Today's the buyout deadline at the New York Times, with 30 staffers needed to accept before possible layoffs. Here's what executive editor Jill Abramson told staff Wednesday afternoon in a memo:
The voluntary buyout process in the newsroom, which began last month is now coming to an end.
The voluntary buyout period closes Thursday at 5 p.m.We will know a day or two after that whether or not we will have to go to layoffs in order to reach the savings we need. We'll need some time to figure out which buyout requests we can accept.
If you think the buyout is something that works for you at this time in your life, we urge you to give the offer serious consideration if you haven't already. Each buyout we record reduces the possibility of layoffs.
If you have any questions please be in touch with Bill or Janet.
Living with the uncertainty that this kind of process inevitably creates has been painful for us all. And at the same time we are grappling with the sadness at the departure of friends, of wise and trusted colleagues and great journalists.
I am very grateful to all of you for your patience and forbearance.
Fondly,Jill
Capital New York has a good list of recent buyouts and departures, with more likely to leak out as the deadline approaches.
-- Since Katie Couric landed the first on-camera interview with Notre Dame star Manti Te'o, many have speculated that the daytime star got it because her longtime spokesman, Matthew Hiltzik, now represents Te'o. Certainly seems plausible. But now, someone -- albeit anonymously -- is pushing back against that suggestion to the Los Angeles Times.
However, a person close to the situation denied that both parties having the same representation was the deciding factor. Instead, they said that the audience reach from Couric's employer, ABC News, and its corporate parent, the Walt Disney Co., made her the best choice.
I spoke yesterday on HuffPost Live about the Couric interview, which airs in full today.
Around the world:
-- The Cable's Josh Rogin reports that Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi recently implied to Senators "that he was the victim of an American media run by the Jews."
The Cable asked [Sen. Chris] Coons if Morsy specifically named the Jews as the forces that control the American media. Coons said all the senators believed the implication was obvious.
"He did not say [the Jews], but I watched as the other senators physically recoiled, as did I," he said. "I thought it was impossible to draw any other conclusion."
"The meeting then took a very sharply negative turn for some time. It really threatened to cause the entire meeting to come apart so that we could not continue," Coons said.
-- Speaking of Morsi, Al Arabiya looks at concerns over press freedom in Egypt.
-- Turkey, which already imprisons the most journalists in the world, has arrested 11 more.
More links:
-- Hillary Clinton isn't fond of appearing on Sunday shows -- something else to disagree with John McCain over.
-- Newspapers line up for reality-show casting call.
-- Rolling Stone lays off two high-ranking staffers: executive editor Eric Bates and PR head Mark Neschis.
-- My colleague Craig Kanelley asks, "Are Journalists Joking Too Much On Twitter?"