After previously offering buyouts to about 10% of its staff, The Buffalo News has announced another round of buyout offers. This time, the offer has been extended to up to 300 staffers including newsroom employees.
The Buffalo News has a brief announcement while Reuters has a more lengthy analysis.
Our local paper isn’t unique, of course, as the Tribune Company recently declared bankruptcy and other large print media are struggling to adapt. The New York Times and the Boston Globe have now started selling ads on the front page of their print editions in a bid to grow revenue, though no one believes this fundamentally changes the trajectory of old line media companies.
The most surprising comment on the latest round of buyouts at the News comes from Dottie Gallagher-Cohen, Senior Vice President, who said, “In these difficult economic times, we are looking at every way we can to become a more efficient operation and reduce our expenses, and this is one of many steps we’ve taken to remain viable.”
By even raising the prospect of remaining viable, perhaps Gallagher-Cohen words indicate one of the predictions for 2009 – the News limiting the days it prints – will come true sooner than expected.