jeff Bairstow was named President of Digital First Media. Mr. Bairstow, joined Journal Register Company in 2010 and was, until recently, Journal Register Company’s Chief Financial Officer. In his new role, Mr. Bairstow – who was also named President of MediaNews Group – will oversee daily operations across Journal Register Company and MediaNews Group.

“We have a tremendous opportunity to leverage the knowledge of these two companies – both in traditional journalism and digital product development – into a unified leadership team that will drive the necessary digital transformation to power our growth,” said Mr. Bairstow.

Ron Mayo was named Chief Financial Officer of Digital First Media. Mr. Mayo will retain his duties as CFO of MediaNews Group in addition to his new role.
Named as Executive Vice Presidents of Digital First Media were:

-       Jerry Grilly, who will continue to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of The Denver Post; Steve Rossi, who is responsible for the company’s California operations; and Tom Wiley, who has served as a group publisher for Journal Register Company.

-       Arturo Duran, who joined Journal Register Company in 2010 as Executive Vice President for Digital, was named Chief Digital Officer.

-       Kirk MacDonald, who has served as The Denver Post’s Executive Vice President of Advertising, Marketing and Digital Sales since July 2009, was named Executive Vice President of Sales. Adam Burnham, who has served as Journal Register Company’s Vice President of Local Sales, was named Senior Vice President of Local Digital Sales.

-       William Higginson, who has worked for Journal Register Company since its founding and most recently served as President, was named Executive Vice President of Operations.

Jim Brady, who was named Journal Register Company’s Editor-in-Chief earlier this year, was named Editor-in-Chief of Digital First Media. David J. Butler, who has served as Vice President of News for MediaNews Group and Editor of the San Jose Mercury News, was named Executive Editor.

Named as Vice Presidents of Digital First Media were: Jonathan Cooper, who recently served as Vice President of Content for Journal Register Company; Sara Glines, who recently served as Vice President of Field Operations for MediaNews Group; and Joe Miller, who has served as Journal Register Company’s Vice President for Real Estate, was named Vice President for Real Estate.

Bob Mason, who has served as Journal Register Company’s Chief Technology Officer since 2010, has been named Chief Technology Officer for Digital First Media.
Robert Monteleone, who has served Chief Human Resources Officer for Journal Register Company, was named Chief Human Resources Officer for Digital First Media.

Along with the management appointments, Mr. Paton also announced appointments to the Digital First Media Advisory Board. Named to the Advisory Board were: 

-      Jeff Jarvis, Associate Professor and Director of the Interactive Journalism program and the new business models for news project at the City University of New York’s Graduate School of Journalism.

-     Emily Bell, Director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University. 

-      Jay Rosen, Ph.D, professor and former chair of the journalism program at New York University. 

Mr. Jarvis, Ms. Bell and Mr. Rosen had previously served as members of Journal Register Company’s Advisory Board.

From BANG to LANG?

MediaNews Group's decision to merge its 12 Bay Area newspapers into three has led to speculation that the company could do something similar with its nine Southern California papers, collectively known as the Los Angeles Newspaper Group.

I can only speculate myself, but I see the potential for structural mimicry if MediaNews succeeds in its stalled bid to buy the Orange County Register.

With the Register, LANG would look more like the Bay Area News Group did before yesterday's merger, with the Register playing the role of the Mercury News: a large paper with a statewide brand in a relatively affluent county that could serve as an editorial center of gravity for a larger region. The LANG papers already exist as three clusters of three, a structure that could be collapsed into two or three newspapers.

However, MediaNews would have to have a reason to further consolidate LANG. One obvious reason would be a desire to cut staff to lower costs - the BANG merger led to 120 layoffs. I might be wrong, but I think LANG was already leaner than BANG in terms of staff and so might not be able to stand such a huge "streamlining." (Indeed, the Register itself might be more vulnerable if cuts are a priority.)

Another reason could be that MediaNews actually believes the BANG model is more efficient and effective: Fewer brand names, a more uniform editorial approach, better positioning to do mobile, etc.

