AS CORONAVIRUS MOUNTS, NEWSPAPERS CUTTING STAFF, HOURS AND PAY

Newspaper readers, seeking latest information on the spreading coronavirus, especially in their area, are finding problems with coverage, notes Grumpy Editor.

Newspapers and other publications under pressure with dwindling advertising, are cutting staff, hours and pay.  Some are dropping print editions or shutting down entirely.

 

Those that are still operating find “the coronavirus pandemic has been likened to a war,” says the Washington Post.  "But journalists are largely absent from the harrowing, heartbreaking front line of this crisis: hospitals. In a disaster with an invisible enemy — no burning buildings or swamped towns to photograph — it is emergency rooms and intensive-care units where the day-to-day human toll of the deadly illness is most plainly visible.

 

"But a combination of health worries and privacy concerns has made it extremely difficult for the members of the media to go into these places and capture a vivid, firsthand portrait of this facet of the crisis.”

 

Researchers have long worried that the next recession — which economists say is already upon us — “could be an extinction-level event for newspapers,” says Penelope Abernathy, a University of North Carolina professor who studies the news industry. 

 

In the past week, Gannett, the largest U.S. newspaper chain, announced 15-day furloughs and pay cuts for many employees. Lee Enterprises, another major chain, announced salary cuts and furloughs.  The Tampa Bay Times, cut five days of its print edition and announced furloughs for non-newsroom staffers.

 

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

 

 

And away we go.

DOG IN DRIVER'S SEAT.  A Washington state motorist led police on a chase with speeds up to 100 m.p.h. and when stopped, the 51-year-old motorist claims he was teaching his dog how to drive.  Cops found the canine in the driver’s seat.  On a route from Marysville to Arlington, the car crashed into several cars.

CORONA BEER OUTPUT HALTED.  Corona beer production is being temporarily suspended in Mexico because of the coronavirus pandemic.  Grupo Modelo, the company that makes the beer, says it's halting production and marketing because the Mexican government has shuttered non-essential businesses.

DNC CONVENTION MOVES TO AUGUST.  The coronavirus pandemic is pushing back the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee to the week of Aug. 17.  It still is expected to run four days.

 

N.Y. GOV. CUOMO SAYS NO PRESIDENTIAL RUN.  New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, with an approval rating near 90 percent, during an interview with his brother, CNN’s Chris Cuomo, says he has no thoughts of running for president. 

 

THEATER CHAIN SHUTTERS.  AMC Entertainment Holdings closes more than 1,000 theaters around the world in response to the spread of the coronavirus.