Spartacus over and out

Pageviews are down to a trickle. Jobs that people are sending in are found on obvious job boards like journalismjobs.com so nobody need to look for them here. Thank you all for your help and attention. I'm sorry it was necessary.

One last reminder about Saturday SPJ event

SPJ-Fort Worth is hosting a Life After Layoff workshop from 9:30-1 this Saturday, Oct. 1, in downtown Dallas. We'll have experts on hand to give you financial advice, job-search tips and ways you can use your skills for many other opportunities. Please register here: http://spjlifeafterlayoffs.eventbrite.com. All are welcome.

Jobs continue to trickle in

Here is one:

The Department of Communication in the College of Arts & Letters at The University of Tampa is seeking candidates for a full-time tenure track position in Broadcast/Convergence Media to teach courses in the Communication and Journalism major(s) at the Assistant Professor level beginning Fall 2012.

The ideal candidate will combine experience in professional studio television, including multi-camera and multi-platform work, with scholarship and production skills in broadcast journalism or entertainment television. Candidates are encouraged to discuss how
their scholarship and production experience relates to media studies courses within an interdisciplinary program rooted in the liberal arts.

Qualifications: Candidates with a Ph.D., experience in studio television production and a strong commitment to liberal arts teaching are invited to apply.  Degree candidates may be considered provided they have degree in hand by August 15, 2012.

For those of us who remain unRIFed

A blogfriend has just sent me the link to a poem that describes the way some of us are feeling. Called "The Yarn of the Nancy Bell," by Sir William Schwenck Gilbert. He is the Gilbert of Gilbert and Sullivan. One verse reads:

"Oh, I am a cook and a captain bold,
And the mate of the Nancy brig,
And a bo'sun tight, and a midshipmite,
And the crew of the captain's gig!"

The poem involves cheerful cannibalism. Gallows humor is still humor. Read the whole thing here.

Here are some jobs

I've moved this post up to the top because the list of jobs in the comments continues to grow. New ones today. 

From a DMN alumna: 

Emily Ramshaw Hartstein wrote:

Feel free to post:

My mom, Mary Leonard, is the AME at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
They're hiring a state capitol reporter in Harrisburg, a breaking
news/local news editor and a sports reporter, and they have permission
to hire veterans (at veteran salaries) for all three of those jobs.
Email her at mleonard@post-gazette.com, or me at eramshaw@gmail.com.

So heartbroken for you guys.

Some others:

The Record (Bergen County, NJ) has the following openings in the newsroom.

Editorial Writer (Woodland Park) The Record’s Opinion Department has an opening for a full-time editorial writer. The candidate should have an ability to write clear, tight editorials with a definite point of view. Our editorial focus is North Jersey, and we comment most frequently about regional issues. Ideally, we are looking to add a moderate/conservative voice to our page. The candidate must be able to work in a collegial atmosphere, write quickly and pitch in where needed in the department. An editorial writer occasionally is asked to edit and proofread columns, letters to the editor and Sunday Opinion pieces. He or she also will participate in editorial boards with a variety of newsmakers, including candidates for public office.  Candidates should have at least three to five years newspaper experience, or equivalent. If interested, send a cover letter, resume and your five best writing samples to Alfred Doblin, Assistant Managing Editor/editorial page. 

Days/Hours: Varied work schedule

Contact:  Alfred Doblin, Dublin@northjersey.com

Reporter - (Woodland Park) - The Features Department, serving The Record and the Herald News, has an opening for a full-time, entry-level reporter. This reporter will produce engaging stories that explore a variety of topics, but generally concentrate on how North Jersey residents live, shop and entertain themselves. In general, the reporters must initiate, research, report, interview and write news features on their beat and generate trend stories. The skills and experience required for this position include: Ability to write stories, especially feature stories where tone and language are key components. The ability to write critically and in an engaging manner is essential.  Ability to identify stories that have the greatest potential to engage readers in North Jersey.  Ability to work with the Features’ department senior management in formulating strategies to capture readers and the ability to carry that strategy out.  The successful candidate must have at least two years of daily newspaper reporting experience, or equivalent. Hours may vary and may include working occasional weekends as part of a schedule rotation. 

