The Orlando Sentinel on Tuesday laid off 21 employees throughout the company as it joined other U.S. newspapers struggling to cope with declining circulation and rising costs.
The cuts came less than two weeks after the paper announced that it would need to eliminate jobs to improve its financial performance and adapt to market changes. In addition to the layoffs, 33 vacant positions won't be filled.
"We have tried to make changes that will allow us to cut costs," Sentinel Publisher Kathleen Waltz said. "We simply need to reset our cost structure going forward."
Prior to the layoffs, the Sentinel had about 1,300 employees.
Waltz said the Sentinel and other newspapers are repositioning themselves as society increasingly turns to the Internet and other forms of media for information.
"There is no question that the industry is undergoing huge change," Waltz said. "There are changes in technology and the way we consume news and information. Our challenge is to compete in the new arena."
The staff cuts will be accompanied by changes to the newspaper's design and content. The Sentinel, a subsidiary of Chicago-based Tribune Co., plans to redesign some of its news sections, retool its daily feature sections, and put a greater emphasis on local news in the financial pages.
"We have a large and talented newsroom that will continue energetically covering our community," Editor Charlotte Hall said.
Although the Sentinel's advertising revenue increased this year, it is joining other Tribune papers in cutting costs to improve the parent company's bottom line.
Newspapers are grappling with two decades of circulation declines that have accelerated in recent years. During the six months that ended in September, daily newspapers' weekday circulation dropped an average of 2.65 percent. The Sentinel's fell 11.1 percent, mostly as the result of a decision to cut back on its distribution to hotel rooms.
Circulation declines are only part of the industry's problem. Newspapers have also lost advertising revenue to the Internet -- and worry that trend is irreversible, though they also have their own growing Web presences.
Newspapers owned by the New York Times Co., Knight Ridder Inc. and Tribune have all announced plans this fall to cut jobs.
Media stocks are suffering. Large, publicly traded media companies have watched share prices slide. Faced with demands from large shareholders, Knight Ridder this month said it would consider selling itself to another company.
Newspaper companies are looking for ways to adapt to the technological changes that have made investors leery about their potential for continued growth. Waltz said the Sentinel is facing the challenge while maintaining its core mission.
"We are going to focus on growing audience, serving advertisers and serving our communities," she said.
Christopher Boyd can be reached at cboyd@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5723.
