The reasoning behind Reuters layoffs

Kara Bloomgarden-Smoke of The New York Observer writes Wednesday about the layoffs at Reuters and what they mean to the company.

Bloomgarden-Smoke writes, “Last year, Reuters introduced the new Eikon terminal, which received a lukewarm reception. Chris Roush, the director of business news initiatives at the University of North Carolina’s School of Journalism & Mass Communication, who broke news of the layoffs on Talking Biz News, attributes this to a combination of Wall Street’s struggles and tough competition from Bloomberg.

“‘Thomson Reuters overall is still trying to determine what it is,’ Mr. Roush told OTR. ‘They are still not fully integrated as a company.’

“Exact numbers for editorial layoffs were hard to come by, but sources say that the layoffs weren’t as severe as they might have been. Still, some big names have left the company.

“Peter Bohan, editor of Reuters America Service, has reportedly been let go. Mr. Bohan had been at Reuters for two decades, most recently as the Midwest bureau chief. Brad Dorfman, Reuters’s U.S. retail and consumer products company news editor, and Lee Aitken, who had been in charge of political coverage since 2012, were also reportedly let go from the company.

“While most of the departures occurred at the managerial level, the majority of the Reuters TV team is out as well, after YouTube’s decision not to renew its one-year-old contract with the news service.

“‘I’d like to believe that the new management has figured out a strategy, but it’s still too early to tell,’ Mr. Roush said. Editor in chief Stephen Adler appointed a number of former Wall Street Journal journalists to top positions in 2011 — including Paul Ingrassia, who has served as Mr. Adler’s deputy since then.”

Read more here.