One reason MediaNews might leave LANG alone, even after a Register deal, would be to give it time to evaluate the Bay Area merger to see what works and what doesn't. Undoubtedly, there will be backlash from readers and circulation will probably drop (though the consolidation will mask some of this). But this feels like a post-print production plan and so BANG might be the guinea pig that gets isolated and studied until it recovers - or doesn't.

BANG goes boom

MediaNews Group announced today that its Bay Area News Group will undergo a major consolidation that will merge 12 newspapers into three and eliminate 120 jobs - 48 of the positions are in the newsroom, KQED reports. When all is finished, BANG will consist of the Mercury News, The Times and East Bay Tribune.

BANG is using words like "streamlining" and "rebranding" to describe the merging and cutting. The actions should not come as a surprise given the decision MediaNews made in June to consolidate editorial control of the papers.

Here's part of the story (which appears to have been written by an ad agency) published on the soon-to-be retooled Contra Costa Times website:

Bay Area News Group (BANG) today announced a rebranding of many of its newspapers to better reflect the scope of its regional coverage. The changes - which include a streamlining of its print operations - primarily involve its East Bay newspapers, and will result in greater emphasis on providing high-impact, regional and local coverage. 

-snip- 

The streamlining of its print operations will also result in a reduction of approximately 120 jobs - primarily in the production and editorial divisions - out of a local workforce of 1,500 employees.

Management at MediaNews will argue, as it does in the story, that this consolidation is about much more than job cuts; that its a necessary step to position the BANG as a competitive news outlet in the rough and tumble 21st century. And maybe this smaller knot of news power will get the job done. But we cannot overlook the fact that this recently bankrupt company is trying to raise $350 million to buy newspapers from Freedom Communications. And we know editorial power wanes when you eliminate four dozen news staffers.

Or as the San Francisco Chronicles' Carla Marinucci tweeted: “Corporate PR spin: Release from CA’s Bay Area News Group, announcing decimation of its newspaper/staff chain tday, calls it ‘rebranding.’” (found via Romenesko)

One big BANG

MediaNews Group owns two clusters of newspapers in California: the Los Angeles Newspaper Group (LANG) and the Bay Area News Group (BANG). In the past decade, mergers and consolidation have turned the individual papers into something of a news blob, with each newsroom producing its own pages in semi-autonomous fashion, but often sharing substantial resources, including inside news and business pages, copy editors, photo, and advertising.

The Bay Area News Group, which owns newspapers in the East Bay, Silicon Valley and San Jose, has finally shed the pretension of autonomy and has named itself a single editorial entity.

According to a memo obtained by blogger Richard Brenneman, the BANG papers, led by editor Dave Butler, will now share a single managing editor for print, Bert Robinson, and a single managing for online, breaking news and photography, Randall Keith. Robinson and Keith served in similar capacities at the BANG flagship, the San Jose Mercury News.

Sports, photo and business will similarly fall under a single BANG editor.

This will mean more sharing of content between papers, though it's not clear if further staff cuts will follow. The papers, which include the Oakland Tribune and Contra Costa Times, will retain their editorial boards to run opinion and commentary.

From the memo:

Beginning today, we are taking another significant step in streamlining our organization to maximize our operating efficiency. Continuing the process that began with the creation of the Bay Area News Group, the news divisions of all Bay Area News Group newspapers will now operate under a single, common management team under the direction of Dave Butler, editor of the Mercury News and vice president for news for MediaNews Group. This move follows similar consolidations in our other divisions. 

Dave’s appointment and the announcement of the first official BANG-wide news management team are logical next steps in our efforts to make full use of the breadth and depth of the entire group. While a less-formal arrangement has been in place for some time, our recently negotiated labor agreements recognize complete consolidation. 

This reorganization will have an immediate impact on top management, and it’s with regret that we also announce that [BANG Executive Editor] Kevin Keane and [BANG-Easy Bay Managing Editor] Pete Wevurski are leaving the company today. Please join with me in thanking them for their years of service and wishing them well in their new adventures.

The rest of the memo is here.

No national consolidation plan, Singleton says

Dean Singleton, who's still the voice of MediaNews Group, put out a statement late today saying the newspaper chain has no plans for a national copy desk, despite a union letter warning of just such a proposal. He blames the union for jumping the gun, based on a casual conversation, and adds that this is why he doesn't include the guild in any planning sessions.

