Coronavirus Hits MA Newspapers: Furloughs, Layoffs, Ending Print

MILFORD, MA — News about the new coronavirus has been nonstop since the outbreak picked up speed in early March. And while local news reporters have been hard at work covering the story, newspapers are being hit hard by outbreak.

On Monday, word leaked that the newspaper chain Gannett would begin furloughing employees as ad revenue drops amid the coronavirus outbreak, according to Poynter. In Massachusetts, Gannett owns the MetroWest Daily News, Milford Daily News, Worcester Telegram, Cape Cod Times, Patriot Ledger, and dozens of weekly newspapers.

"Our plan is to minimize long-term damage to the business by implementing a combination of furloughs and pay reductions," a memo sent across the company by CEO Paul Bascobert reads. "By choosing a collective sacrifice, we can keep our staff intact, reduce our cost structure, deliver for our readers and clients and be ready to emerge strong and with opportunity to grow when this crisis passes."

Gannett employees earning more than $38,000 will be force to take monthly one-week furloughs. Gannett executives will take 25 percent pay cuts, according to reports.

Gannett hasn't been the only local newspaper owner to announce cuts.

On April 2, several Boston Herald and Lowell Sun employees said they had been let go. Some of the layoffs include Herald sportswriter Marisa Ingemi, columnist Jessica Heslam, and Lowell Sun sportswriter Carmine Frongillo. Both papers are owned by Digital First Media, which also owns the Fitchburg Sentinel and Enterprise.

On March 16, the alternative weekly paper DigBoston said that it would suspend its print edition due to coronavirus. Another alt weekly, the Valley Advocate, which covers the Northampton and Pioneer Valley areas, won't be printed again until April 30 at the earliest.

Alt weeklies have been hit especially hard by coronavirus since a large share of their revenue comes from event listings. Seattle's The Stranger, one of the most prominent alt weeklies in the country, laid off 18 staff members on March 13 and ended its bimonthly print edition. The Seattle area was ground zero for the coronavirus outbreak in U.S.

The Northampton Daily Gazette, which owns the Valley Advocate, also laid off several staff and suspended production of Hampshire Life magazine.

On March 24, the Attleboro Sun Chronicle made a round of cuts, including longtime political reporter Jim Hand. The loss was a surprise to many, including Gov. Charlie Baker.

"I have had to deal with your inquiring mind and occasional gut punches(!) for years. You know what you are doing and covering — and you have done the need business proud," Baker tweeted last Tuesday.

On Monday morning, MetroWest Daily News executive editor Anne Brennan published a letter to readers promising that local Gannett reporters would continue covering all aspects of the coronavirus crisis through "tough times."

"MetroWest and the Milford area are made up of resilient and innovative communities, large and small, where people come together to build and rebuild," she wrote. "Let’s stick together, and we will come through this, too."