LOS ANGELES—In an emotional announcement, the editor-in-chief of the Daily News of Los Angeles told workers that 22 newsroom jobs would be eliminated by Friday, reducing the editorial staff count to 100, a union official said Thursday.
The cuts disclosed Wednesday by Ron Kaye marked the third and largest staff reduction at the paper since November 2006, said reporter Brent Hopkins, a steward for the Communications Workers of America Local 9400.
Kaye broke down as he delivered the news, Hopkins said.
“After the meeting, everyone went back, did their jobs, put out the paper, but morale is very shaken,” Hopkins said. “It’s hard to do your job when you’re wondering if it’s going to be there tomorrow.”
Telephone messages left for Kaye, Daily News publisher Douglas Hanes, and ap, which owns the Daily News, were not immediately returned.
A few staff members volunteered at the meeting to leave their posts. Those who will be let go will be informed Friday, their last day, Hopkins said.
Staff members were offered two to six weeks of severance pay, depending on their years of service, and three months of health care coverage, he added.
Denver-based MediaNews is a privately owned chain that operates 57 daily newspapers including The Denver Post, The Salt Lake Tribune and others with weekday circulation of 2.6 million.
Earlier this month, MediaNews reported net income rose 34 percent in the fourth quarter to $17.4 million, but revenue dropped 7 percent to $345.2 million, as advertising revenue fell 14 percent from the prior year, including a 30 percent drop in classified ads.
Dean Singleton, the company’s vice chairman and chief executive, is chairman of The Associated Press, a not-for-profit cooperative owned by its member news organizations.
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