Romenesko also got hold of a memo sent from Dave Butler, head of MNG's California papers, that also says no national copy desk is planned, but indicates more regional clustering is probable. I'm reprinting the memos here, both taken from the Romenesko website. First Dave, then Dean:

Fellow MNG editors: 

FYI. I spoke to Dean Singleton this afternoon about the statement put out by the Guild regarding a national copy editing center. Below is his response to their press release. I would further add that we have two projects going on that fly in the face of any “national” center. We have consultant Ken Harding working with editors in Denver, Salt Lake and St. Paul to figure out ways to make local news production more efficient at each paper, and just yesterday a group from BANG went to LANG to exchange ideas on how we might streamline our regional desks. We also have some mini-regional desks around the company and may, at some point, consider more. Like most other newspaper companies, regionalization — where appropriate — seems to work well. Would we rule out doing something else? Nope. But the capital costs of one center and the challenges involved seem pretty daunting to me. Please share this information as is appropriate. 

-Dave 

******* 

Dean’s statement:
The Newspaper Guild on Friday issued a press release referring to a casual phone conversation I had with Bernie Lunser, president of the Guild, concerning the future of the newspaper industry and how newspapers can better serve their readers in print, online and on mobile products. 

Contrary to the assertions made in the release, there are no plans for “national consolidation” of MNG’s editing processes. 

While we constantly assess better ways to serve our readers in this changing and uncertain world, including the Guild in these considerations are not a part of those assessments.
The irresponsible Guild press release is a perfect example of why we don’t. 

There is no future for any of us if we continue to live in the past. Someone should tell that to the Guild. 

- Dean

Union meh*

The union representing employees at MediaNews Group's Northern California newspapers has struck a deal that sounds a lot like what non-union employees in the chain's Southern California newspapers got - a week-long furlough and a vacation freeze in exchange for a wobbly pledge not to lay anyone off. FishbowlLA has the story here.

*Correction: As a comment rightly points out, the non-union LANGers will be forced to take 10 furlough days, not five as stated above.

Singleton to step down as MediaNews CEO*

There's a massive shakeup in the boardroom of MediaNews Group. Chairman and CEO Dean Singleton has announced he will relinquish his position atop what is now the second-largest newspaper chain in the country. Singleton, who has come to symbolize aggressive cost cutting, consolidation and cheapness in the newspaper industry, will become executive chairman of the company.

Additionally, President Joseph Lodovic said he will resign, effective immediately. An interim president has been named in his place.

MediaNews has launched a search to replace the two men.

From the Denver Post:

MediaNews also said it will launch a search for the newly created position of chief revenue officer. Michael Sileck, a MediaNews director, will serve in that position on an interim basis.

"In light of the significant opportunities and challenges we and the industry are facing, our company is best served by having separate executives focus their full efforts on both the strategic landscape, and on implementing an effective plan to expand our revenue streams and meet our operational and efficiency goals," Singleton said in a statement.

MediaNews also named three new directors: Heath Freeman, Bruce Schnelwar and Eric Krauss.

*Update: The Post article does not offer any background on the three new directors. According to Silicon Valley Business Journal, Freeman is managing director of Alden Global Capital; Schelwar is executive vice president and chief financial officer of Smith Management LLC as well as managing director of Alden Global Capital, and Krauss is chief financial officer of Action Sports Inc.

When financiers get put in charge, and a chief revenue officer is hired, one can be fairly certain that the banks that helped bail the company out of last year's bankruptcy are not happy with performance. As I wrote in March, "Bank of America and the other major creditors probably won't be very patient about seeing returns on their investment after forgiving [$765 million of] debt." And, apparently, they weren't.

What this means for a company that already has furloughs and a vacation freeze on tap is hard to know. Further consolidation almost seems impossible - nevertheless, that's the plan. And Singleton will be in charge. Here's the company press release, explaining Singleton's role now that he has more free time on his hands:

...focus on opportunities to optimize the company’s portfolio of properties and consolidation opportunities in the newspaper industry.

