NY Daily News To Cut Half Its Editorial Staff In Huge Layoffs

NEW YORK, NY — The New York Daily News is set to lose about half its editorial staff to massive layoffs announced Monday by the storied tabloid's parent company. Tronc, the corporate media giant that took over the News in September, made the cuts in a "restructuring" of the newsroom that aims to address the paper's "significant financial challenges," according to a memo sent to the paper's staff.

"We are reducing today the size of our editorial team by approximately 50 percent and re-focusing much of our talent on breaking news — especially in areas of crime, civil justice and public responsibility," reads the memo, which a tronc spokeswoman provided to Patch.

"We will, of course, continue to cover local news, sports and other events, but our approach will evolve as we adapt to our current environment," the memo adds.

Among the departing staffers are managing editor Kristen Lee and editor-in-chief Jim Rich, who posted an ominous tweet early Monday morning hinting at the cuts.

"If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you," wrote Rich, whose Twitter bio currently reads, "Just a guy sitting at home watching journalism being choked into extinction."

Robert York, the editor and publisher of the tronc-owned Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania, will replace Rich as the News' top editor effective July 30, the memo says.

Among those also out are director of content Daniel Johnson-Kim; Manhattan Supreme Court reporter Victoria Bekiempis; politics editor Dareh Gregorian; breaking news editor Zach Haberman; staff reporter Andy Mai; theater writer Joe Dziemianowicz; New York City Hall reporter Erin Durkin; sports writers Daniel Popper, John Harper and Peter Botte; photographers Todd Maisel and Laura Thompson; several social media staffers; and the entire interactives team.

Everyone axed will leave the paper immediately but will continue to get paid for the next 90 days, according to the memo. All but a few affected staffers will be told they're leaving by the end of the day, the memo says.

The bloodletting comes about 10 months after tronc bought the News from its longtime owner, Mort Zuckerman, for just $1.

Grant Whitmore, tronc's executive vice president and general manager, told the News' staff to wait for the unsigned memo via email after a brief Monday morning meeting, CNN reported.

"Mood has obviously not been good," an editor told CNN. "Everyone on edge."

The nearly-century-old daily has faced its share of financial struggles — it lost more than $90 million in a three-year period and saw revenue drop 14.2 percent in 2016, the New York Post reported last year.

The layoffs are the most recent changes at the News. Tronc put up a paywall on its website in February, and two top editors left earlier this year amid accusations of sexual harassment.

Journalists lamented the gutting of a New York City institution that's won 11 Pulitzer Prizes in its history, including last year's Public Service award.

"The Daily News led the charge to get 9/11 first responders health benefits. Exposed widespread abuse of eviction rules, punishing poor people. Revealed deception and dysfunction in public housing that put kids in danger of lead poisoning. Showed the world the Eric Garner video," News opinion editor Josh Greenman wrote on Twitter.

"The small stuff is as important as the stuff that wins Pulitzers, because it's in the background every day making us a little smarter about our government and what it's doing with our money and on our behalf," Greenman added.

Even two political rivals, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio, agreed that the layoffs were damnable.

Cuomo offered to work with tronc "to avert this disaster" and urged the company to reconsider the cuts. De Blasio, who has not hidden his displeasure with the News over negative stories, said tronc should "sell the paper to someone committed to local journalism and keeping reporters on the beat."

"It’s no secret that I’ve disagreed with the Daily News from time to time. But Tronc’s greedy decision to gut the newsroom is bad for government and a disaster for NYC," de Blasio said on Twitter.

(Lead image: The New York Daily News headquarters stands in Lower Manhattan in September. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)