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News Media Outlets Have Been Ravaged by the Pandemic
Roughly 37,000 workers at news companies in the U.S. have been laid off, been furloughed or had their pay reduced. Some publications that rely on ads have shut down.
The news media business was shaky before the coronavirus started spreading across the country last month. Since then, the economic downturn that put 30 million Americans out of work has led to pay cuts, layoffs and shutdowns at many news outlets, including weeklies like The Stranger in Seattle, digital empires like Vox Media and Gannett, the nation's largest newspaper chain.
Finding a sizable audience has not been a problem for publishers. Hunger for news in a time of crisis has sent droves of readers to many publications. But with businesses paused or closed — and no longer willing or able to pay for advertisements — a crucial part of the industry’s support system has cracked.
The New York Times is continuing to gauge the pandemic’s effects on newspapers, magazines and digital media companies through interviews with executives, newsroom employees and union leaders across the country. All told, an estimated 37,000 employees of news media companies in the United States have been laid off, furloughed or had their pay reduced since the arrival of the coronavirus.
Below, a rundown, updated on May 21, of the effect on the industry since the advent of the crisis.
Advance Local
The news chain whose properties include The Star-Ledger of New Jersey has instituted one- to two-week furloughs for all staff members between May and December and pay cuts between 2 and 20 percent for employees making more than $35,000.
American Media
The publisher of The National Enquirer, In Touch and Us Weekly has cut the pay of all employees by 23 percent.
The Atlantic
The venerable magazine and news site laid off 68 employees and reduced executives’ salaries.
Bustle Digital Group
This digital publisher laid off 24 employees and closed The Outline, a news site for millennials.
BuzzFeed
The news and lifestyle site furloughed 68 employees and cut the salaries of all employees making more than $40,000 for a two-month period.
Condé Nast
The magazine empire laid off nearly 100 employees after cutting pay by 10 to 20 percent over five months for those making more than $100,000.
The Dallas Morning News
The paper has cut the pay of newsroom employees by 17 percent and by a greater percentage for executives.
The Economist
The British publisher laid of 90 non-newsroom employees and folded the print edition of 1843, a bimonthly magazine.
Euclid Media Group
This publisher of seven alt-weeklies in cities like Cincinnati, Detroit and San Antonio has furloughed more than 70 percent of its staff.
FiscalNote
The parent company of the politics publications CQ and Roll Call laid off 30 employees.
The business publication laid off 35 people, or 10 percent of its staff.
Gannett
American’s largest newspaper chain furloughed most of its roughly 20,000 employees for one week in each of April, May and June. The company has also confirmed an unspecified number of layoffs related to its recent merger with GateHouse Media.
G/O Media
The owner of Gizmodo, Jezebel, The Onion and Deadspin laid off 14 people, or less than 5 percent of its employees.
Group Nine Media
The publisher of The Dodo and NowThis has laid off roughly 50 people.
Lee Enterprises
This chain of 70 newspapers, including The Buffalo News and The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, has instituted pay cuts and furloughs.
The Los Angeles Times
More than 430 newsroom employees will have their work hours reduced by 20 percent, or one day a week, through the summer.
McClatchy
The newspaper chain that filed for bankruptcy before the crisis has put 120 non-newsroom employees on leave and laid off four executives.
MediaNews Group
There were 13 layoffs at The Denver Post, a dozen furloughs at The East Bay Times, and reports of other furloughs at newspapers around the country owned by this chain, which is controlled by Alden Global Capital.
Meredith
More than half the employees at the Des Moines, Iowa, publisher of Better Homes and Gardens and People have received graduated pay cuts between 15 to 30 percent.
National Public Radio
The radio and podcasting giant announced graduated pay cuts of up to 10 percent for those making more than $80,000, with steeper pay cuts for executives.
The New York Post
The tabloid run by the media mogul Rupert Murdoch laid off 20 employees.
Protocol
The tech site affiliated with Political laid off 13 employees not long after going live in February.
Quartz
The international business site laid off 80.
San Diego Magazine
This city magazine laid off 37 employees — everyone but the bookkeeper.
Schneps Media
This publisher of roughly 50 New York-area community newspapers, including amNewYork, laid off or furloughed more than 20 employees.
theSkimm
This newsletter for millennial women laid off roughly 25 people.
Sky
The Delta Air Lines publication has been shuttered, with 16 jobs cut.
Slate
The online pioneer reduced employee pay by up 20 percent, with steeper cuts for executives.
Sports Illustrated
Maven, the new parent company of the venerable publication, laid off 31 people, a group that included some Sports Illustrated journalists.
The Stranger
This Seattle alt-weekly laid off 18 employees and hopes to bring them back.
The Tampa Bay Times
This Florida newspaper instituted 8-week furloughs for some non-newsroom employees and reduced its print editions to two days a week, Wednesday and Sunday.
The Times Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate
Approximately 12 newsroom employees have been furloughed at the newspaper’s parent company, Georges Media, while the rest were shifted to four-day workweeks.
Tribune Publishing
This news media company, formerly known as Tronc, announced that is has permanently cut the salaries of those making more than $67,000 by up to 10 percent. It also furloughed those making between $40,000 and $67,000 for three weeks, including all newsroom employees at flagship Chicago Tribune.
Valence Media
Thirty percent of employees were laid off at the publisher of Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter.
Vice Media
Vice laid off 100 employees, including 50 in the United States, after instituting four-day workweeks for some staff members and cutting pay for others.
Voice Media
At least 11 employees, including journalists, were laid off at this publisher of several alt-weeklies.
Vox Media
Vox furloughed nine percent of its staff for three months, and cut the pay of its highest-paid employees by 15 percent.
W
Thirty employees were furloughed at the fashion magazine’s parent company, Future Media Group, and the print edition has been suspended.
Edmund Lee, Elizabeth Paton, Jaclyn Peiser and Ben Smith contributed reporting.
Edmund Lee, Elizabeth Paton and Jaclyn Peiser contributed reporting.
An earlier version of this article referred incorrectly to the status of the print edition of The Newtown Bee, a weekly paper in Connecticut. The publisher did not end the print edition, but has halted it for the time being. The earlier version also referred incorrectly to recent layoffs at Bustle Digital Group. Six employees lost their jobs as part of the folding of The Outline, and 18 other employees were also laid off; the company did not lay off 24 employees of The Outline.
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Marc Tracy covers print and digital media. He previously covered college sports. More about Marc Tracy
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