Days/Hours: Varied work schedule

Contact:   Send a cover letter, resume, and your five best clips to Douglas Clancy, Clancy@northjersey.com

More jobs in the comments.

SPJ Fort Worth hosting a seminar to help the recently axed and anybody else

In my email this afternoon:

Life after the Layoff

Join the SPJ Fort Worth professional chapter for a special downtown  Dallas seminar from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1. Experts will offer advice on finances, job-search strategies, retooling job skills, and other practical considerations. The seminar, free of charge, will be held at the Universities Center at Dallas, 1901 Main St.

 A parking garage is adjacent at Main and Harwood streets, across from the old Municipal Building (once known as the cop shop). Also, parking meters are located around the building. The website for the center is: http://www.ucddowntown.org/.    For more info or to reserve your spot, email Tracy Everbach at teverbach@yahoo.com or call 214-995-8464.

We're here to help.

Good people.  They've done this after several of the rounds of cuts at the DMN. You can register at
 http://spjlifeafterlayoffs.eventbrite.com/

Anybody need to say anything else here?

Looks like this round is pretty much done. I'll continue to check for comments and emails but not with the same frequency. If the bosses are right, we have about 16 months until the next round unless there is a miraculous turnaround in the economy and the fate of the daily newspaper. Hope springs eternal.

Spartacus out.

{Well, maybe not quite yet. Comment here says two more were axed today. Departments? Some additional positions suggested in the jobs thread this morning, also. I will stay attentive as long as there is traffic}

Support group for the RIFed

In the morning's email:

To TDMN's 2011 alumni:

After the 2009 layoff, a group of survivors formed a support group of sorts. We met monthly to talk about freelancing work, unemployment issues, health care options, etc. But mainly we gave each other encouragement and the willing ear of someone who really knows how you feel.

Our yahoo group is still open. We use the mailing list primarily to share job leads. And thanks to the diligence of Mary Gladstone, some still meet in person every other month. 

Most of you are likely still in shock and will be for some time. But when you're ready to ask questions about unemployment, freelancing, job leads, health insurance and more, please consider this group as a willing and sympathetic resource. Most of us have walked in your shoes; we want to help.

Please email me if you'd like an invitation to the yahoo group, information about the next possible meeting or just the contact information for someone who's been where you are. All former TDMN employees are welcome.

Best of luck to you all,

Beth Langton

TDMN Class of 2009

bethlangton (at) yahoo.com

What Mong and Rodrigue said today

I have been emailed a summary of what was said at the Local News meeting:

This is a summary of the official line: Last year sucked less that the previous couple of years. Bonuses for everybody! But starting in January, the level of suckitude increased dramatically. May was especially sucky and the summer continued in that fashion. Eventually Corporate instructed the DMN to cut a certain number of dollars, including a specific amount from the newsroom.

Based on the operation experience of the Toronto Star, we decided to merge the Sports production with the News production departments. What was the smallest number we could get away with of copy editors? The rest got chopped. (Most of those copy editors we lost were from Sports.) This means most stories will get far less attention from copy editors than in the past. (Which certainly means more typos and errors in the paper. None of us are perfect.)

From Rodrigue: "The difference between a blog post and a story is going to get smaller."

Then to other parts of the newsroom. What was the smallest number of assignment editors we could get away with? And finally, how many reporters needed to get cut to hit the number? And that's how we got to the cuts.

There is no plan for a pay cut or furloughs.

Digital is back to being the flavor of the month. Breaking news desk moves under digital management and will get more bodies. The mobile app is about to get a much needed upgrade. Blogs are important again.

The Backfield desk will get more bodies and more responsibility.

Rodrigue talked about the challenge of keeping readers. If they believe they are asked to pay more to get less, they will leave angry and in droves. How we maintain the illusion (not his word, of course) that we are not doing exactly that will be the big challenge of the next several months.

Rodrigue did not dispute the body count of 38 on the blog. He was careful to add that he did not confirm it, either.

Anybody else who wants to either dispute this summary or add your own is welcome to comment.

