Word trickled out slowly for the rest of the morning and the early afternoon, as journalists receiving the bad news added themselves to the list of those laid off.The newsroom just got news that the Dallas Morning News is laying off 40 people amidst a “restructuring”. We’re told about half of those will be from the newsroom.
— Dom DiFurio (@DomDiFurio) January 7, 2019
Reporter Tasha Tsiaperas, with the DMN almost seven years on criminal justice and other beats, lost her job.
So did Dianne Solis, who's been with the paper more than 20 years, most recently as an immigration reporter, and Eddie Sefko, who's spent the last 18 years on the Mavericks beat. Many of those who were laid off had been at the News for decades.Hi, Twitterverse, I was one of these people. I do hope these layoffs don’t turn you off to local journalism. It needs your support now more than ever. Hopefully I’ll still be seeing y’all around. https://t.co/q3awuydeWG
— Tasha Tsiaperas (@ttsiaperas) January 7, 2019
The layoffs decimated the arts and life department, as well. Cultural critic Chris Vognar lost his job, as did GuideLive Editor Sara Frederick and music critic Kelly Dearmore.OK, folks. This will be the last Twitter post for awhile. I'm joining the ranks of the unemployed today. Been a privilege to cover so many great people and great athletes for 18 years on the Mavericks' beat. Wish them all the best. I'll resurface in a week or two with an update.
— Eddie Sefko (@ESefko) January 7, 2019
Hello, film/journalism/publishing Twitter. I got laid off from the @dallasnews today. I am officially a gun for hire. Or a pen for hire. Not a big fan of guns. Holla.
— Chris Vognar (@chrisvognar) January 7, 2019
I made it 23 years as a journalist before my number came up today. Job leads appreciated.
— Sara FrederickBurgos (@SaraFrederick) January 7, 2019
After 23 years, energy and environmental reporter Jeff Mosier lost his job shortly after the layoffs were announced at a newsroom meeting Monday morning.I was one of the folks let go from the Dallas Morning News today. It's been a dream come true to write for the paper but I'm also really sad so many of my friends there have also lost their job.
— Kelly R Dearmore (@KellyRDearmore) January 7, 2019
I'm on the market and very willing! Thanks! [email protected]
"A lot of us were blindsided," Mosier said Monday afternoon. "Even though, especially since moving over to the business news desk, I've looked at the business side a little bit more. Obviously, our numbers, our quarterly reports, have been terrible all year long. We knew that we had far fewer jobs going forward but we'd already lost a ton of people."
The DMN lost at least $500,000 in each of the first three quarters of 2018.
Mosier said laid-off reporters were given the option of cleaning out their desks Monday or returning to do so later. Those who lost their jobs received limited severance payouts, he said.
In its own article announcing the layoffs Monday afternoon, the DMN's president and publisher, Grant Moise, blamed print revenue declines for forcing the paper's hand. Moving forward, the Morning News intends to focus more on its digital operation.
“After considerable thought and analysis, our management team has determined that our business in the future is largely supported by subscription revenue and the need for more aggressive investment in our digital products,” Moise said.
According to a 2018 SEC filing, DMN's top executives, including Moise, have mostly seen their compensation increase over the last three years.
Layoffs are hitting journalists the Dallas Morning News today. Meanwhile, newly released corporate filings show their company's top executives have gotten some nice raises in recent years. https://t.co/Ntyh2AYZi5 pic.twitter.com/2ELOekLi05
— Matt Pearce (@mattdpearce) March 28, 2018
