|
Reach cuts 186 staff in 'biggest' shake-up yet | NYT adds family plan to subscriptions
And lifestyle brand Refinery29 has shut its UK arm and cut staff.
|
| |||||||||||||||
Welcome to your daily Press Gazette media briefing on Tuesday, 9 September, supported today by FT Strategies - consulting from the Financial Times.
 |
Reach yesterday announced what it described as its biggest reorganisation yet as 600 of its circa 2,600 editorial staff were placed at risk of redundancy.
Given Reach made around 700 editorial redundancies in 2023, it’s saying something if this change is even more fundamental.
The aim is to make 321 roles redundant and hire a further 135 new ones – meaning there will be a net reduction of 186 journalists.
The plan is not just intended to save costs but also to set Reach up for the future with big changes to roles and overall editorial structure. The changes will see further merging of editorial teams into centralised hubs producing content for more than 120 different brands.
The publisher already uses AI to repurpose the same stories across multiple sites and draft some automated articles (such as weather coverage).
But there has been no talk yet of AI driving the current shake-up, although the NUJ fears “AI-assisted stories” will not get the scrutiny they need with fewer staff checking them.
Looking at the few Reach journalists who have already announced their feared departure on Linkedin it looks like video and social media journalists are among those at risk, suggesting these changes are about far more than swapping analogue skills for print ones.
The ambition at Reach is to somehow make these cost cuts whilst also freeing up investment in the distinct brand-specific content needed to drive online subscriptions.
We will be following the latest Reach shake-up closely as more details emerge.
Today we also report on redundancies at US-based lifestyle publisher Refinery29 which is closing its UK operations with an unknown number of jobs being cut.
The comment from the publisher’s spokesperson deserves a spot in Pseud’s Corner of Private Eye: “This is a pivotal moment for Sundial Media & Technology Group as we step forward into our more fulsome potential as a human connections company.”
And we have spoken to the head of subscriptions growth at the world’s most successful paywalled news publisher to find out how it plans to reach 15 million subscribers by the end of 2027.
The New York Times is aping the tactics of Netflix by offering multi-person subscriptions for an small additional fee. The incentives include saved personalisation features on the puzzles portfolio and news preferences.
From our sponsor
 |
Maximise advertising revenue through data, strategy and innovation.
FT Strategies has launched a suite of digital advertising services designed to enhance operational effectiveness and generate long-term, sustainable revenue for media organisations.
Drawing on our experience with leading media brands, we can help you:
Optimise ad yield with data-led analysis and strategic organisational frameworks
Build and optimise first-party data strategies that enhance performance and reduce reliance on third parties
Unlock new revenue through video, audio affiliate and innovative ad models.
Our services are specifically tailored to help you derive the greatest value from your inventory, data and audience relationships.
On Press Gazette
 |
Reach to cut editorial headcount by 186 in ‘biggest reorganisation’ yet
Editorial restructure proposes 321 redundancies and 135 new roles.