For any who have forgotten the recent past

This was reported five months ago:

Providence Journal parent A.H. Belo awarded its top five executives nearly $1.6 million in cash bonuses last year, the company disclosed Monday in an SEC filing.
A.H. Belo CEO Robert Decherd’s total compensation more than tripled to $1.87 million in 2010, up from $499,180 in 2009, according to WPRI.com calculations based on the SEC filing.

Decherd’s 2010 pay package included a $480,000 salary; a $408,000 cash bonus; $949,998 worth of stock awards; and $29,872 in “other compensation.” The latter category included $8,760 for life insurance, $3,150 in tax gross-ups to make up for the cost of taxes on other benefits, and a $420 cell phone allowance.

Among the other four top executives, Dallas Morning News Publisher James Moroney earned $1.3 million in 2010, up from $478,090 in 2009; Morning News President and General Manager John McKeon earned $1.3 million in his first year on the job; Chief Financial Officer Alison Engel earned $800,001, up from $276,765; and Senior Vice President Daniel Blizzard earned $575,000, up from $211,228.

The largest cash bonus went to McKeon, who received $584,960, most of it as a retention bonus. Moroney got $327,250 in cash, Engel got $150,000 and Blizzard got $100,000. Dallas-based A.H. Belo owns the Projo, The Morning News and The Press-Enterprise of Riverside, Calif.

My favorite is Decherd's cellphone allowance. 

A place for the RIF-ed to have their say

Lee Hancock placed her farewell as a comment to another post. I will put it here and set this post up as a place for others to do likewise as comments should they want to.

To all at 508 Young--

It has been quite a 24-year ride (plus one month, two days & four hours -- though who's counting?). I am grateful for the fun it's mostly been. I hope for better, happier days for all who remain.

Off to the next adventure: trying my hand at freelancing & a low-residency MFA program at Bennington College.

Write well. Do good. Tell great stories.

Xoxo

Lee Hancock
C. 903.520.5452
Leefhancock@gmail.com 

Numbers and positions affected -- what may be the whole list

Apparently at least some of the RIFed were given a document intended to head off another age discrimination lawsuit.  Or maybe it's some kind of legally required handout to RIFed above a certain age. It is titled, and I am not shitting you, "Exhibit A."

It lists every newsroom position and the age of the person in that position, those fired and those not.  No names. Based on the document I count 38 people RIFed.  In some cases the departments are clear, others not, so I am not going to do that breakdown.


Copy Editor I -- 3
Copy Editor II --5
Copy Editor III -- 5
Deputy Assistant Editor -- 5
Assistant News Editor -- 1
Office manager  -- 1
Senior Editor -- 1
Design Editor -- 1
Photo Tech -- 1
Presentation Editor-- 1
Content Coordinator -- 2
Layout Editor -- 1

Bureau Chief -- 1

Special Writer -- 1
Reporter I -- 4
Reporter III -- 1
Reporter III-Business -- 1
Critic -- 1
Photographer III -- 2

The list does not, far as I can tell, include any jobs at the AME level or above.

Read the whole thing, including the Orwellian intro, here:    http://www.scribd.com/doc/64100162/List

To those of you who are leaving: You are welcome to post comments here

If you want to use this blog as a place to say a public good-bye, leave contact information and/or let potential employers know you are available, post here. I recall from the last round that at least one person said they had made contact with a potential next job this way.

It's on, apparently

Tell us what you know in whatever detail you can. No names unless it is your own.

Comments on prior post report one cut each in editorials and sports.

Commenter says one Metro reporter.

Several others listed in the comments here. 

No more rumors

With no way to know if they are real or trolls, I have had enough. I believe that posting rumors is causing more harm than good.  I will continue to post possible jobs in the area if anybody wants to share them. I will continue to allow discussions in the comments that meet my guidelines.

If Tuesday is Cut Day, or if or whenever it happens,  I will post whatever I am sent about numbers and departments. Do not assume that I have some backdoor pipeline to management. I do not. The only reason this blog served us well the last time was that many people shared real information they had.  By the end of that first day, we had collectively assembled the list you see to the right, needing only minor adjustments. Do post comments or send me emails. 

I will also post any messages from those who have lost jobs that they want to share with us. The farewells from last time are archived on a link to the right.

