Media, Printing & Graphics  September 18, 2014

Coloradoan plans reorg, layoffs to editorial team

FORT COLLINS – The Coloradoan is planning an unspecified number of layoffs as part of a reorganization, according to employees of the daily newspaper.

Kathy Jack-Romero, Coloradoan president and publisher, confirmed the newspaper planned a reorganization.

“What we’re doing is a complete reorganization of our workflow and our structure and putting digital first,” she said. “We want to make engaging in our community a primary role of our team.”

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Coloradoan Executive Editor Lauren Gustus confirmed that the newspaper planned to eliminate an unspecified number of copy editors from the newsroom and replace those employees with content producers, such as reporters.

The Coloradoan employs 32 editorial staff members. Gustus did not know how many people would lose their jobs, but the transition will occur by the end of the year.

Coloradoan editorial employees have been asked to apply for new jobs in the newsroom, she said.

“What we’ll do is create more opportunities for reporting positions and for digital positions, such as web producers,” she said. “We will have fewer people in the room focused on production.”

The reorganization comes as Gannett, which owns the Coloradoan, and other news organizations have struggled with declining print advertising revenue. Gannett announced in August that it planned to split its newspaper business and broadcasting and digital business into two new companies.

Earlier this month, Gannett-owned USA Today reported that the newspaper cut “60 to 70 jobs.”

“The Coloradoan is doing well relatively speaking, but overall as an industry, you’ve seen which direction the numbers are going,” she said. “We need to prepare ourselves to be here 10 and 20 years on down the road.”

In 2012, the Coloradoan made a similar move when it laid off three copy editors and offered an early retirement package to the then-editor of the Windsor Beacon, another Gannett property. Gannett at the time had transferred some of the Coloradoan’s copy editing operations to the Arizona Republic in Phoenix, as it had done with other papers.

Gustus confirmed that the Coloradoan planned to move additional newspaper design and layout operations to the Arizona Republic. The Coloradoan will retain some of its production staff to produce in-depth reporting packages.

Gustus wrote more about the transition here. http://www.coloradoan.com/story/opinion/2014/09/18/gustus-coloradoan-prepares-future/15842775/

FORT COLLINS – The Coloradoan is planning an unspecified number of layoffs as part of a reorganization, according to employees of the daily newspaper.

Kathy Jack-Romero, Coloradoan president and publisher, confirmed the newspaper planned a reorganization.

“What we’re doing is a complete reorganization of our workflow and our structure and putting digital first,” she said. “We want to make engaging in our community a primary role of our team.”

Coloradoan Executive Editor Lauren Gustus confirmed that the newspaper planned to eliminate an unspecified number of copy editors from the newsroom and replace those employees with content producers, such as reporters.

The Coloradoan employs 32…

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