PA cuts 8% of workforce as new organization shifts focus to post-election cycle

The Associated Press said Monday it will begin offering buyouts and lay off select employees, part of a plan to reduce the paper’s staff by about 8% and accelerate a transition to a digital-first organization.

The move is part of what is expected to be a dismal year-end period in the news industry, which is beset by business problems that go back years. The end of a busy presidential election cycle was also expected to accelerate the reorganization plans.

AP said those eligible for the buyout would learn about the offer, which would include severance pay and partial health coverage for 18 months, by the end of Monday. Those whose positions will be eliminated will learn their fates in the coming weeks.

Once considered the world’s largest newsgathering organization, the AP no longer makes that claim and does not disclose the size of its staff. As a result, it was impossible to say Monday how many people would be affected. The AP said less than half of the projected cuts would involve its own news staff, with most occurring within the US.

The News Media Guild said 121 of its members would be offered buyouts. AP, without giving an estimate, said there would be fewer job cuts than those among union members.

AP, which prides itself on being an unbiased news source, delivers news, photos, video, audio and interactive content directly to consumers through the apnews.com website. But most of its business comes from selling its journalism to other news organizations that use it.

Earlier this year, two major news chains, Gannett and McClatchy, said they would stop buying news from the AP, in Gannett’s case ending a relationship that had lasted more than a century. The AP has diversified its revenue stream in recent years, including accepting philanthropic funding, but is still hurt by the news industry’s overall woes.

“We all know this is a time of transformation in the media sector,” said Daisy Veerasingham, AP’s president and CEO, in a memo to staff members sent early Monday. “Our customers – who they are and what they need from us – are changing rapidly. That’s why we’re focused on delivering a digital-first news report. Now we have to accelerate on this road.”

Broadly, this means an increased emphasis on visual journalism—photos and videos and the digital content that incorporates them into the story.

Veerasingham was not available for an interview, an AP spokeswoman said.

AP remains a central part of the news industry ecosystem, especially when it comes to the US election. During election coverage earlier this month, AP had unprecedented use of its live video, election data, visuals and interactive products, Veerasingham said.

AP said it had reached a preliminary agreement with its unions to offer the buyouts, but this is subject to ratification by its members. The head of the AP union did not immediately return a message seeking comment Monday.