WSJ cuts staff in Hong Kong bureau

The Wall Street Journal laid off staff in its Hong Kong bureau, and three company insiders said they were bracing for more cuts in the newsroom, reports Lucia Moses of Business Insider.

Moses reports, “The insider speculation about potential further cuts centered on the London office and the standards and ethics team, a dedicated unit that ensures stories meet the paper’s quality bar.

“The Hong Kong layoffs affected seven editors on a desk that puts finishing touches on stories before they’re published, two sources said. People with direct knowledge said they believed the company was looking to save money by shifting the work to other offices. A WSJ spokesperson declined to comment.

“The Hong Kong cuts came shortly after Tucker revealed in September her plan to revive the newsroom with an ‘audience-first’ model, which has fueled speculation that a reorg could be on the way.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.