If the layoffs do happen and are anything as large as some of the chatter, there is a special place in Hell for whoever in HR or the legal department or whatever other layer of the corporation decided this was a good way to do this, shared by whichever of the top bosses agreed and issued the orders to stay silent.  We in the newsroom are journalists, from the copy editors to the researchers to the photo editors to the line editors to the photographers to the reporters to anybody I have left out. Journalists have a need to know set deep in our DNA. All of the previous layoffs, the bosses gave us enough advance notice to let us plan and to satisfy some of that inbred curiosity.  To leave us this time with nothing but rumors that have been impossible to validate was a needless cruelty.

Why could you not have been as informative as the last four rounds. Acknowledge publicly that cuts are coming. Say that you expect to have them completed by some approximate date. Or if the rumors are all false, say something about that. There are legal limits to what can be released. We are not stupid. But you certainly could have told us this time what you told us in the past.

There are no good ways to do this that will not cause pain and leave horrible scars. The first round of layoffs years ago where people were escorted out of the building in a few minutes was needlessly painful. So is this. 

Anybody who disagrees with anything here is welcome to comment.

Happy Labor Day.

Looks like the newsroom has survived another full week of paydays

On the other hand, two commenters in the past few minutes have said that Tuesday is the day:

Newsroom cuts are happening Tuesday. The lawyers signed off on everything faster than they were expected to do so. Number should be around 40 cut. If you're offered the opportunity to take on a new role by your manager, you'd be wise not to roll the dice.

 And

I hear the newsroom is getting hit on Tuesday of next week (September 6th).

 If true, I think that somebody else has already noted the bitter irony of firing people the day after Labor Day.  Have a good weekend. If anybody has actual information to share, I will be moderating the comments and checking for emails.

Commenters say there were RIFs at the North Plant

Commenters say several production jobs were cut today.

"Plano/Dallas layout guys. I know of three, heard of more, but couldn't confirm."

About the newsroom, other than the reports about RIF training, I have nothing and more nothing. 

Comment on a post earlier today says managers got layoff training today

Anybody out there got an amen? Or can say it isn't so?

(We now have one comment with possible confirmation. Circumstantial evidence.) 

A place to fling virtual monkey poop

A couple of days ago, I put down an uncivil comment by explaining that this was not a place to fling monkey poop. Poop tossers, I said, can find their own place on the Internet. Someone did. He calls himself Antoninus. I guess he is a movie fan. The name of the blog is Flinging Monkey Poop.  He sent me an email. Quoting here:

Here are the rules: Nothing that could get me sued. And make it entertaining. The only judge will be me. All comments will be moderated before posting.  Scatology and vulgarities are allowed in the interest of yuks. Think Jon Stewart without the bleeps.  And while I'm starting it as a place to vent about DMN bosses, anyone can play. Tell your friends!

Have a good time.

More relaxing reading while waiting for the inevitable

From Mother Jones:

On a bright spring day in a wisteria-bedecked courtyard full of earnest, if half-drunk, conference attendees, we were commiserating with a fellow journalist about all the jobs we knew of that were going unfilled, being absorbed or handled "on the side." It was tough for all concerned, but necessary—you know, doing more with less.
"Ah," he said, "the speedup."

Points printed an edited version this past Sunday. (And kudos to the editor with the intestinal fortitude to make that a cover story in the DMN the week or so before the whatever whatevers. May her tribe increase.)  Here is the full version. 

A different management approach to hard times

FRESNO, Calif. - Some people give a bit back to their community. Then there’s Fresno County School Superintendent Larry Powell, who is giving back $800,000, his compensation for the next three years.

Until his term expires in 2015, Powell will run 325 schools and 35 school districts with 195,000 students, all for less than a starting California teacher earns.

“How much do we need to keep accumulating?’’ asks Powell, 63. “There’s no reason for me to keep stockpiling money.’’

Full story here. 

And an eerie silence covers the land

Unless somebody out there tells me different, looks like the newsroom ends another full week of paychecks. Which I realize is no solace for our ad-side colleagues who lost jobs yesterday. Have a good weekend and be thankful we aren't in the Hurricane Irene bulls-eye. It can always be worse.

Smoke 'em if you've got 'em

As the saying goes. We've got a break in the action. I've not heard even a whisper about whether today's layoffs mean anything about whether more will come tomorrow. The most definitive count I've been given for today is from a comment on the previous post:

The advertising side lost 16 dedicated, creative and enterprising workers today. They deserve support and appreciation, which is more than they ever got from management.

I don't know if anyone from marketing was also let go.  I also do not know what positions were affected, if any were managers.

Layoffs today in advertising and marketing

Multiple sources report layoffs. One commenter here says "8 so far."  I do not know if there have been more since that comment was posted.  (Another now says "17 or 18.")

The purpose of this blog has been to report newsroom events. However, if anybody from other departments who has been RIFed wants to post a farewell here, you are welcome to post a comment or send me an email.

Does this mean newsroom cuts are also set for this week? Which would mean tomorrow. Based on my lousy track record from last week I refuse to speculate, but if anybody out there thinks they know, we'd all appreciate any information..

What the predictions are like

This week? Next week? Next month? Bermuda? Puerto Rico? Minor trim or bloodbath? At this point I trust none of them. I would be very surprised if there was no truth to the basic line that layoffs are coming. The rest of the chatter is all over the map, so to speak. 

Should I publish the rumors?

I have no way to independently confirm the tips I am getting. Right now it looks like this is twice that confident predictions about when the layoffs will happen have been wrong. Unless something happens this afternoon.

Is it better that I let us all know what people think they know? Or am I adding tension that doesn't need to be there? If the bosses would give us even a hint of real information, that would solve the problem. I'm getting more traffic here than many of the DMN "community" blogs, so I can tell management that there's very high interest.

Yes, I know you have legal restrictions about what you can say and when. Those restrictions are not absolute. We know that because you told us about the previous cuts before the ax fell. Why can't you either tell us these rumors are all false, or that you are working on restructurings or RIFs or right-sizings in the offing and that you expect they will be finished by some particular date? Or that no date has been set and negotiations about the size and shape are still ongoing? Something? In the absence of good information, your staff will obsess about anything that looks like a clue. Not good for morale or productivity.

On the other hand, if today really is not a "day," that means another week of full paychecks for us all.  Tension or not, I will not complain about that.

As the Scarecrow told Dorothy...

Dorothy: Now which way do we go?
Scarecrow: Pardon me, this way is a very nice way.
Dorothy: Who said that?
[Toto barks at scarecrow]
Dorothy: Don't be silly, Toto. Scarecrows don't talk.
Scarecrow: [points other way] It's pleasant down that way, too.
Dorothy: That's funny. Wasn't he pointing the other way?
Scarecrow: [points both ways] Of course, some people do go both ways.  

We have a commenter with a "good source" who says that today is not the day. But we had a commenter with a "good source" who said it would be. It is still early for most of the newsroom on a normal day. Does anybody have anything more definitive to contribute?

Crumbs

Two different sources today telling me that tomorrow is going to be the day, or "a" day. Also the comment on the prior post. I don't know if they are right. Maybe they're just hearing what's been posted here, passed along secondhand. I don't think that is the case. We'll know soon enough. If it's true, and depending on what happens, morituri te salutant.

Reading entrails

From a blogfriend:

A couple of Metro editors have altered travel plans this week so that they will be in the office on Friday.

Is this an indication of events to come? Since the corporate managers are saying nothing in public, we are reduced to playing detective with whatever clues anybody can find.

See last post

The current chatter is the old chatter. Nothing new about timing. I wish I had something to tell you. I wish the bosses saw fit to share enough information to let us plan our lives better. Somebody thinks this is a smart way to do this. Somebody thought CueCat was smart.

Nothing and nothing and more nothing

If I had it, I'd post it.  If it hasn't happened by now,  rumors of this week must have been wrong. Unless something is happening right now. If anybody knows different, you know how to contact me.

This week?

One blogfriend says this is the week for some of it. Says it's from a good source. Another blogfriend says to watch for the boxes. The day before the previous layoffs, the cardboard boxes appeared.

But if the consistent rumors are right, it won't all be on the same day this time. Boxes may not show up until actually needed.

Nothing new in rumors about the actual targets for cuts.

Some job possibilities in academia

From a former DMN-er:

Wichita State, an urban-serving research university, is seeking a
scholar who can bring expertise in advertising and branding (creative
and/or account management), recent and successful advertising industry
experience, and the ability to teach quantitative research methods.

The salary will be $50,000+ per year.

To discuss the position or arrange a meeting at AEJMC, contact Interim
Director Lou Heldman, lou.heldman@wichita.edu

To review the complete job description and to apply for this position,
please go to http//Wichita.edu/wsujobs

And:

Ole Miss seeks candidates for several  journalism faculty jobs. Details and applications will be available at jobs.olemiss.edu. The job openings are:

Assistant or Associate Professor in Visual Journalism (tenure-track)
Assistant Professor of Integrated Marketing Communication (tenure-track)
Assistant Professor or Instructor in Multimedia Journalism
Assistant Professor or Instructor/International Programs Coordinator

 And:

The Indiana State University Communication Department is in search of an instructor or associate professor to fill a one-year special purpose faculty appointment. The job comes with benefits.

For more details, find the posting here:

https://jobs.indstate.edu/applicants/jsp/shared/frameset/Frameset.jsp?time=1311617756425

Click here

http://make-everything-ok.com/
Worth a smile if nothing else.

Cuts have happened today -- I've heard nothing about newsroom so far

Production at North Plant. IT. I have no numbers or other details. If you have information you'd like to share or if you have lost your job and would like to deliver a farewell, email it here. The rumors have been consistent that this set of layoffs would not happen on a single day. If true, nobody can feel safe because they haven't been notified today.

One other rumor to report: Most of the earlier chatter has been about editors and production. I am hearing that editorial is also concerned. House editorials have always been a luxury, a luxury that the bosses wanted. It's a small shop that works hard and has that recent Pulitzer. It has evolved greatly from the reflexive right-wing offerings produced in decades past. Is it now a luxury that the bosses no longer believe they can afford at present levels? There is no content more commonly available today than opinion. Is quality enough?

Hot rumors? Just hot heat

I have nothing new. Just what we all know: Any time more than two of us are talking together in the building, chances are excellent that this is one thing that we are talking about. Everybody is worried. Productivity? Not good for it.  Unless the cuts will be an unprecedented bloodbath, many more of us will still be here when they are over. A little additional transparency now would stifle the useless churning over no-facts and make it a little bit easier to put out a paper or generate content or whatever it is we are supposed to be doing. Weather stories. Our readers would not know tomorrow that it was hot today unless we tell them.

A newsroom is filled with pattern-seeking animals. If we aren't given information, we will generate those patterns out of whatever is handy. This is doubleplus ungood.

Will DMN layoffs happen before the iPhone 5 is released?

A recap of what we think we know: Plans are well along for layoffs. Likely to happen in the next month or so. Likely to focus more on editors than reporters.  Likely to force remaining editors and reporters to do more production using the capabilities of Newsgate. (In possible confirmation of that, Metro has just scheduled "refresher" Newsgate classes for reporters.)
The death of Quick was not part of the larger layoff plan but was its own specific demise.

Rumors have not carried to me about layoff numbers or how high into management the layoffs might go. Level of tension is high, but is that a clue about the size of cuts?

Current open positions are staying open or are being filled from inside. As with every summer, the interns are doing good work generating stories and papering over some of the gaps.

How is the company doing financially? The top managers took the conference call about second quarter financials on Thursday. None of the questions included anything about possible layoffs. Here are some highlights.

Barry Lucas - Gabelli & Company - Analyst
Can you tell us how many people are actually paying for one digital device, or is that possible to break out?

Jim Moroney - A. H. Belo Corporation - Executive Vice President
It is certainly possible to break out, but we said that we are just going to hold off on that number because the minute we put that number out it is just going to be all that we are going to talk about. I will tell you we continue to add digital-only in every single one of the channels through which we distribute, and we are encouraged by where we are today.

Robert Decherd - A. H. Belo Corporation - Chief Executive Officer
Barry, what we said about that previously still holds. We want to get into the first quarter of next year and see what a full year looks like. These are modest numbers. I don't want to give you the impression that there is some fantastic breakthrough that we are going to announce next spring, but as Jim said, they are meaningful in the sense that we know there's a market. It's a niche market but we want to see how it progresses, what the usage patterns are, how much time do people spend on these sites and be able to come out with something that's meaningful.

That does not sound like someone keeping a huge success hidden. Page views are down only 20 percent since the paywall went up, they said. Is most of the traffic therefore to parts of the site outside the paywall? That was not asked.

On the other hand:

We continue to anticipate full year 2011 adjusted EBIDTA in the range of $45 million to $50 million, which assumes no gains from real estate dispositions. As of June 30, the Company had approximately $50 million of cash and cash equivalents, had no borrowings outstanding at its bank credit facility, and remained in compliance with bank covenants. This strong cash position and debt free balance sheet enabled our Board of Directors to declare a quarterly cash dividend of $0.06 per share payable on September second, 2011 to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 12, 2011.

Based on that, if you are an employee and a stockholder,  you've hedged your bets. You may lose your job, but you'll get a dividend because the company has such a "strong cash position and debt free balance sheet."

If you have information to share, please send it to me at dmncuts@gmail.com.  Information is power. Maybe not much power, but better to know than to not.

(Those latest rumors about iPhone release? Early or mid-September. You're welcome.)

Quick cleanup and the 2nd quarter financials

I chose the wrong day to be away from the computer. Frontburner and Unfair Park and Mixmaster have had details about the end of Quick, along with some comments or explanation from Moroney.   I have only a small amount more to add. The basics: Quick is ended. Next issue will be its last. How many lost jobs? I'm told it's 9 which includes a pair of parttimers. I'm told that four fulltime jobs were from the remaining Quick newsroom. If anybody would like to confirm or fine-tune those numbers, please add a comment or send me an email.

I'm told the people who were fired did get some kind of severance package, but I don't know how much.

Was this part of the rumored layoffs? Moroney's told Unfair Park that this was something that was going to happen, on its own, because Quick was never able to make money. So are there other layoffs coming? If you can pull a clear answer from what Moroney has said, please send in a comment.

Today's other news was the release of second quarter financials. Read it here. It is not pleasant reading. Down and down and down. DMN circulation up a tiny amount. Does this mean jobs will be cut?

A note to those who lost jobs today: As with the last layoffs, I'm happy to offer this blog as a place to post any farewells you'd like to share. Add a comment or send me an email.

Getting out ahead of the wave -- does anybody know of jobs available?

After the last round of layoffs, I asked for alerts about jobs and other activities that would be useful to the suddenly jobless and posted what was sent to me. I am happy to try that starting now. No time like the present, as my auntie always said. Put it in comments or send me an email.

The return of Spartacus

Never wanted to come back here but I left the blog active. Looks like there's need again.

Rumors of another round of layoffs started seriously circulating several weeks ago. I do not have anything like hard evidence but there is a lot of smoke. Here is what I've heard so far.

As some of us know, there have been isolated layoffs in non-newsroom positions in recent weeks. The rumors say that the newsroom is also going to face cuts. Editors may be more in danger than reporters. And production editors may be more in danger.

That is because Newsgate lets line editors do much more production than had been possible under the old CCI. It is possible that management believes that fewer editors are needed to put out the paper.

This does not mean that other positions are safe.

It is possible that none of this is true. This will be a place where people who know better and want to share will be able to let the rest of us know.

One other consistent rumor is that this layoff will not the same as the last ones. Instead of an announced date where the cuts will happen, if the rumors are right, these will happen when they happen. That would mean no warning and no way to know if they're over.

What kind of severance package would be involved?

Rules for the resurrected DMNcuts blog are the same as the last time. You can comment, and comment anonymously. But do not name anybody other than yourself. Personal insults will not be tolerated. If you want to send information to me directly, the email address is dmncuts(at)gmail.com

(Erm. Update: Comments will be welcome as soon as I can figure out why I can't reactivate the comments. Meanwhile, the email address works.)

(Another update: With a little help from my friends, comments are now enabled.)