A moment of silence for Valley journalism
· December 3, 2008 · Print This Article
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RELATED POST: Today’s news: An argument for nonprofit journalism?
As the Internet continues to crush corporate-owned newspapers that don’t know how to make money off of it, more and more of the Valley’s best journalists are being forced out the door.
Chaos is happening in most industries right now, but not this kind of chaos. The public should care because newspapers are part of the public trust – the “fourth estate,” as they say – not just some widget-maker that’s downsizing. These are the folks keeping tabs on the key decision-makers and events that influence our everyday lives. It’s important work.
Today, we should all hang our heads for a moment and reflect on the brain trust that’s quickly evaporating before our very eyes. I’ve just learned that The Arizona Republic, which is owned by Gannett and has been shedding employees at various levels for almost two years, just laid off at least 25 key staffers today. And yes, I have names – but more than that, I have stories to tell about some of these special folks.
Here’s the rundown of layoffs, according to a good source:
- Copy editors: Dennis Godfrey, Sharon Yep, Jason Owsley, Jack Legg
- Designers: Craig Kurtz
- Photographers: Elizabeth Thompkins, Randy Reid, Russell Gates, Sherrie Buzby, Mark Lipczynski
- Editors: Kristina Justin, Joe Garcia, Jim Fickess, Jim Gold, Dan Shearer, Jeff Dozbaba, Karen Outland
- Sports: Jason Skoda
- Online: Laurie Merrill (and possibly AZcentral’s original creator longtime AZcentral editor John Leach)
- Reporters: Bob Golfen, John Davis, plus 4 features writers
Collectively, it’s a breathtaking sweep through the newsroom in several respects. I can only give you details about the people I really knew.
In my experience at the Republic (’00-04), I found Elizabeth Thompkins, Russell Gates and Sherrie Buzby to be some of the most hard-working photographers on the staff. Russell, in particular, shoveled assignments like crazy – from spot news to pictures of goats.
On the editor side, Jim Fickess and Dan Shearer were two of the most efficient, thoughtful and well-liked editors at the paper. Their East Valley experience is huge in Mesa and Gilbert, and their dismissal seems short-sighted considering those two areas are about the only places where the new-and-not-so-improved East Valley Tribune competes with the Republic. [You can read about the Trib's woes here.] Jeff Dozbaba was a helluva nice guy as metro editor and known as a “company man,” but I think he was mentally unprepared to handle the demands of a rapidly changing news corporation, news industry and office politics.
As a cub reporter, I worked weekends covering cops under Laurie Merrill. I didn’t know much about John Davis, but Bob (Buddy) Golfen was one of the most well-liked guys in the newsroom. He wrote about cars as the paper’s auto critic. He volunteered to leave. But giving him the option to do so in an era that will be defined by energy and fuel-efficiency standards seems pretty counter-intuitive, doesn’t it?
Or how about this tidbit from one of the Republic casualties: Joe Garcia, who is among the Republic layoffs, was just elected president of Associated Press Managing Editors (APME), a national journalism group. Here is the post where Gannett, the company who just laid him off, spouts about this awesome achievement.
Like I said, a breathtaking sweep, especially when you consider previous cuts at the Republic.
For readers, this will mean less stories in the paper and a decline in quality overall. Think of it like this:
- Less writers + Less editors + More interns = Flimsier Republic
For PR/Communications folks, this will mean less opportunities to get your message (or your client’s message) out to the masses IN PRINT. The new Arizona Republic, like most newspapers, is gradually tilting toward a bigger presence online. Staff are increasingly being asked to crank stuff out for AZcentral. Target your pitches here. But then again, wouldn’t an add and campaign on Facebook accomplish the same thing?
Clearly, the one thing no one is talking about yet is the Republic’s relevance or credibility. How will these layoffs affect that? Will the new editors have the institutional knowledge to give stories more context – the main ingredient that distinguishes newspapers from bloggers and talking heads? Will they remember past Republic stories about key topics, such as this example, when they are writing about the same issue in the future?
This may sound like a shameless plug, but I really mean it: At least there’s room for meaningful journalism on The Zonie Report and in PHOENIX Magazine.
I guess you know how I feel. How about you?
Another round of layoffs at the Republic….
And New Times has several of the names.While ExLg has often lamented the state of print journalism, it is sad for anyone to lose their job, especially right before the holidays. (Believe me, I’ve been there.) But since I know some of these folks socia…
[...] you’d all enjoy Adam Klawonn’s post on the Republic layoffs today. As a former Republic staffer and current editor of one of the few independent news outlets in the [...]
Sad, sad, sad.
Check your spelling. You’ve misspelled at least two names.
The Republic lost credibility a long time ago. Any credibility they had left was mostly self-generated.
When you lay off a guy like Dan Shearer, who not only has solid news sense but is also one of the few people at the Republic who was equally respected by editors and reporters, then you really can’t generate your own credibility anymore.
The Republic and other large daily metros will continue churning out copy, but that is all it will be. Copy.
None of this should be a surprise. The writing was on the wall at the turn of the century when newspapers were allowed to conglomerate until only a few companies were running every paper in the country.
But just because the newspaper is dead doesn’t mean journalism is dead.
