Not very encouraging

Los Angeles Times to eliminate 150 newsroom jobs

The Los Angeles Times announced that it would eliminate 150 newsroom jobs - more than one-sixth of the staff - and publish 15 percent fewer pages, in the deepest of a series of cuts at Tribune Co. newspapers as the company tries to stay afloat.
In all, the Los Angeles Times Media Group, which includes the paper and some smaller businesses, is cutting 250 jobs, which includes nonnewsroom jobs that have already been eliminated, David Hiller, the publisher, said Wednesday. Russ Stanton, the editor, said that the cuts would be carried out over the next two months.
The reduction goes far beyond what executives were predicting just a few months ago; in February, Hiller said he expected to decrease the news staff by 40 to 50 positions. When Samuel Zell took control of Tribune in December, he said he did not plan newsroom cuts.
But Tribune's newspaper ad revenue was down 15 percent in the first quarter, and the company warned last month that significant cuts were coming.
In an era of shrinking newsrooms, The Los Angeles Times has been especially hard hit. It had about 1,300 people 10 years ago; after the new cuts, it will have around 720. Previous rounds of cuts involved voluntary buyouts, but this time executives say they expect layoffs.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/07/03/business/latimes.php