Rising Job Losses in News Outlets Exacerbate Growing News Deserts
News outlets slash record number of jobs in 2021, creating alarming news deserts Challenger, Gray & Christmas reports 2,700 job cuts, the highest since the pandemic year of 2020
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News organizations are facing a challenging holiday season.
Recently, several major media companies including Condé Nast, The Washington Post, Yahoo News, and Vox Media have downsized their staff. Popular Science has also stopped printing their magazine, and publications like BusinessWeek and The Nation have reduced their production to monthly editions. This has led to a significant number of job losses in the industry, with news outlets cutting nearly 2,700 jobs this year, the highest number since the pandemic-hit year of 2020.
Despite the strength of the U.S. economy, publishers are facing difficult times with significant declines in social media traffic, a tough advertising market, and changing audience behaviors. These challenges are especially unwelcome given the current threats to U.S. democracy. As anti-democratic candidates seek power in elections, newsrooms are struggling to maintain their reach and staffing, with some even closing down completely.
The lack of accountability means that dishonest figures seeking higher office will face less scrutiny, leaving the electorate less informed. A recent example is the now-expelled member of Congress, George Santos, which raises concerns about the future where candidates are not thoroughly vetted by the press before being elected.
Margaret Sullivan, a columnist at The Guardian who previously covered media for The WaPo and The NYT, expressed concern about the significant impact of deeper cuts into the news business. According to Sullivan, the loss of these jobs is not only "heartbreaking," but also does broader "damage to society."
Sullivan explained to me that the increase in news deserts across the nation is directly linked to the loss of journalists, especially in areas where misinformation is widespread. He emphasized that for democracy to thrive, it is crucial to have a well-informed electorate, which unfortunately is declining in many regions.
