Is nothing sacred? Well it seems like that answer is no. Effective immediately, The Chicago Sun-Times has laid off its entire photography staff. In their place, the Sun-Times will use freelance photographers and reporters to shoot pics and video. 28 full-time staffers were let go. This is ‘creative destruction’ at its most brutal.
If you’re a local media exec, are you fully prepared for a complete transformation of the local media business? We know many who think this stuff won’t affect them. In reality, it affects everyone. Here’s the official statement from the Sun-Times:
The Sun-Times business is changing rapidly and our audiences are consistently seeking more video content with their news. We have made great progress in meeting this demand and are focused on bolstering our reporting capabilities with video and other multimedia elements. The Chicago Sun-Times continues to evolve with our digitally savvy customers, and as a result, we have had to restructure the way we manage multimedia, including photography, across the network.
Is there a silver lining to all this doom and gloom? Yes.
A local media exec’s greatest skill set of story-telling and persuasion is more important than even. The only stuff that’s being jettisoned are the contraptions and systems that were relevant in the time of Walter Cronkite; printing presses, expensive cameras, monstrous office space, a bunch of no longer needed overhead…..oh….and yeah……your boss.
After spending 15 years in Philadelphia TV, Radio and Newspaper, we decided not to be a victim any longer. We took our love of communications, multi-media and sales and started www.BrigantineNOW.com; the #1 source of news & info for the resort community of Brigantine, New Jersey. It’s a model hyper-local website using the power of WordPress as a content management system.