US Journalists strike at largest newspaper group

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
6 Jun 2023 11:43

As consumers migrate to digital news sources and advertising revenues fall, US regional and local newspapers have been in financial trouble for years.

An undated photo of main US newspapers. (AP)

Hundreds of employees at the country's largest newspaper publisher went on strike throughout the country, blaming management for decimating local newsrooms.

The NewsGuild-CWA union stated that Gannett employees from almost two dozen newsrooms participated in the one- or two-day walkouts.

More than half a dozen states, including California, Texas, Florida, New Jersey, and New York, were affected by the strike, the union added.

It is worth noting that Gannett owns more than 200 daily newspapers across the country, including USA Today, the Palm Beach Post, and the Arizona Republic.

GateHouse Media, a division of New Media Investment Group, acquired it in November 2019 for about $1.2 billion.

Since the merger, newsrooms "have been hollowed out, local news coverage has dwindled, and Gannett share prices have fallen nearly 70 percent," said NewsGuild-CWA.

The union accused CEO Mike Reed of "mismanagement" that has "demoralized newsrooms and made it impossible for reporters to have the resources to produce quality journalism."

According to the union, Gannett has banned corporate payments to retirement plans, introduced unpaid furloughs, and slashed about 20% of its journalistic employment in the past year.

The guild has requested that a vote of no confidence be taken against Reed at the shareholders' meeting on Monday at the Gannett headquarters in Virginia.

"Despite the work stoppage, in some of our markets, there will be no disruption and we will not cease delivering trusted news to our loyal readers," a Gannett spokesperson said in a statement, adding that "our goal is to preserve journalism and serve our communities across the country as we continue to bargain in good faith to finalize contracts that provide equitable wages and benefits for our valued employees."

As consumers migrate to digital news sources and advertising revenues fall, US regional and local newspapers have been in financial trouble for years.

According to a 2021 research by the Pew Research Center, between 2008 and 2020, the number of journalists employed in newsrooms in the United States decreased from 114,000 to 85,000.