Thanks to the Internet, journalists will always find a way to get the truth out. Just like you just did, Adam, with this site.
I searched the “traditional” news mediums to get info about the layoffs, but to get actual names of people who were laid off, I ended up here.
@ Anonymous: Thank you for the comment. One name is misspelled. According to the Republic’s online staff directory, Mark Lipinski should actually read “Mark Lipczynski.”
I made that change in the post above. Thanks for the heads up.
- Adam
Adam, I remember those days when you were a cub reporter and we worked on stories together. I remember being able to pitch a story of merit and have confidence that a) it would be covered and b) it would be written well. Those days are gone, yet delivering great stories to the public with pr and journalism as the conduit faces an uncertain future. In an age when we are all fed up with hype, it is exactly there where we are being directed to find our news. Where hyperbole is becoming hyper-bowling. And the pins are the public.
Ummmmm you might want to check your facts about Leach, he didn’t start in Azcentral until after it had taken off… about the time Gannett took over and he switched over to that department. It was Chris Lavelle who helped start AZCentral.
I totally agree with you about the photogs, true professionals and they deserved better. Dan too.
@ Jim: Thanks for the input, Jim. I think most of us current and former Republic folks pretty much saw John as Mr. AZcentral. He’s been one of the big web guys there for the past decade — since 1998, I’ve found out.
However, you are correct. I have made that change above so everyone sees it. Thanks much.
- Adam
some of the listed took voluntary buyouts, like golfen and lipczynzki, who are really not a big loss to the overall makeup of the paper. the true losses are joe garcia, jim gold, john leach, jeff dozbaba, dan shearer and jim fickess, these men shaped and captained their respective areas through some uneven waters. So to those who did not see this coming we salute you, youre talents will be missed.
Some paper is going to be very fortunate to get Dan Shearer. Wish it could be mine.
Sad situation, very sad. Adam’s thoughts are on target: without a respected newspaper, how will the public learn about misdeeds in government, changes in local tax rates, new legislation and myriad other issues that could impact their lives and pocketbooks?
And without institutional knowledge among its reporters and editors, how will the new reporters know which questions are fluff, and which questions are the truly important ones?
You know… I am not going to argue that Web is the way to go for future communication, but there are still very strong public ties to traditional media, too. Personally, I am a fan of azcentral.com (23-year-old in the house), but that does not change the fact that my parents still sit at the kitchen table each morning with The Arizona Republic in hand. News flash – they are only in their late 40s. They have many years to live and will most likely want to get their news from the same traditional source they’ve grown to love and trust (that is, if Gannett keeps it alive), as will I on the Web. So, although I truly believe that the online shift is a worthwhile move for The Republic, I think that the time has not come for the paper to become obsolete. It would be such a disservice to the community.
As a PR professional (and someone who comes from the same educational foundation and background as those who lost their jobs at The Republic), I am extremely sad about the unfortunate news. Those journalists not only lost their jobs – they lost the ability to do what they love to do each and every day. I cannot imagine being in the same boat. My thoughts and prayers go out to them during this trying time.
Thanks for the promise of “meaningful journalism” on TZR and in PHOENIX. Good to know there are still publications around for me to do what I love to do.
-Becky
Working under Jim Fickess on The Gilbert Republic was one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. He valued great storytelling and each day, we produced a product that we were proud of. He was such a wonderful supporter of young journalists. I wish him all the best.
Jim Fickess was my editor at the Arizona Business Gazette before he moved out to the zones. He’s one of the most down-to-earth and likable guys you’ll ever meet. Great sense of humor and a solid news sense, too. I learned a lot from him and enjoyed his management style in the newsroom. Big loss for the Republic…
Same opinion of Dan Shearer and Dennis Godfrey - tremendous amount of talent walked out of the newsroom this week.
Would love to have a speaker from the newspaper world or your blog talk with Social Media Club Phoenix about what’s unique about print papers. Members are mostly young people who don’t read newspapers and really don’t care. We meet the second Thursday of every month at 6:30 PM at Jobing.com. We should talk about this as a community.
I’m older than most of you, but I made the shift off paper newspapers when the NYT and WSJ first went online. Why fight it? Responsible journalism can and does happen digitally, and it wastes fewer trees.
Thanks for posting a list of those who were laid off. I’d been searching the Internet for a list of names. However, I can’t help but notice that the features writers are lumped together simply as “plus four features writers.” Everyone else is mourned by name. Are the writing efforts of features journalists somehow less deserving?
@Claudia: Absolutely not. Features bring out the color and depth to any community that any newspaper covers. I mentioned them because they deserved to be mentioned with everyone else – I just didn’t have their names from my source.
If you hear something different or get the names of these folks, please let me know. I’ll publish them immediately.
I had the great fortune of interning under Dan Shearer last year, and I have to say he was every intern’s dream editor - the one with “a heart of gold,” who helped aspiring young journalists believe in themselves and their potential.
Dan WAS the Mesa Republic, a strong and sure leader, highly respected in the newsroom and in the community. He knows the East Valley, and especially Mesa, better than anyone, and no one has a greater passion for community journalism than he does. What a disheartening loss for the East Valley and for Republic readers.
The EVTrib should do whatever it takes to get him on staff.