We’re learning more details about the Washington Times layoffs that will fundamentally change the mission and daily makeup of the conservative newspaper.
The Washington Post has an interview with Publisher Jonathan Slevin today. He told the Post, “Having a print newspaper in Washington, D.C., is something that we did not at all consider giving up, unless it became absolutely necessary.”
Echoing the company statement yesterday, Slevin said the paper would focus on its national political coverage, at the expense of sports and local stories. And in a sign that the newspaper will continue its commitment to news coverage from a conservative perspective, Slevin told the New York Times: “The new Washington Times will continue to report Washington-focused news that other journalistic enterprises often overlook.”
The layoffs figure we and others reported yesterday — 40 percent of the staff of 370 — looks like a minimum number.
From the Post story:
Beginning early next year, the paper will be distributed free “in select areas,” the company said, particularly at federal government offices and other key institutions. Newsstand sales are being deemphasized — they will take place at fewer locations — and subscriptions will be discouraged by the charging of “premium prices.”
Slevin called it a “good strategy” for “a newspaper whose influence is significant in Washington, D.C, yet whose print audience has never been a major economic driver in Washington, D.C.” The paper’s daily circulation has recently hovered around 85,000, compared with 583,000 for The Washington Post.
Employees received a letter about the planned layoffs, as required by federal law. Slevin did not rule out layoffs of greater than 40 percent.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires companies to give 60 days notice ahead of mass layoffs.
