Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
This has been a year of change for the Asheville Citizen-Times, and the change is likely to continue. What could be ahead? I have no idea, but there are clues aplenty. Let’s take a look:
More lay-offs: Folks over at Gannett Blog feel certain that another round of job cuts is likely early next year. Unless there’s a major rebound in advertising revenue and the economy in general, that’s probably true. The Citizen-Times newsroom dodged cuts in this latest cut, but it may not survive another round.
A smaller newspaper: This is already in the works. When the Citizen-Times starts being printed in Greenville, S.C., in early January, look for the newspaper to be a couple of inches skinnier, in terms of width. The Hendersonville Times-News has already moved to this format. The move saves a lot of money on newsprint costs. But it sure feels odd, and a smaller product means less space for news in your newspaper.
A change in configuration: Depending on how drastically the newspaper wants to cut expenses, you could see a couple of different changes in configuration. The newspaper could go from four sections — the A section of editorials and national news, the Mountains section of local news, the Living section of feature stories and comics, and the Sports section — to three sections. What section goes away? Local news could be stuffed into the A section, as was the case more than a year ago. Perhaps the features section gets meshed with local news. I don’t know. That’s a tough call.
Another possibility being hotly debated around Gannett is whether to simply stop publishing a day or two or a week. Lots of folks think the Monday newspaper is already so thin and weak that it out to go. Others say Saturday is a day few people look at.
In terms of configuration and personnel, another change in strategy may be to cut the number of niche products that Gannett and the Citizen-Times moved aggressively to start up several years ago. The weekly Haywood County News has stiff print competition. The Pisgah Mountain News has been trying to make headway in the Fletcher area, but it closed its shopping center office a few months back. The Citizen-Times also owns the Black Mountain News and the Madison County News Record & Sentinel. Those two newspapers seem on more solid financial footing than the first two, but you never know.
May be the ex publisher out at IWANNA wants to put in a bid for those presses?
Should send HH and buddies out to Sardis Rd. Plenty of help needed out there.
So they were making appx 5 mil a year out of ACT alone… and now gonna be loosing? This whole thing looks like a way to centralize everything… so when you go bankrupt, you can sell off your parts faster.
Wonder if the Xpress wants to buy a press?
when ACT’s print moves to Greenville they are eliminating classifieds on Monday and Tuesday.
I love this from "a concerned reader"
When was the last time Hatchet Hammer covered a news story? When, if ever does the ad director go out with the sales people on sales calls?
That is it in a nutshell. If Virgil was still here he would be out making sales calls.
I guess Hammer is to scared to leave the building. And as for the Ad Director LOL. Nothing more to say.
I don’t really understand why the newsroom at the CTimes hasn’t been cut. Could it be that Hatchet Hammer’s background is news and he protects those of the same species? I can’t believe the lack of information and local news about Western North Carolina in the paper. I would like to see quality stories about things that are happening in our own backyard not national stories from the wire services. I am not sure of the total number of people in the newsroom, it has to be 30 – 40 (which I think comes close to exceeding the number of people in advertising). The paper averages 10 local bylines a day. Yikes. Phil F is quiet because HH isn’t concerned about reaching the readers or the community. It’s his fifedom and he will publish his paper his way or, get out of the way or, out of the building. Gannett and other large newspaper chains have the same affliction as the car companies – head honchos too busy trying to keep their jobs that they don’t do their job. When was the last time someone at corporate went out to cover a news story or, made a sales call. When was the last time Hatchet Hammer covered a news story? When, if ever does the ad director go out with the sales people on sales calls? It’s easy to slash bodies if you don’t have any understanding of what the employees are up against. There are numerous print publications in the Asheville area. Besides the Times News has any other print publication announced massive layoffs? That’s because privately owned papers can live with 10 – 15% profit margins unlike Gannett that wants to maintain a 30% profit margin. I do predict that the company will reduce the number of days they publish.
They should really just go ahead and do away with the sports section. I hate to see anyone lose a job, but I could do a better Sports layout in my spare time.
And no, I’m not campaigning for a job.
I also wondered if newsroom folks would eventually take on multiple duties, like you see at very small papers … where minimal staff does it all, like a one-stop shop: writing, editing, photography AND layout. With the new system they have, it’s more likely than not.