county news online
text
 

Dayton Business Journal...
Cox newspapers to consolidate operations
by Ginger Christ
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 

More job cuts could be on the way for Cox Media Group’s Dayton staff. That’s because the parent company of the Dayton Daily News    could eliminate another 40 positions if the company opts to centralize its copy editing process elsewhere. 

Lou Grieco, president of the Dayton Newspaper Guild and a DDN reporter for the past 18 years, said Cox is still deciding in which city it will consolidate the copy editing function for four markets — Dayton, Atlanta, Austin and Palm Beach, Fla. It is his understanding Dayton and Palm Beach are the most likely sites for the consolidation. 

However, Cox already has consolidated most of its information technology and human resources services to Atlanta, where it operates the Atlanta Journal-Constitution    . 

Calls to Dayton Daily News’ management seeking comment were not immediately returned. 

Grieco said management has said the consolidation announcement most likely will happen by the end of September or beginning of October. The actual consolidation is expected to be completed by the end of 2012. 

“It’s a very tense time,” Grieco said. 

Even if Dayton is chosen as the winner of the chain’s copy editing consolidation, Cox intends to lay off the impacted employees and rehire them under a different division. 

Cox already has consolidated copy editing twice at the local level, centralizing all copy editing for its regional daily and weekly papers, including the Springfield News-Sun and the Middletown Journal    , at its site at 1611 S. Main St. 

The potential layoffs would only compound the job loss situation at the DDN, which on Aug. 26 announced plans to eliminate up to eight editorial positions, a move resulting in the resignation of the paper’s Pulitzer-winning photojournalist, Larry Price. 

The guild, which represents 113 copy editors, reporters, photographers, editorial assistants and online staff, has not had a new contract since September 1986. Instead, employees have worked under “work rules” since 2008. 

Cox’s plan to centralize copy editing is not new to the ever-shrinking journalism world. Last July, Gannett Co.    Inc. announced its plans to create five News Design Centers within two years at which designing and paginating would be completed for the entire chain. Gannett is the parent of the Cincinnati Enquirer. 

Read it with links at the Dayton Business Journal


 
site search by freefind

Submit
YOUR news ─ CLICK
click here to sign up for daily news updates
senior scribes

County News Online

is a Fundraiser for the Senior Scribes Scholarship Committee. All net profits go into a fund for Darke County Senior Scholarships
contact
Copyright © 2011 and design by cigs.kometweb.com