Newsweek Staff Shrinks Dramatically After More Than 100 Staffers Accept Buyout

Radar:

The staff of Newsweek will shrink dramatically, after 111 staffers on the its news and business sides accepted a buyout last week. Among those leaving are some of the magazine's best-known, most-admired and longest-service critics, including David Gates, David Ansen and Cathleen McGuigan. Harold Shain, a former president of the magazine who moved over to isister publication Budget Travel at the beginning of this year, is also departing.

146 staffers were offered the chance to leave the magazine, with as much as two years of their current salary as a departing bonus, depending on their age and length of service. The package also includes pension sweetners and the chance to continue health insurance coverage until the age of 65. More staffers than expected accepted the offer, so at least some their jobs are likely to be filled by new hires. But dozens of positions will be eliminated permanently.

Read the whole story: Radar

Comments

[shengirl]

I was about to unsubscribe when they took Karl Rove onboard, but he hasn't been there that much. But I really think when my current subscription is up, I will not be resubscribing. Why do they think moves like this will retain or even increase paper readership vs online? The quality goes down, the interest level goes down, the magazine gets thinner and thinner, and we're supposed to keep paying for it when we can get most of it for free online? Sounds like somebody graduated from the GW Bush school of business.

[getalife80]

They have never recovered from having Bill Murray in "The New Army" on the cover. No seriously, these people will have no trouble finding jobs at places like National Palestinian Radio or Democratic Party Headquarters. All they did was regurgitate the talking points anyway.

[NoSillyName]

I believe there is still a place for magazines and I subscribe to many. As much as I'm online most days, it bothers my eyes reading off the screen and I like to sit back, put my feet up and read a magazine. I don't have a laptop, so when I get in bed to read before falling asleep, its with a magazine. Newsweek is just one of a dozen or so that I subscribe to. Not thrilled about the Rove hiring, but I like the weekly newsmagazine format. It remains to be seen how all these changes will affect Newsweek. Time was too conservative when I last subscribed to it. Weekly News & World Report is only good if they have a cover story that interests me, as those stories take up most of the magazine. I get The Week for a concise overview of world news. Rolling Stone has good, lengthy political articles and I find out what old rockers have died. The rest of my subscriptions cover other areas of interest..­. science, Archeology, Astronomy, health, Smithsonian, National Geographic, Consumer Reports, New Mexico, etc. I don't want magazines to become obsolete.

[MadeinAmericaProud]

VP Cheney for Newsweek "so".

[ResidentChimp]

It's no surprise that liberal pandering rags are going under. Americans get tried of the same old blame America first driverl being pump out of the MSM.

[nellie]

Drivel.

[Waitaminute]

I guess the only magazine you'd like are the ones written by guys with pointed hoods. Personally, the news media has rendered itsself useless anyway.

[nellie]

"This is the latest reverberation from the continuing decline in revenues and circulation of major print publications around the world—most of it attributable to the impact of the Internet."

They just don't get it. They keep printing the same corporate propaganda when people have alternative news sources that give them the truth. They hire Karl Rove, knowing what he did in the Valerie Plame case, knowing what he has done to the Justice Department. And they blame the internet.

[MrJoyboy]

Unfortunately the neocon ownership is still there.

[BOfever]

What will Keith Olbermann do? 2 of his frequent guests were offered buyouts to get out of town but they refused.

[Paul]

Who would buy a weekly print news magazine? That day has passed. If you can get the new owners to finance your change of career, take it.

[liveandlearn]

if you like detroit's economy, you will be pleased to see this wave of the future. people tell me the buyout is more fun earlier on than it remains. i hear they're hiring down south.

[gotalife]

This will happen to all Obama biased media.

No credibility.

[BOfever]

What do you mean? They are on Olbermann's show every night, you're telling me they are biased and not credible? LOL

[OneLiberalLady]

This is very sad. I admire and subscribe tor Newsweek and can't imagine the magazine without Jonathon Alter and Howard Fineman, who luckily both declined to leave. But what will they do without a research department? There is an interesting article in the most recent New Yorker describing the pressures on print media and the upswing of internet sites. Arianna Huffington is quoted extensively. But internet sites do not currently come close to print media in numbers and quality of reporters and fact-checking.

[ResidentChimp]

The never did any research anyway. Just parroted the Anti-american line from BBC and the AP.

[byrdland49]

I used to subscribe to Newsweek. When they hired Karl Rove I swore I would never purchase their publication again, and canceled my subscription. Maybe they should have thought of that before bringing on the Turd Blossom.

[williamina]

I agree, when they hired that moonbat from the daily kook I swore off buying the rag myself.

[springsm]

I did the same, I cancelled my subscription and will not have that magazine in my home. Nor will I look at it at the Newsstand. Never again..eve­n if Rove goes to prison for his crimes, will I so much as look at that rag. (we know he won't go to prison, but it is a good promise)

[Podewumun]

I cancelled my subscription two months before its expiration, byrdland49, and still receive renewal offers in the mail. The last one? $10 for an entire year. Newsweek is desperate, and deservedly so.

[ResidentChimp]

Bad news Podewun. I cancelled my subscription in 1999 and I'm still getting renewal offers.

[shengirl]

They set ad revenue by the number of subscribers. The more subscribers, the more they can charge for ads. So yes, they are desperate to have anybody and everybody subscribe.