The E. W. Scripps Company’s national news channel Scripps News will part ways with over 100 journalists in its Atlanta office by the end of the week, according to a letter submitted to Georgia’s labor department and reviewed by The Desk.
The layoffs in Atlanta are a fraction of the nearly 250 positions that Scripps identified in September as part of a refreshed strategy for the news network, which will wind down its broadcast signal on Friday, November 15 and revert to a streaming-only channel on free, ad-supported TV platforms.
Journalists throughout the company are affected, including those who are stationed in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., according to employees familiar with the cuts. A number of anchors, reporters and producers have already departed.
When the transition is completed on Friday, Scripps will have a small crew of around 50 journalists operating the channel, which will provide live programming during weekdays. Documentaries, knowledge-based shows and tape-to-air news programming will fill the evening and weekend schedules.
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In Atlanta, 118 people will receive pink slips by the end of the week, the company said in its letter to the Office of Workforce Development. The affected employees will be paid through the end of the year, but will not report to work after November 15, the company wrote.
The layoffs include 13 line producers, nine news anchors, eight editors, seven newswriters, six associate producers, five segment producers, four senior producers, four show bookers, four assignment editors, four camera operators, four audio technicians, four technical directors, one videographer and one senior reporter, the letter said.
Other roles that are impacted include two employees who produced social media content for Scripps News, three graphics coordinators and one copy editor.
In addition to the line workers, Scripps News is departing with Christina Hartman, its Vice President and Head of Scripps News. Last month, the company said it was elevating Matt Simon to that role.
Other workers The Desk has confirmed as being affected by the layoffs are “On The Scene” Senior Producer Tim Melligan, Senior Director of Live Programming Brian Donlon, Executive Producer Patrick Griffin, “America Tonight” news anchor Maritsa Georgiou and Senior Videographer Andrew Shafer. Separately, the company’s President of News Kate O’Brian said she intends to depart the company.
A number of employees who have spoken with The Desk since the layoffs were first announced said they were sad to be leaving Scripps News, but also expressed gratitude at the channel’s commitment to facts-first journalism. Few had anything negative to say about their experience, and several affirmed that ongoing changes to the news business likely doomed Scripps News to fail in its current incarnation.
In a note sent to employees two months ago, Scripps CEO Adam Symson said he believed in the channel’s mission of delivering accurate and accountable journalism, but said advertisers were hesitant to buy spots because of the charged political temperament in the country.
“[They] have decided that advertising around national news is just too risky for them given the polarized nature of this country, no matter the accolades and credentials a news organization like Scripps receives for its objectivity,” Symson said. “I vehemently disagree, but it is hurting Scripps News, along with every other national linear and digital news outlet.”
