Aug 6, 2008 4:18 am US/Eastern
Firings Continue At Florida Newspapers
Sarasota Herald Tribune Latest To See Cutbacks
SARASOTA (CBS4) ―
The Sarasota Herald Tribune, owned by the New York Times company, became the latest Florida newspaper to see staff cuts Tuesday when the newspaper announced it giving pink slips to 33 workers.
Half of the cuts came in the newsroom, while half were in business portions of the newspaper like sales and production, according to spokesperson Diane McFarlin.
Newspaper executives were not immediately able to provide a number on the paper's total employees.
There were no other announcements of firings or layoffs at other Times-owned newspapers. Florida has seen some major firings this summer, including over 100 jobs at the Miami Herald and dozens of job at the company that owns the Tampa Tribune, WFLA TV and their do-owned website.
Analysts blame the drop in advertising due to the poor economy, with a special emphasis on the lousy real-estate market in Florida.
The Herald-Tribune had average daily circulation of 114,904 in the six months ended March 31, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, a drop of almost 3% from the year before.
Two weeks ago, New York Times Co. reported an 11 percent drop in second-quarter advertising revenue as shifting reader habits and ad spending combined with the worsening economy. Scores of papers around the country have been reducing staff to lower costs this year.
There was no immediate comment from The Times Company.
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