Westchester biz news staff gone

TALKING BIZ NEWS EXCLUSIVE

The entire business news staff atÂ The Journal News in Westchester County, New York, a Gannett newspaper,Â is gone this week in the round of 50Â cutbacks at the paper.

These include business editor Mike Bieger and reporters Julie Moran Alterio, Jerry Gleeson and JayÂ Loomis. The former business editor, who was most recently data deskÂ editor, Frank Brill, was also laid off. Brill is a former board member of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers.

The move calls into question whether eliminating coverage of business news in theÂ worst recession in two decades is a good idea. Talking Biz News has been told that the paper will begin running The Wall Street Journal Sunday content this weekend as a way to compensate for some of the lost content.

There is no one left in a department that once had 14 people: a topÂ editor, an assistant editor, three copy editors/page designers, eightÂ reporters and one editorial assistant. Last December, business reporter David Schepp was also laid off. He covered workplace, business of health and Rockland County

This staffÂ covered such locally based corporations as:Â PepsiCo, IBM, MasterCard, Reader’s Digest, MBIA, Dress Barn, Bunge,Â Jarden, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and many other smaller ones.

The staff also covered small business, the economy and consumer issuesÂ in an area with a population of 1.3 million people just north of theÂ world financial center of New York City.

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View Comments

Ester says:
August 28, 2009 at 1:29 pm
Wow, that's crazy. How can a local newspaper even pretend to cover the community when it eliminates its business staff? Adding Wall Street Journal content is nice, but in no way does it even come close to making up for the loss of the local coverage.
Local businesses are the foundation of neighborhoods. It's sad that this paper is choosing to ignore such an integral part of the community.
Mike Nemeth says:
August 28, 2009 at 3:19 pm
Definitely sorry to hear the news. The trend is downright depressing.
STEVE says:
August 28, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Boy does this sound like the death spiral is underway. The paper is thin enough as it is.
Ned Smith says:
August 29, 2009 at 11:10 am
My wife and I subscribe to this paper, which I refer to as the "local rag." We do it for the coupons; we have The NYT Times etc. For news.
First they cut loose Davies, their Pultizer winner. Now they purge the business side. The only thing that saves this paper from being a total joke is the comics section.
Alex Philippidis says:
August 29, 2009 at 10:03 pm
I grieve for the journalists laid off, and for their families. It is betyond sad -- it's a darn shame -- that TJN is gutting its entire business desk. Whatever pennies they save through this short-sighted move will be more than lost as readers hungry for Westchester business news will spend their money elsewhere -- accelerating the decline that cuts like these are supposed to stop...
I am especially saddened as a former staffer of Journal News' predecessor Gannett Suburban Newspapers, and later a reporter and editor-in-chief of a TJN competitor, Westchester County Business Journal. The competition helped make for better newspapers, and its absence in Westchester will ultimately hurt everyone in the county's business community, from writers to readers. My thoughts and prayers that WCBJ and other news outlets will hire as many of the laid-off TJN staffers as possible.
Alison says:
August 29, 2009 at 10:12 pm
I was on this business team before I left for my current job two years ago. They are outstanding reporters, and Frank Brill is one of the best editors and managers I have ever had. I wish them all well in these difficult times.
Bob says:
August 30, 2009 at 3:08 pm
Hey, if you lay off the whole business desk you as a corporate publisher no longer have to sweat any unfavorable copy coming out about potential advertisers. Plus, as a bonus, you save money.
Sweet.
Mrsbeans says:
August 31, 2009 at 9:05 am
Not surprised. Gannett is slashing business news departments all over. Green Bay's is gone--they've consolidated their business news reporting to one office for all their Wisconsin newspapers. Too bad, it'll just force more people to go online to get their business news which will only further depress newspaper readership.