N&O hits yet another round of cutbacks, voluntary severences

The Indy's been the bearer of bad N&O news a couple of times in the past couple of days -- first, noting the acceptance of a voluntary buy-out by investigative legend Pat Stith, followed closely today by the announcement today that ex-City Hall beat writer Matt Dees and current N&O Durham education reporter Samiha Khanna joined him, among 16 N&O'ers who've taken the plunge out of the newsroom while print journalism takes the plunge into red ink.

It represents another 10% of the newsroom, following closely on similar-sized reductions -- and bringing the N&O's Durham staff to a mere four people.

(Joke for the new print journalism era: if you take 90% of a number, then 90% of that number, then iterate that process five more times, what do you have? A newsroom! Har, har. If only it were funny.)

We've played this tune here before, but the song's the same: the continued struggles of print journalism are just plain bad news for civic accountability.

Look no further than the N&O's Sunday excoriation of a N.C. Board of Transportation member from down east for the surprising appearance of major highway investments right alongside multi-million dollar property interests he holds to see an example of why we need strong local journalism.

I used to say "strong local newspapers," but I'm not convinced the overhead of papers are sustainable. Strong local journalism, though, is something a healthy community can't do without. And that's a moniker that has to go beyond the able, sometimes innovative, but usually topic-skimming treatment that is all broadcast journalism can afford in 60-second segments.

Perhaps the N&O can turn their energy to online -- though, whoops, McClatchy just cut 11% of their interactive division, which brought up just about the first online newspaper anywhere back in, what, 1994-95?

Newspapers have been the lifeblood of civic discourse in American communities since the nation's founding. Figuring out how papers can survive -- or who picks up their mantle of local and analytical coverage -- is the elephant in the corner of the newsroom today.

And there's a lot riding on the answer.

Comments

[KeepDurhamDifferent!]

Very sorry to see Samiha go. She caught a lot of flak from the liestoppers crowd, but I always enjoyed her journalism (not to mention her legendary pool party last summer).

[Derek]

With Dees & Khanna gone, I'm tempted once again to think about cutting my N&O subscription. But there's no way I'm paying real money for the H-S and I don't like the idea of not getting any local paper. Dammit.

[Tar Heelz]

A subscription to BCR and the Wall Street Journal will cover you, Derek.

[Kristy Martino]

Has anyone seen The Wire, season five? A constant refrain of "Do more with less." I just hope the newspaper has a little fight left in it. Otherwise, the whole country turns into the mindless brain vomit void set of "The Hills."