Under New Ownership, San Diego Union-Tribune Lays Off Another 200

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.reuters.com/article/paiddealsAtoms/idUS72053561520090813

Wed Aug 12, 2009 10:45pm EDT

By Joseph Tartakoff

The San Diego Union-Tribune has laid off about 200 of its employees, a source tells us. The mass layoffs come four months after private equity firm Platinum Equity—which is also reportedly trying to buy the Boston Globe—purchased the paper. Under Platinum Equity’s ownership, the paper had already laid off 192 employees in May, meaning it will have now eliminated a staggering 40 percent of the Union-Tribune‘s staff since it took over. The paper will now have about 650 employees.

Union-Tribune management is confirming that there were in fact new job cuts but is not saying how many. The company is also announcing a new advertising initiative aimed at small businesses and additional hyper-local coverage plans. In an article on the Union-Tribune’s website, Publisher Ed Moss says “These initiatives, taken as a whole, strike a balance between our short-term economic reality and our long-term aspirations for growth and reinvention of our product.”

There had been speculation that more big cuts were coming. Platinum Equity specializes in turning around distressed companies and it hired David Black of Black Press as an advisor in San Diego. Black Press itself cut nearly a third of the staff at the Akron Beacon-Journal since purchasing that paper three years ago. Taking over the Union-Tribune‘s real estate was also thought to be one of the main drivers of Platinum Equity’s interest.

Related

* PE Firm Platinum Equity To Buy San Diego Union-Tribune
* Guest Contributor: What Platinum Equity Has In Store For The San Diego Union-Tribune
* Report: San Diego Union-Tribune Owner Platinum Bids $35 Million For Boston Globe