More than 500 journalists laid off in January alone
More than 500 journalists lost their jobs in January, a sharp increase from the month prior and the latest reminder of the hard financial times that have fallen on the news business.
New data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas found the media industry, which includes television, film, streaming and news, announced 836 job cuts in January, a figure that is up 11 percent from the 754 cuts announced in the same month last year.
A total of 528 layoffs came in the news category alone, which is up 1,660 percent from the 30 layoffs tracked in December. It is the highest monthly total since March 2023 when 532 cuts were recorded, the firm said.
Major news organizations like The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and The Wall Street Journal have announced job reductions in recent weeks.
On Wednesday, news startup The Messenger laid off hundreds of its employees and folded after the website failed to achieve the lofty goals its management had set out to meet less than a year after it launched.
The steep cutbacks to newsrooms across the country come as media organizations grapple with a tough advertising market and changing news consumer habits.
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