Media News - Friday, November 21, 2008

Associated Press staff to shrink 10 pct, CEO says

The Associated Press will trim 10 percent of its work force over the next year as a cut in fees paid by member newspapers and a declining economy take their toll, Chief Executive Tom Curley said Thursday. The staff reduction will amount to a loss of more than 400 positions from a global staff of 4,100, and Curley said the cuts will include some of the news cooperative's 3,000 journalists. Curley told the staff in a meeting webcast to AP offices globally that he hopes most of the cut will be achieved through attrition, but he did not rule out layoffs. Asked if the cuts would include newsroom jobs, Curley noted that 75 percent of the staff are journalists. The AP is still profitable, but cash flow is expected to decline from USD 95m this year to USD 66m in 2009, largely due to a USD 30m reduction in fees paid by newspapers facing unprecedented financial hardships. The remainder of the AP's cash will be spent funding the pension plan, taxes and capital equipment, and the staff cuts are meant to prepare for a possible further economic decline, Curley said. The staff reduction is intended to save USD 25m a year. (AP)

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