Reuters' U.S. Journalists Withhold Bylines, Credits to Protest Offshoring,

[liveoaktx]

Link


(Nasdaq: RTRSY; LSE: RTR), working without a contract for nearly two years, are holding a one-day byline strike on Thursday to protest company managers' demands for economic concessions in current contract talks as well as their moves to export editorial jobs to low-wage countries.
The job action by more than 350 editorial employees -- members of the Newspaper Guild of New York -- to withhold bylines and credits from their work, came as executives at the company's London headquarters were scheduled to announce "guidance" about the company's first-quarter financial performance.
"Our members provide the quality and reliability that the world has come to expect from Reuters," said New York Guild President Barry Lipton. "They are angry at their bosses' disregard for quality as they slash the company's budget, experiment with remote control journalism and refuse to offer workers a fair and decent contract."
Reuters became the first major news organization to try to cover Wall Street from India last year when editorial managers started replacing their highly skilled work force in United States and London with cheaper, far less experienced journalists in Bangalore.

[KoKo]

1. Odd....I don't remember hearing about this. How long has this been

going on?

[raggedcompany]

2. kick

This is important news.

[bobbieinok]

3. awesomely insane...cover Wall Street from India with less experienced

journalists!?!?!!?!?

"Reuters became the first major news organization to try to cover Wall Street from India last year when editorial managers started replacing their highly skilled work force in United States and London with cheaper, far less experienced journalists in Bangalore."


does this partly explain why no one knows much about US financial affairs.......inexperience + distance + certain amount of deliberate coverup---->gross ignorance

[ohtransplant]

4. Gotta love it.

They seem to want a nearly free press. Or as close to that as possible.

Couldn't they find cheaper workers in Mexico, China or Pakistan?

Wonder what the execs get paid.

I love the fact these journalists have a union.

[w4rma]

5. LOL! They're outsourcing JOURNALISTS now!

Next up: Executives. Then: The whole buisnesses. :P

"Free" trade.

[UpInArms]

6. I've been posting those layoffs

forever -

sorry that others haven't noticed that even the "journalists" are being outsourced.

http://www.journalismjobs.com/layoffs.cfm

February 2003


Red Herring says March 2003 will be its last issue
after publishing for more than 10 years;
31 staffers lost their jobs.
(San Francisco Chronicle, Feb 28, 2003).


San Francisco Examiner fires most of its staff
(about 40 staffers); two reporters, three
editors and two columnists remain.
The paper may become
a free city daily.
(San Francisco Chronicle, Feb. 22, 2003).


Reuters reports record loss, plans
to eliminate 3,000 jobs worldwide.
(Reuters, Feb. 16, 2003).


Missoula, Montana's Missoulian, a Lee
Enterprises paper, lays off nine workers.
(Missoula Independent, Feb. 10, 2003).


January 2003


Northwest Cable News lays off film
critic and entertainment reporter.
(Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Jan. 31, 2003).


American Media Inc. cuts 60 staffers
at Weider Publications.
(Los Angeles Daily News, Jan. 29, 2003).


British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) to lay
off 61 TV and radio journalists.
(The Guardian, Jan. 22, 2003).


Weekly Planet in Tampa, Fla., fires
three in shift from politics.
(St. Petersburg Times, Jan. 16, 2003).


Chicago public TV station
WTTW cuts 21 staffers.
(Chicago Sun-Times, Jan. 16, 2003).


Cnet Networks to cut 80 more jobs, or
five percent of its workforce.
(San Francisco Chronicle, Jan. 14, 2003).


Twin Cities station KSTC-TV cancels 9 p.m.
newscast; 27 staffers laid off.
(St. Paul Pioneer Press, Jan. 7, 2003).


San Francisco's KRON-TV to restructure
shows; fewer than 10 will lose jobs.
(San Francisco Chronicle, Jan. 7, 2003).

...comprehensive listing at link...

[Robbien]

7. Even though they are being offshored

the reporters keep submitting biased reports about labor unions and labor concessions in other industries. They even see what is happening to their own industry but downplay the reports.

The headlines you listed all say the news centers are downsizing. Big deal, everyone is streamlining their operations. People read the headlines and say "oh hum".

[UpInArms]

8. well, so far they haven't "off-shored" the headline writers

I guess.

Just the journos.

and as they are kicked out the door they are not writing their farewell stories either.

So what would you have me do - the LBN rules are "headlines" - many times when I post, I try to clip in the part of where the jobs are going.

:toast: