The Associated Press had boasted, for years, of being the world’s largest news organization.
No longer.
And on Monday it announced it is cutting a further 8% of its staff, through buyouts and layoffs.
Its own announcement confirmed, “The move is part of what is expected to be a dispiriting end-of-year period in the news industry, which is beset by business woes that go back years.”
Daisy Veerasingham, the conglomerate’s chief, told staff members, “Our customers — both who they are and what they need from us — are changing rapidly. This is why we’ve focused on delivering a digital-first news report. We now need to accelerate on this path.”
In fact, Gannett and McClatchy chains both told the organization this year they are halting their purchase of the news from the wire service, which first came into being in the 1800s when news was transmitted from one city to another via telegraph.
The web has made such a service virtually useless.
As part of diversifying its revenue, the wire service has begun taking “philanthropic funding,” in which various entities contribute funding for various reporting topics, such as climate or science, raising the prospect of outside influence.
The News Media Guild, representing writers and photographers, said 121 of its members would be offered buyouts. The AP said there would be fewer, but didn’t provide a number.
The Associated Press said it was cutting its staff by 8% as part of a plan to adapt to fast-changing conditions in the media industry. The reductions come just two weeks after Election Day, when The AP played a key role in calling races across the U.S. https://t.co/x7phwLcmId
— The New York Times (@nytimes) November 18, 2024
Associated Press CEO announces buyouts, layoffs: ‘about 8% of our workforce, less than half impacting news division … bulk of changes will come in US, remain committed to our 50-state footprint.’ Buyout offers being made by COB today. Good luck to my former colleagues. pic.twitter.com/m3IrFBccvi
— Ted Bridis (@tbridis) November 18, 2024
A commentary at Twitchy said the announcement was part of “a precipitous drop in trust for the ‘news’ industry.”
“It’s also in the wake of ‘news’ outlets being handily defeated by President-Elect Donald Trump in this year’s presidential election, despite their best dishonest efforts. This is only the beginning of post-Election Day layoffs and changes for the dying legacy media.”
That commentary also noted,” Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter and its transformation into X cannot be underestimated. It’s become the place ‘journalism’s’ lies come to die, vanquished in real time by average Americans.”
The AP doesn’t release actual numbers for its staffing levels.
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