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The Oregonian is conducting a new round of buyouts and layoffs that could reduce the newsroom staff by as much as 20 percent.
Multiple sources tell WW that Oregonian editor Mark Katches told staff this morning that the newspaper is seeking 25 volunteers from the newsroom to take buyouts.
If the paper does not find 25 staffers who want to be bought out, sources tell WW, management will conduct layoffs to reach that number.
The buyout offer marks the latest upheaval at the state's largest media organization, which has undergone a dramatic shift to the Web over the past two years at the orders of its New York-based owner, Advance Publications.
In 2013, The Oregonian reduced home delivery of its print edition to Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Its management pledged a new "digital-first" model designed to drive readers to its website, OregonLive.com.
The O also laid off almost 100 employees, including as many as 49 reporters, editors, designers and photographers—nearly a quarter of the remaining news staff.
The paper then replaced many of those staffers with new, less-expensive hires. It also moved out of and sold its longtime headquarters on Southwest Broadway.
Last year, WW reported that the remaining Oregonian staff faced steep new quotas for feeding the paper's website. Documents from Advance Publications showed 75 percent of reporters' job performance would be measured by Web-based benchmarks, including how often they post to OregonLive.com. The most productive reporters at meeting their goals would have a chance at earning merit pay.
Some in the Oregonian newsroom had hoped the hiring of Katches, an experienced investigative reporter and editor, signaled a shift in strategy by Advance and the heirs of newspaper magnate S.I. Newhouse.
These buyouts, coming immediately before the holidays, suggest the Newhouses are not compromising. (Oregon Public Broadcasting's John Sepulvado tweeted word of buyouts late this morning.)
Katches and Oregonian Media Group president Steve Moss have not responded to WW's requests for comment.
Willamette Week
