The Tampa Tribune laid off 18 newsroom employees today as the newspaper works to reduce its costs and cope with a worsening advertising economy.
The job cuts included top managers, mid-level editors, photographers, reporters and some of the paper's most visible faces, including longtime columnist Dan Ruth, who has worked more than 36 years in the newspaper industry, and editorial page editor Rosemary Goudreau.
"We have tried to make these cuts so the results are not so obvious to the reader," said Janet Coats, executive editor of the Tribune. At the same time, she said "We've tried to make these reductions early enough so they have an effect in 2009, because it has become clear the economy is not looking any better."
Media companies across the nation were already cutting back operations this year as advertising dollars shift to the Internet and other venues. Media companies in Florida are dealing with added problems, including the near collapse in the real estate market and the end of the political advertising season.
Employment in the Tribune newsroom has shrunk during the year from 265 in January to 193 after Monday, with about 16 employees accepting buyout packages.
Eighty positions were cut Monday across the Florida Communications Group, which operates the Tribune, including advertising, marketing, administration, I.T. and business operations. About a third of the cuts came from open positions - the remainder from layoffs. Current employment stands at about 1,150.
FCG President John Schueler said the organization continues to generate a profit, though he also told employees in a memo that further job cuts were likely.
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