Three top editors have now left the paper as a planned layoff of perhaps as many as 100 journalists looms. Email not displaying correctly?
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** OPINION
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** The latest drama from the Los Angeles Times
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(AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File)

More upheaval at the Los Angeles Times.

Two editors have left the paper just a little more than a week after executive editor Kevin Merida. All this comes alongside the news that the Times plans to have a massive reduction in staff — perhaps, reportedly, as many as 100 journalists ([link removed]) , or about 20% of the newsroom.

On Monday, one of the Times’ managing editors, Sara Yasin, announced she is leaving the paper.

In an email to staff obtained by The New York Times’ Katie Robertson ([link removed]) , Yasin wrote, “This is a decision I’ve been considering for a long time, for reasons both professional and personal. The short version: I’d like to do something different. I’ve spent the last several years as a newsroom leader, which has allowed me to put my management and problem solving skills to use, but I miss being closer to storytelling.”

Yasin went on to thank Merida and the staff.

Meanwhile, Robertson also obtained an email sent to staff by Times editor Julia Turner ([link removed]) that said Shani O. Hilton, managing editor for new initiatives and senior vice president of Los Angeles Times Studios, has also left the Times. Hilton announced her departure last week, according to Turner’s email. Semafor’s Max Tani reported ([link removed]) Hilton made her decision before Merida’s sudden departure.

Turner said that she and managing editor Scott Kraft are “now responsible for all editorial operations.”

In many cases, local politicians are not fans of local media, but 10 Democratic members of Congress in California wrote a letter to Times owner Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong and the Los Angeles Times guild, expressing concern about the potential layoffs, according to The New York Times’ Benjamin Mullin ([link removed]) .

The letter said, in part, “We write to you as members of Congress representing constituents who rely on the invaluable reporting provided by the Los Angeles Times. We are concerned about reports of potential layoffs facing the LA Times newsroom and the impact this will have on all Angelenos, the availability of essential news and the strength of our democracy at large. The LA Times is an irreplaceable source of our constituents, and we commend the dedication of the journalists that have made the outlet a linchpin of information and expert opinion in our community.”

The delegation went on to suggest the Times follow in the footsteps of The Washington Post, which recently offered buyouts as opposed to layoffs to reduce staff, along with other suggestions.

The letter concluded with, “Preserving democracy is contingent upon a free and robust press, and the LA Times have been instrumental in upholding this democratic principle. We urge you to consider alternative solutions that would allow the LA Times to navigate its financial challenges without compromising the integrity and strength of the newsroom.”

In a statement, Times spokesperson Hillary Manning said, “We appreciate the concerns elected officials have expressed regarding the anticipated layoffs. We have made it very clear, to many of these same lawmakers, over the past several years the existential crisis local news publishers face. The Los Angeles Times faces economic challenges as acute as any. We are fortunate to have key leaders at both the state and federal level who are taking up this charge, fighting diligently to preserve a free press.”

Then, later, Soon-Shiong responded to the lawmakers. According to Los Angeles Times reporter Meg James ([link removed]) , Soon-Shiong wrote about what he has done since he bought the paper in 2018: “We’ve put hundreds of millions of dollars — approaching $1 billion — over the past five years into the L.A. Times, and we are committed to continuing to invest while we work to get the paper on a path to sustainability.”

He added, “Much of our investment has gone toward newsgathering, in maintaining the newsroom staff, and in establishing a modernized infrastructure.”

Soon-Shiong noted how American lawmakers have failed to do what Canadian and Australian governments have done: require tech companies such as Google and Facebook to pay news organizations for publishing their content. As James wrote, “Google and Facebook rake in billions of dollars in advertising revenue as the dollars to local outlets are vanishing.”

To that end, Soon-Shiong wrote, “I’d like to put the question to (lawmakers): What can they do to help preserve a free and robust press, one that is instrumental in upholding our democracy? All we are asking for is the opportunity for our newspaper and hardworking journalists to be fairly compensated, and for the L.A. Times to have a fair chance to become a self-sustaining institution.”

Meanwhile, James also wrote that Yasin’s resignation comes “amid the turmoil gripping the newsroom in advance of deep staff cuts that are looming.”

James added, “The Times has faced heavy financial losses as print subscribers dwindle and advertisers migrate to other online platforms to reach consumers. The Times lost about $40 million last year, according to knowledgeable sources who were not authorized to speak publicly. A spokeswoman for The Times has not confirmed the extent of the losses covered by the Soon-Shiong family, instead saying the number was in the ‘tens of millions.’”

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** Cuomo speaks
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Washington Post media reporter Jeremy Barr has an interview with Chris Cuomo ([link removed]) , the former CNN host who now has a nightly show on NewsNation. Cuomo was fired from CNN in late 2021 after his involvement in helping his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, fight sexual harassment allegations.

Cuomo joined NewsNation last year. As Barr notes, Cuomo’s show has an average of 141,000 viewers a night, certainly far off from the 1.2 million he was averaging when he left CNN. But, NewsNation is still growing, and Cuomo is helping to put the fledgling network on the map.

He told Barr, “I am very pleasantly surprised by the appetite and the growth. I didn’t count on it, but I absolutely appreciate it. … There is a very real need, want and appetite for disruptive programming where institutions, norms, cultures, established ways are questioned. And I am perfect for that.”

