WSJ editor Tucker on DC layoffs

Wall Street Journal editor in chief Emma Tucker sent out the following to the staff on Thursday:

Dear All,

Today we announced a new structure in Washington that means a number of our colleagues will be leaving the paper. These journalists have made vital contributions to our success over many years, and I thank them for their hard work and their dedication.

The new Washington bureau will focus on politics, policy, defense, law, intelligence and national security. Damian Paletta, our new Washington coverage chief, starts next week and will focus our efforts in these areas to deliver work that serves the readers and stands out from the competition. This means the Business team in Washington is closing as is the Washington-based U.S.-China team. Stories covered by these groups will be driven by various teams in the newsroom. We are also changing the editing structure in the bureau and are closing the D.C. News Desk; those editing functions will be handled elsewhere in the bureau or on the news desk in New York.

We are creating a new team in Washington to deliver world-class enterprise journalism. This team’s mission will be to break high-impact stories and deliver distinctive investigations. We’re seeking experienced journalists with deep sourcing and a track record of major scoops. The vacancies on this team will be open to people in the bureau affected by today’s changes.

We are also expanding the remit of the Finance team, under Marie Beaudette in New York, to include economics. The expanded Finance & Economics coverage area will unify our reporting on the macroeconomy, global economic trends, monetary policy, credit and banking, and financial markets. The team covering the Federal Reserve and macroeconomy in Washington will report to Marie and will work very closely with Damian. There will be editing and reporting opportunities under Finance & Economics covering the U.S. economy, based in New York, and the economies of some of the country’s largest regions. These changes mean some DC-based economics jobs have closed.

Lastly, we are integrating all our coverage of law and the legal system. Brent Kendall, the law bureau chief, will take on the expanded role of Justice, Judiciary and Law Editor. Brent will oversee the teams covering justice and the judiciary in Washington, as well as the existing law-bureau staff who cover other courts. Brent will report to Damian.

It is imperative that we have the right structure in Washington to deliver trusted, ambitious reporting for our readers in an election year and beyond. I thank you for your perseverance and professionalism as we go through this transition.

Emma