Porfolios are rarely optimized through investment and adding newsroom staff.

Some MediaNews ads go on autopilot

The Bay Area News Group, which is part of the MediaNews Group empire, has signed a deal with Wire2 to install software that will allow realtors to create their own open house ads on the newspaper chains' websites and will sync up with obituary information on Legacy.com, reports News and Tech. From the story:

Ad Hawk Open Homes lets real estate agents oversee the design and placement of their own ads without requiring the need to talk to an ad rep. BANG hopes to have half its open-house ads converted to self-service by March and 90 percent by year-end.

The Obituaries site integrates obituary information with a listing on Legacy.com. More than 30 area funeral homes have already signed up to use the portal.

This is how they do more with less.

LANG likes Facebook, mobile apps

The nine newspapers in the Los Angeles Newspaper Group (LANG) plan to use Facebook's commenting system. Readers will have to sign into their Facebook accounts to leave a message at the bottom of a story. The system should make it easy to offer a comment, as long as the reader has a Facebook account; editors also hope to the system discourages people from leaving nasty comments since Facebook provides a link on the person's Facebook page.

Here's part of the memo from San Bernardino Sun/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin editor Frank Pine:

Just a heads up that we’re planning to make a fairly significant change to all of our websites in the very near future: We’ll be switching our commenting functions from Topix to Facebook. BANG is already doing this on insidebayarea.com, and it’s a substantial improvement over what we have here in that it makes commenting much easier, and by linking the comments to users’ Facebook accounts, it cuts down the more objectionable anonymous comments. While the traditional thinking is that requiring registration or real names with comments reduces traffic, insidebayarea.com has actually seen an increase in traffic and referral traffic from Facebook.

The memo goes on to say LANG is working on mobile phone apps for each of the newspapers and will soon get started on apps for computer tablets.

Avoiding the "B" word

The news of MediaNews Group's pending bankruptcy hit with a whimper inside many of the group's own newspapers. Most of the MediaNews stories I scanned yesterday used vague headlines, eschewed analysis or expert opinion of any kind, and downplayed the word "bankruptcy." They also relied on a single source for their information, a press release from MediaNews chairman Dean Singleton, to describe the deal.

The Denver Post, for example, ran the headline "Pact lets Post owner cut debt." The story didn't mention bankruptcy until the third paragraph. The Salt Lake Tribune dug deep into the word jar to keep "bankruptcy" out of the headline: "Tribune owner's holding company agrees to 'prepackaged' financial restructuring." That headline screams, "Don't read me!"

The San Jose Mercury News also played the story small, as the San Francisco Peninsula Press Club observed:

The Mercury News ran the news that its parent company was about to enter Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings on the bottom of the business page today. The headline, "Mercury News parent swaps debt for equity," was the smallest headline for a news story on the page, and it didn't mention the word bankruptcy. The first two paragraphs don't use the B word either. One line before the jump, the word "bankruptcy" can be found. In a letter to employees, CEO Dean Singleton said the "financial restructuring is a non event for readers and advertisers."

The Los Angeles Daily News, which ran a story written by the Torrance Daily Breeze, also used the "...parent swaps debt for equity" headline construction.

In the short term, the bankruptcy probably won't be noticed by readers, advertisers or newsrooms - and not just because of how the story was played. However, any time a business convinces lenders to take a $765 million hit the lenders will demand something in return. Now that the lenders own a stake in the newspaper chain, what kind of profit margins will they demand? Do they want to see MediaNews grow? Are they happy to be in the newspaper business? Or would they rather see the chain broken up and sold off? Time - and I hope some of these very same newspapers - will tell.

MediaNews to file for bankruptcy

MediaNews Group, which publishes nine newspapers in Southern California and dozens of others across the country, announced today that it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

MediaNews chairman Dean Singleton said in a statement that the company has reached a deal with its lenders for a streamlined reorganization process that should take about 60 days to complete. The plan will reduce the company's debt by $765 million, cutting it to $165 million.

Singleton assured employees that the bankruptcy would not affect jobs or benefits and said that none of the company's papers will be sold or shuttered. Since the bankruptcy will be handled through a separate holding company (called Affiliated Media), Singleton said the papers would experience business as usual.

