Carl DavazMar 10, 2023
Aron Pilhofer 🍩

Holy cow. I knew Gannett was being driven into the ground by its debt and lousy owners, but @jbenton really brings the breadth and depth (mostly depth) of Gannett's plummet into sharp focus here.

This just took my breath away:

"In Q3 2018, USA Today reported a total daily circulation of 2,632,392. In its most recent filing, Q3 2022, that was down to 180,381."

https://www.niemanlab.org/2023/03/the-scale-of-local-news-destruction-in-gannetts-markets-is-astonishing/

The scale of local news destruction in Gannett’s markets is astonishing

It might not be as mustache-twirling a villain as Alden Global Capital, but its enormous scale has meant enormous losses for local journalism.

Nieman Lab
Mar 9, 2023 at 10:36pmWeb
Show threadnausicaaMar 9, 2023

@pilhofer @jbenton

It's being driven into the ground intentionally. Gannett, Lee, GateHouse, etc., exist to enrich shareholders each quarter through layoffs, increased subscription fees, and selling off assets. It's all strip mining for short term gains. If destroying local news isn't main the goal, its something they know they are doing. These companies aren't meant to last. They are meant to crash and take most of what remains of local news with them.

Show threadAron Pilhofer 🍩Mar 9, 2023
@wtee @jbenton Right on. With you 100 percent.
Show threadSasha FoxMar 10, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton It's a damn shame, because they own papers with incredible journalists working there.
Show threadKevinMar 10, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton Wow. I didn't expect the subscriber base for my local paper (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) to be ~75k when the metro area is over a million people. I shudder to think where they're getting their news from (note: I don't subscribe either, due to the decline in quality).
Show threadacmMar 10, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton Have to say I don't think of USA Today as "local," but still, wow!
Show threadAron Pilhofer 🍩Mar 10, 2023
@acm_redfox @jbenton Neither do I, or Josh. It was there just to highlight the trajectory of decline since the merger. The rest of the piece focuses on local if you have a look at it. (Spoiler: it doesn’t get any better at the local level.)
Show threadJeremy LoscheiderMar 10, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton let's talk about this a minute because I feel like I'm missing a ton of context just because I don't swim in these waters. The world has changed a lot in the last five years, how much of this is rotten management (I'm sure quite a good amount), how much the preference for a more polemic press and online news outlets, and how much just that measurement of circulation has to evolve? Totally honest questions.
Show threadAron Pilhofer 🍩Mar 10, 2023
@quietextrovert @jbenton Great questions, and hard to say for certain. But the stunning difference in performance between Gannett and its peers is pretty damning and has me leaning toward 1 and 3. Especially in local news (rather than cable tv).
Show threadTim HareMar 10, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton
As a Gannett subscriber in Florida, I feel, daily, the problems caused by these declines. Some other issues not mentioned:
- copy editing supposedly was "centralized" but we're not sure it exists, egregious errors appear just about daily
- printing for us (Tallahassee) was moved out of town, so
- deadlines are earlier which means Saturday news on Monday. Digital is only a tiny bit better. Imagine how college football fans feel
Show threadmkbMar 10, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton @shauna I don’t doubt the owners are lousy but the entire newspaper business has been in decline for many years, no?
Show threadAron Pilhofer 🍩Mar 11, 2023
@mkb @jbenton @shauna Yes. But this isn’t decline. It’s free fall.
Show threadmkbMar 11, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton @shauna D’oh. Fair enough. :(
Show threadJeff JarvisMar 12, 2023
@pilhofer @jbenton
Collapse in the market for hotel doormats and cheery news.