Business & Tech

Layoffs Hit the Courier-Post in Editorial, Advertising

The cuts came down earlier this week, according to multiple sources.

Reporting by Cherry Hill Patch editor Bryan Littel

As many as 14 people have been laid off at the Courier-Post as part of company-wide layoffs at media giant Gannett, according to one source with knowledge of the layoffs and corroborating, anonymous reports on Gannett Blog.

The Cherry Hill paper axed staff members both on the editorial and advertising side, according to those reports, including copy desk staff and multiple sports staff, who have been replaced in part by Vineland Daily Journal sports editor Tom McGurk, who was listed as a regional sports editor as of Wednesday.

The layoffs may be at least partially driven by regionalization; an email from Asbury Park Press executive editor Hollis Towns, leaked on Gannett Blog, indicated both the Cherry Hill and Vineland papers were being added to a regional production system that already included four other Gannett newspapers in New Jersey.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

Courier-Post executive editor Christina Mitchell didn’t respond to a request for comment on the layoffs, which reportedly were issued to staff at some point during the day Monday.

They’re the latest in a round of layoffs across Gannett, which has axed about 400 staff from its local news division since the start of August, according to reports both on Gannett Blog and from USA Today.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

Gannett has not released specific numbers on the cuts, even to its own flagship paper, though the company did confirm they were taking place.

Circulation at the Courier-Post has plunged in the last seven years, going from about 69,500 during the week and 83,000 on Sundays in March 2007 down to 43,550 during the week and 57,530 on Sundays as of March 2013.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here