From Singleton's statement:

In our search for a new model that reflects the realities of today’s changing newspaper environment, we have come up with a solution that restores financial strength and flexibility to our balance sheet. It does not affect the operations of any of our newspapers or vendors or other operations. It gives us one of the strongest balance sheets in the industry. It gives us breathing space to create a new model for the newspapers we publish.

Here's some more detail from the Wall Street Journal:

Under MediaNews' plan, senior lenders will swap debt for equity, helping reduce the company's debt load from about $930 million to $165 million. Bondholders will get warrants for possible future equity. People familiar with the transaction said the company has been valued at roughly $200 million, including about $50 million of equity value.

Hearst Corp., the owner of magazines and newspapers, has at least $400 million in equity and debt tied to MediaNews, and the investment will be wiped out by the bankruptcy filing, according to people familiar with the matter. A Hearst spokesman declined to comment.

"We have worked side-by-side with Hearst on this," Mr. Singleton said.

-snip-

Mr. Singleton's ability to retain control over MediaNews represents a face-saving victory in the company's restructuring, and on Friday Mr. Singleton said he wanted to try to be the aggressor in merging newspapers.

Bankruptcies often result in board and management changes. Mr. Singleton, like many corporate executives, was sensitive to any negative fallout from a bankruptcy filing, according to people close to him.

MediaNews is the third newspaper company in Southern California to file for bankruptcy. Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times, filed for Chapter 11 in December 2008. Freedom Communications, which owns the Orange County Register, went bankrupt in September.

MediaNews owns the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, which publishes the Los Angeles Daily News, Pasadena Star-News, Daily Breeze, San Bernardino Sun and five others, and the Bay Area News Group in Northern California.

(This post was updated with the WSJ story link.)

It takes a team

In an effort to strangulate the shrinking San Francisco Chronicle, Dean Singleton's MediaNews Group has joined with Philip Anschutz's San Francisco Examiner to sell ads. The resulting "San Francisco Bay Area Buy" will offer ad space in 14 newspapers with a combined circulation of 808,000.

Dean still lean

Dean Singleton's MediaNews Group has ordered a 5-percent pay cut for all guild employees working in the company's Bay Area News Group, which includes the Oakland Tribune and Contra Costa Times.

As expected, guild reps protested the decision. From Editor & Publisher:

"It is a mistake to cut pay right now when glimpses of recovery are starting to appear," said Carl Hall, local representative for the California Media Workers Guild, which oversees the East Bay guild unit. "They should be rewarding and encouraging us to work harder than ever. People are feeling devalued."

But Jim Janiga, senior vice president/human resources for the Media News Group California division, said the cuts are needed. "The newspaper industry as a whole is still having to deal with this transition," he stated. "We've still got to be reasonable and prudent."

In June, employees at the Singleton-owned San Jose Mercury News saw their wages cut by 7 percent. Singleton used furloughs and vacation freezes to trim newsroom costs at his Southern California newspaper.

BANG cuts newsrooms

As expected, the Bay Area News Group (aka BANG) has eliminated 17 newsroom positions in its East Bay division through a combination of buyouts and layoffs. The affected papers include the Contra Costa Times, Oakland Tribune and Tri-Valley Herald.

The San Francisco Weekly got hold of the list of names last Wednesday.

Those taking buyouts:

• Dave Carpenter, copy editor
• Pat Craig, theater critic
• Mike DeCicco, copy editor
• Christine Harrington, Alameda clerk
• Ben Hawkins, copy editor
• Karen Holzmeister, Hayward-based reporter
• Paula King, east Alameda County reporter
• Kathleen Kirkwood, online news supervisor
• Christine Morente, San Mateo reporter
• Jeremiah Oshan, copy editor
• Kimberly Wetzel, west Alameda County reporter

Those getting laid off:

• Mike Lucia, Hayward-based photographer
• Mike Martinez, Tracy-based reporter
• Jenny Starks, sports reporter
• Ginny Stemler, librarian
• Jolene Thym, food editor
• Steve R. Waterhouse, Fremont-based prep sportswriter

Layoffs at Contra Costa Times*

A July 1 memo from Bay Area News Group Executive Editor Kevin Keane to employees says the paper will layoff 18 people from the newsroom by midsummer.

