'Orlando Sentinel' to Cut 24 Positions, Some Through Buyouts

Posted
By: Joe Strupp The Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel is planning to cut about 24 positions, some through a buyout offer, according to a staff memo sent today from Editor Charlotte Hall. The memo, first posted on the Poynter.org Romenesko site, said the cuts were part of a reorganization aimed at "increasing Web audience rapidly and maintaining newspaper readership."

"The new structure is a major step in transforming our newsroom for the digital and print worlds. It will alter the way we do our work and enable us to move more rapidly," Hall wrote, in part. "It will not change our commitment to excellent journalism or our mission to serve readers with the most relevant and credible news and information in Central Florida."

Hall wrote that the cuts would occur within the next month to six weeks. She stated that the reorganization would change the current Metro, Features, Business and National departments into "five newsgathering teams: the Public Service Team, the Breaking News Team, the Communities Team, the How We Live Team and the Business and Consumer Team."

The memo stated that the reorganization would mean fewer editing positions, and that all editors in those affected areas would have to apply for new jobs. Hall offered no specifics on who would be eligible for a buyout or what criteria would be involved.

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here