Bucks County Courier Times, Doylestown Intelligencer Cut Staff Amid Owner’s $53.7 Million Loss

National newspaper chain owner Gannett has made cuts at the local Bucks County Courier Times and Doylestown Intelligencer after the company recently reported rising costs, dropping sales, and a second quarter loss of $53.7 million.

The company’s latest cuts in Bucks County and across the country mark the latest round of reductions by Gannett, a publicly-traded company with a years-long reputation for slashing journalism jobs. Just recently, the company completed a cost-reduction plan to yield more than $300 million in annual savings.

At the Bucks County Courier Times and Doylestown Intelligencer, two journalists were laid off earlier this month, according to sources with knowledge of the newspapers’ operations.

One of those whose job was cut was popular columnist Phil Gianficaro. He did not comment on the end of his time at the newspapers, which led to him bringing home awards for his reporting and writing over the years.

A source at Gannett, who does not work for the Bucks County papers, said cuts were also made at the Beaver County Times in the western part of the state. The company’s newspapers in central Pennsylvania were not impacted by layoffs.

The national Poynter Institute, a journalism educational foundation that also does reporting on the industry, said more than 70 Gannett reporters were laid off around the nation this month. Poynter’s Angela Fu noted “there are likely many more.” The list didn’t include the Bucks County cuts.

The NewGuild, a union that represents some Gannett journalists, reported they knew of as many as 80 layoffs nationwide.

A Gannett spokesperson didn’t relay to LevittownNow.com the number of staff laid off in the recent headcount reduction.

“We’ve been transparent about the need to evolve our operations and cost structure in line with our growth strategy while also needing to take swift action given the challenging economic environment. These staffing reductions are incredibly difficult, and we are grateful for the contributions of our departing colleagues,” Lark-Marie Antón, Gannett’s chief communications officer, told this news organization.

The day before layoffs began, members of the NewGuild called out Gannett for awarding the CEO a nearly $8 million in yearly salary, accepting government COVID-19 aid and then authorizing a $100 million stock buyback, and hiring law firms focused on union busting.

Members of the union have made their voices heard on the company recent and past cost cutting measures.

“Gannett for years has attempted to cut its way to success. As word of pending cuts spread online, readers reacted with worry about the loss of more journalists in our community,” said Richard Ruelas, a reporter at the Arizona Republic. “My colleagues company-wide have chosen to stand together. And I am here for it.”

During Gannett’s earning call earlier this month, an executive said “painful” cuts were coming after the company announced dismal financial results as the business works to pay down more than $1.3 billion in debt. The second quarter was called “very challenging” for the company.

In a memo shared with LevittownNow.com by a Gannett reporter who works outside of Bucks County, an executive with the newspaper chain said more cuts than just of staff reductions will be needed as the company struggles.

The company is considering and already implementing cuts to freelance budgets, unfilled positions, travel, and contracts, including cutting company phones at the Bucks County newspapers.

Gannett has said the costs to run their newspapers are rising, a tight labor market is making it hard find staff, and customers are cutting back on purchasing pricey newspapers due to the rising costs amid a time of high inflation.

Gannett CEO Michael Reed said during the earnings call that the company would be focused on increasing subscription numbers, non-newspaper businesses, and selling off buildings to bring in revenue.

The newspaper chain has increased digital subscriptions in recent years as the print market has collapsed.

Gannett, which owns hundreds of local papers and USA Today, is aiming to have 2 million subscribers nationwide in the coming months. The company has drawn new subscribers with low introductory rates as part of an all-in focus on the revenue stream.

The company did not state if more cuts to print products are coming.

At the end of April, the Bucks County Courier Times and Doylestown Intelligencer ended their Monday print newspaper. The local newspapers now print five days per week.

The Bucks County Courier Times was averaging 8,059 copies per weekday and 12,211 on Sunday, a drop from past highs of 50,000 copies per day. The average weekday circulation for the Doylestown Intelligencer was just over 6,100, according to Alliance for Audited Media circulation numbers from spring 2021.

The Bucks County Courier Times and Doylestown Intelligencer have seen their headcount slashed by more than 75 percent, its Falls Township printing facility closed, delivery drivers were laid off, and local news coverage has been notably reduced since the local Calkins family sold the newspapers in 2017.

Bucks County is served by a number of locally-owned publications, including LevittownNow.com; the Bucks County Herald, which recently announced the Bucks County Courier Times’ former editor Shane Fitzgerald will be its new editor; The Philadelphia Inquirer; Bucks County Beacon, a progressive political news and opinion hub; and the Delaware Valley News. Like the Gannett newspapers, the Patch.com network and Daily Voice are owned by out-of-area firms.

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