A $550 million burden that has never turned a profit has managed to trigger massive changes at one of the leading U.S. media outlets.

The New York Times disbanded its sports department on Monday, resulting in the reassignment of more than 35 journalists and editors — including some to a planned unit within the business section focusing on money and power in sports. The paper will rely on sports coverage from The Athletic, which the Times acquired early last year.

Since that deal, internal dissension has grown within the Times, peaking with a formal letter sent Sunday by the Times’ sports department staffers to newspaper leadership, complaining of being left “twisting in the wind.”

Pressure has been high on the Times to make something of its purchase of The Athletic, which despite more than doubling subscribers to 3.27 million has posted more than $43 million in total operating losses since the beginning of 2022 — including $7.8 million in 2023’s first quarter.

Just weeks after The Athletic laid off about 20 staffers, those pressures have now spread to the Times, a deeply influential voice in sports coverage on and off the field for decades.

The Athletic isn’t unionized, while the NewsGuild of New York represents Times writers.

L.A. Exit

The shifts arrive as another major daily newspaper of record is also doing away with traditional sports coverage. The Los Angeles Times is eliminating core content elements such as game stories, box scores, and standings.

The changes follow a sale of their printing press and new, early-afternoon print deadlines.

After more than a generation of MLB team payrolls closely tied to on-field success, that model is being inverted like never before.

Entering this week’s All-Star Break, the New York Mets — owners of MLB’s highest payroll ever at $348 million — are out of playoff position and openly musing about dismantling their current roster. A similar situation exists in San Diego, where the $246 million Padres — also below .500 after franchise-record offseason spending — are wondering what’s gone wrong.

Meanwhile, two of the three lowest-spending MLB teams and four of the bottom six are squarely in postseason contention, while the top four and five of the top six are currently not in playoff position.  

“It’s terrible,” Mets owner Steve Cohen said of his team’s situation. “That’s not what I expected.”

For more than two decades, MLB has wrestled with the effects of payroll disparity, which have deeply impacted multiple rounds of labor negotiations, caused numerous internal schisms between teams and individual owners, and led the league to create an economic reform committee last year.

But as teams like the $76 million Tampa Bay Rays — operating under near-constant sale rumors and without a modern ballpark — more than hold their own, more executives are openly questioning what strategy is truly best.

“You’ve heard me say numerous times now that I shouldn’t need a $300 million payroll to win a world championship,” said Hal Steinbrenner, managing general partner of the New York Yankees — who nevertheless are spending $280 million this year but sit a game out of the final AL Wild Card slot.

Public funding has never been more of a make-or-break issue for NFL teams and stadium projects. With the exception of the privately financed, $5 billion-plus SoFi Stadium, securing taxpayer money is the major issue to moving forward. 

The Carolina Panthers are quickly becoming a prominent example of funding problems stalling new work on facilities. 

North Carolina’s Mecklenburg County has said it won’t offer any money to the Panthers in support of team owner David Tepper plans to either build a new stadium or bring major renovations to 27-year-old Bank of America Stadium. Matters are further complicated by the fact that the city of Charlotte could still offer the Panthers funding.

In 2022, Tepper’s plans for an $800 million training facility and headquarters in nearby Rock Hill, South Carolina, crashed and burned in dramatic fashion. 

Carolina’s potential issues are just the latest for an NFL team — and franchises can explore many different solutions. 

The Chicago Bears are struggling to find a local partner to help with a new stadium in a saga involving cities throughout Illinois. In contrast, the Tennessee Titans will receive a record $1.25 billion in public funding for a new stadium, while the Buffalo Bill will get $850 million for their stadium set to open in 2026.

In Jacksonville, the Jaguars are contemplating a 50-50 split between public funds and the team regarding more than $1 billion in upgrades to TIAA Bank Field. Meanwhile, a top priority for new Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris is a new stadium — which could end up in D.C., Virginia, or Maryland.