Barr and Cuomo talk about so-called “down-the-middle” news, covering Donald Trump and Cuomo’s dismissal from CNN, and the media coverage of him at CNN. About that, Cuomo said, “I think there was a great appetite to take me down, which is not paranoid, it’s the nature of our culture. You don’t make headlines by saying someone’s great. You make headlines by finding a way to take them down. And the higher you go, the harder you fall. The farther there is to fall. And I accept it. … I always knew that there was going to be backlash for the celebrity and the shine that came my way. I did not see it taking the shape or form or to the degree that it happened, but that’s the way it goes. … I was covered as much as you guys could get clicks off and make money off.”

Check out the entirety of Barr’s superb interview.


** I’m just kidding
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Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, speaking to the media after his team was eliminated from the NFL playoffs in San Francisco last Saturday. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

It has been an interesting season for sideline reporters in the NFL.

Earlier in the season, former Fox Sports sideline reporter Charissa Thompson, now a studio host for Fox and Amazon Prime, said on a podcast ([link removed]) that she would sometimes make up what a coach said for a sideline report. (She later said she used the wrong word choice and never made anything up, but the damage had been done.)

Now comes word that Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur is miffed over a report given on air by Fox Sports’ Tom Rinaldi. But this time, Rinaldi reported exactly what the coach said.

Here’s what happened: In the days before an NFL game, broadcasters meet with the head coach to get information that can enhance a broadcast. During his production meeting with Fox, LaFleur said “I just pray” whenever his kicker, Anders Carlson, goes on the field.

Rinaldi repeated that story on air ([link removed]) Saturday night shortly after Carlson missed a big field goal. But LaFleur is saying he was just joking when he told the broadcast crew that he prays when his kicker goes on the field.

During his press conference on Monday ([link removed]) , LaFleur said, “That was extremely disappointing that that’s how that message got portrayed. I’ve been a part of production meetings ever since I became a coordinator, and I’ve never had an experience like that. But (it) is what it is. I talked to Anders about it. And, you know, I think anytime something’s out of your control, you’re kind of saying it in jest, and having fun with it. But it got portrayed that way. It’s a learning lesson for me.”

I wasn’t in the room, so I can't say how LaFleur’s comment was meant or taken. My instinct is to say, of course, LaFleur was kidding, but Rinaldi, who is well respected in the business, clearly didn’t get the joke.

Awful Announcing’s Ben Axelrod wrote ([link removed]) , “Another possibility? LaFleur said what he said, unaware of how it would be perceived, and is now backtracking after his comment became public.”

Then again, maybe next time, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for LaFleur to say, “Just kidding!” when he’s truly just kidding.


** Remembering a legendary film director
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Norman Jewison — nominated for a best director Oscar three times for his work on “In the Heat of the Night,” “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Moonstruck” — has died. He was 97.

Jewison directed some two dozen films, including “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Rollerball,” “… And Justice For All,” “A Soldier’s Story,” and “The Hurricane.”

In a remembrance for The Washington Post ([link removed]) , Harrison Smith wrote, “The Canadian-born Mr. Jewison slipped in and out of genres during his four-decade career behind the camera, directing actors including Steve McQueen, Rod Steiger, Chaim Topol, Denzel Washington and Olympia Dukakis in hit movie musicals, romantic comedies and crime dramas that frequently examined social issues.”

In his piece for The New York Times ([link removed]) , Dennis Lim pointed out that, “Well into the post-civil-rights era, Mr. Jewison remained interested in race, specifically racial injustice.”

That included making movies such as “In the Heat of the Night” and “A Soldier’s Story.”

“But,” Lim wrote, “when it was announced a few years later that Mr. Jewison would be directing a film about the life of Malcolm X, he encountered resistance. The filmmaker Spike Lee, who had long wanted to make such a film himself, was the most outspoken critic of the choice, maintaining that a white director could not do justice to the story of a major Black political activist. Mr. Jewison eventually left the project, although he denied that his departure was in response to the protest. Mr. Lee himself went on to direct ‘Malcolm X,’ which was released in 1992, and later said that Mr. Jewison ‘was happy I got to do the film.’”

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** ENTER NOW! The 2024 Poynter Journalism Prizes are open
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** Media tidbits
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* The Los Angeles Times’ Stephen Battaglio with “Why old-fashioned TV is still the winning ticket for political ads.” ([link removed])
* Politico’s Jack Shafer with “The Predicted Death of Cable News Is Dead Wrong.” ([link removed])
* Columbia Journalism Review’s Jon Allsop with “What DeSantis got wrong about the media—and the media got wrong about DeSantis.” ([link removed])
* Vulture’s Craig Jenkins writes about Pitchfork being folded into GQ by parent company Condé Nast in “We Owe Pitchfork.” ([link removed])
* CNBC’s Jonathan Vanian with “Meta’s retreat from news accelerated in 2023, leaving publishers scrambling for traffic.” ([link removed])
* CNN’s Sara Smart with “Man cited for stealing newspapers the day a story published on alleged sexual assault at a Colorado police chief’s home.” ([link removed])
* The New York Times’ Erica L. Green with “First Black Women to Cover the White House Are Honored in the Briefing Room.” ([link removed])


** Hot type
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Politico Magazine’s Michael Kruse takes you inside the mind of one Trump voter from New Hampshire: “‘Our System Needs to Be Broken, and He Is the Man to Do It.’” ([link removed])


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* Transforming Local Crime Reporting Into Public Safety Journalism (Seminar) — Apply by Jan. 30. ([link removed])

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