The Springfield News-Leader is restructuring its newsroom staff to a total of 32 positions.
Last week, all but three editors of the roughly 30-member Springfield News-Leader editorial team were asked to reapply for up to 32 newly created positions, according to sources familiar with its reorganization.
News-Leader Executive Director of News and Engagement Paul Berry confirmed the newsroom restructuring, but he declined to disclose other details.
“Like any business, we’re constantly changing and constantly evolving because our customers are constantly changing and evolving,” Berry said. “We’ve rolled out our new process to the ’room. We’re still in the process of figuring out how all the pieces fit together, but over the next month or so is when we’ll have the bulk of that completed.”
He said readers will begin seeing some changes during that time, and adjustments would be made along the way.
Sources familiar with the reorganization told Springfield Business Journal the application process began Nov. 4, and editors from other Gannett papers were expected to be involved in the interviews. A handful of people were weighing severance package options, and among those reportedly not reapplying was Dean Curtis, a 31-year Gannett photographer and editor. Curtis deferred to Berry for comment.
An organizational chart leaked to SBJ shows a mix of traditional positions, such as beat reporters and sports clerks, and nontraditional roles, such as a storytelling coach and an engagement editor. Under the direction of a yet-to-be-named “watchdog coach,” there are five beat reporters, including two watchdog reporters, and a projects photographer. Managing Editor Cheryl Whitsitt is slated for the content strategist role, and Digital Editor Allen Vaughan would become a consumer experience director.
The moves are part of a larger effort by News-Leader parent company Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI) to establish the Newsroom of the Future across its 81-city newspaper chain.
From the Arizona Republic to the Pensacola News Journal to the Indianapolis Star, Gannett restructuring has resulted in staff reductions by as much as 15 percent, according to published reports. In the quarter ending Sept. 30, Gannett posted net operating revenue of $4.3 billion, up 13 percent compared to last year led by a 97 percent increase in its broadcasting revenue. Publishing advertising revenue was down 5.1 percent compared to the same quarter in 2013.
Given the environment, Jonathan Groves, a former News-Leader editor and an associate professor of communications at Drury University, said it’s no surprise Gannett officials are retooling.
“They are under a lot of pressure because they’re publicly traded. That stock price has to go up, and that’s driven by revenue and profitability,” Groves said. “Gannett is doing what it needs to do.”
Groves, who has studied and written routinely on new media after working for the local daily paper 1997–2005, said it is a humbling and exciting time for newspapers across the country.
“The puzzle everyone is dealing with is the revenue generated online is a fraction of what is generated in the print edition,” Groves said. “So, how do we move toward this growth market knowing the bulk of the revenue is coming from the legacy medium?”
According to the Newspaper Association of America, while revenue from digital channels rose 5.8 percent last year, it still represents just 12 percent of the multiplatform U.S. newspaper media business. Overall revenue was down 2.6 percent in 2013 to $37.59 billion with print advertising revenue down 8.6 percent last year to $17.3 billion from 2012. Newspaper revenues nationwide peaked at $65.8 billion in 2000.
While Berry said no cuts are planned with the restructuring as there have been in other markets, he acknowledged the staff count has been reduced through attrition. He cited former statehouse reporter Jonathan Shorman, whose position hasn’t been filled but remains under the new structure.
“We actually have more jobs than we have people in our newsroom right now,” Berry said. “But we also have radically different jobs, because we’ve seen a radical shift in the way that people consume media.”
That shift is welcome news to some in the industry.
Andrew Cline, an associate professor of journalism at Missouri State University, said it’s a good idea for community newspapers to evaluate how they deliver news to consumers in an increasingly digital and interactive world.
“Print journalism needs to be rethinking what it will be,” Cline said.
In an age where social media, podcasts and blogs are prevalent, Cline said journalists have to reimagine their roles and adapt.
“You can be your own publisher. You can be your own TV station. You can be your own radio station. You can be your own multimedia universe,” Cline said, noting advertisements through Amazon and Facebook are much more targeted, which challenges traditional news business models.
While new platforms are flourishing, expenses tied to the industry’s traditional golden goose, the print product, are only expected to climb, he said.
“We are entering an area of resource limits. Publishing a print newspaper is a tremendously resource-intensive endeavor. You’ve got to have paper, and that comes from trees. You’ve got to run presses that run on massive amounts of electricity,” Cline said. “The price to produce newspapers is just going up, up and up and there’s nothing that’s going to stop that.
“They’ve already gone over the other side of the roller coaster on this one and they’re heading down.”
Even so, Cline said readership interest remains. According to the NAA, seven in 10 adults access content produced by newspapers each week. But Cline said moves such as the News-Leader’s are ahead of the game to serve consumers on their terms in light of cost considerations.
“I think what a guy like Paul Berry is being put in a position to do is to more quickly morph print journalism into the thing it’s going to have to become in the near future,” Cline said. “I take this restructure as an important step in that direction.”
It’s a time of change for everyone, Groves said.
“The glory days of 20 to 30 years ago when newspapers had 40 percent profit margins and they could do whatever they wanted are gone,” Groves said. “There’s an economic reality that has led to every newspaper newsroom having to change. That makes me sad. But, with that said, it’s also exciting because it is forcing newsrooms to do their jobs more effectively and think more completely about their communities and their audiences.”[[In-content Ad]]
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