Keane writes:

It goes without saying that this deep a cut on top of previous reductions will have a lasting impact on our newspapers and Web sites. Our preference would be to hold staffing at its current level until the revenue bottomed out, but we can't delay if we're to get through this downturn.

Before we finalize these cuts, however, we're asking for volunteers to step forward. These volunteers will receive an additional severance of up to eight weeks salary on top of the severance mentioned above - one week's pay for each year worked, up to eight years. Under the volunteer program, a 12-year employee would receive the maximum 20-week severance.

Read the full memo here.

The Bay Area News Group newspaper chain is a division of Dean Singleton's MediaNews Group and includes the Contra Costa Times and Oakland Tribune. BANG plans to consolidate its copy desk functions with the San Jose Mercury News, which is expected to lead to even more layoffs at the latter paper.

(h/t themediaisdying)

*Update: This post has been clarified to show that the layoffs will affect all BANG papers, not only the Contra Costa Times.

Mercury News workers to consider austerity contract

The union representing employees at the San Jose Mercury News has negotiated a contract that offers major concessions to save money.

The contract, which will be voted on by secret ballot on Monday, includes a 7-percent pay cut (plus another two percent next year), five days of unpaid furlough, higher health care costs and a reduction in vacation accrual. The contract also allows owner MediaNews Group to consolidate copy desk functions with the company's Bay Area News Group (BANG), which includes the Oakland Tribune and Contra Costa Times.

From the Media Workers Guild:

As you know, it is a difficult period in the newspaper industry and the country. This contract settlement represents our best efforts at protecting workers, jobs and quality at the Mercury News. It is not something that we recommend lightly...

The folks at the SF Weekly aren't too impressed.

Mercury News asked to give up 15 percent

According to a letter posted on the Newspaper Guild's site, MediaNews negotiators have asked newsroom employees at the San Jose Mercury News to accept pay cuts of up to 15 percent and reduced benefits as a way to save the company money. Ad sales reps would also have to depend more on commissions.

Guild negotiators said they needed time to "fashion a response."

Rumors from the north

It's rumored that layoffs will next hit Dean Singleton's Bay Area News Group, starting Wednesday. BANG is the Northern California version of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, which suffered a round of layoffs this week.

BANG cuts again

The Singleton-owned Bay Area News Group has told the local guild that another eight newsroom jobs will be on the chopping block come Nov. 14. The guild update is here.

From the Berkeley Daily Planet:

In an e-mail to union colleagues, guild unit chair Sara Steffens notified them that still more newsroom positions were on the block. Steffens herself was the subject of one of the earlier rounds of downsizing.

“In a note sent to the Guild office this afternoon, Human Resources director Laurie Fox said the company planned to cut eight jobs from our bargaining unit, effective Nov. 14,” Steffens reported. “They did not provide any details about which employees, departments or newsrooms may be affected by the proposed cuts.”

The local currently represents 200 staffers in the East Bay papers.

BANG shed 29 newsroom positions in July.

Date for BANG union vote set*

Newsroom employees at Singleton's Bay Area papers will get to decide whether or not to unionize in a secret ballot election on June 13. The memo from Bay Area News Group Publisher John Armstrong follows:

Colleagues:

Based on an oral agreement between representatives of the company and the guild, the National Labor Relations Board will schedule a secret ballot election on Friday, June 13th, on the union’s petition to become the exclusive bargaining agent for pay, benefits and working conditions for nonsupervisory news employees of Bay Area News Group-East Bay. Yes, you read correctly: Friday the 13th.

The agreement, which we expect will be formalized and signed tomorrow, will include election locations, which will be on company premises, and the hours for voting.

The following employees will be eligible to cast a ballot: All full-time and regular part-time nonsupervisory news division employees at our Alameda, Antioch, Hayward, Fremont, Tracy, Pleasanton, Oakland, Richmond, San Mateo and Walnut Creek locations.

John Armstrong
President and Publisher

*The guild's news release can be found here.