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Providence Journal lays off 23 full-time employees PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Providence Journal Co. laid off 23 full-time workers Wednesday as part of a cost-cutting effort, including 16 members of the Providence Newspaper Guild and 7 non-union employees. The cutback represents 5 percent of The Journal's workforce. The reductions come about two months after 11 employees accepted a voluntary separation offer. "Given a persistent softness in advertising revenue and the resultant impact on our earnings, it is necessary that we reduce our cost structure," said Howard G. Sutton, publisher, president and chief executive officer, in a statement. "It is always...

(snip)....There will never be a mainstream news media anymore," said Ken Braun, managing editor of Michigan Capitol Confidential and part of the five-person media panel. "It is becoming what I call a multi-stream media. That's the future we are headed to."... (snip)

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) - The Ann Arbor News plans to publish its last newspaper July 23, with a twice-weekly online-focused operation taking its place. Publisher Laurel Champion announced the date Thursday in an e-mail to employees. The News reported in March it would cease publication after 174 years because of steep revenue losses. A Web-based media company called AnnArbor.com will emerge. Although the new venture comes from the same owner, the Newhouse family's Advance Publications, officials have stressed that AnnArbor.com will be built from the ground up, with the new free Web site being more than the old newspaper...

NBC Universal is in serious negotiations to give its 10 p.m. weeknight time slot to Jay Leno, a move that would secure the popular "Tonight Show" host's place at the network after he vacates his late night perch this spring, according to three sources close to the network. An announcement could come as early as Tuesday. The move would address several major problems for the network, which is bleeding ratings and has failed to develop any new hit shows this fall, at a time when advertising revenue is plummeting. Under the proposal, NBC would only develop programming for two hours...

NEW YORK – The New York Times is reporting that NBC has signed its late-night star Jay Leno to a contract that will keep him at the network and move him to prime time. Under the new deal, Leno, whose "Tonight" show hosting job will go to Conan O'Brien, would have a new show airing 10 p.m. Eastern every weeknight. The deal reportedly will be announced Tuesday.

Fifteen years ago, I had a stupid idea. I was the co-executive producer on ..."Cheers." NBC...was faltering: Ratings were sliding, money was tight, management was nervous ...Johnny Carson...was retiring... I was 28 then, and like all 28-year-olds, I had no idea exactly how stupid I was. So when I found myself standing next to the president of NBC ...I offered my solution to his network's crisis. "You know what you should do?" ... "You should move the 'Tonight Show' with Jay Leno to 10 p.m. Think of all the money you'd save." "That's a pretty stupid suggestion," he said to...

Tribune's January Revenues Decline 5 Percent; Circulation Down CHICAGO (AP) -- Tribune Co. said Friday that monthly revenues dropped 5 percent in January, keeping up the pressure on the media conglomerate as it continues to study what steps to take to reinvigorate its operations and slumping share price. The worsening advertising environment for newspapers took a bigger toll than usual. Ad revenues from the publishing unit declined 7.3 percent from a year earlier to $268 million, lagging the rest of the industry. Amid an industrywide slump, J.P. Morgan analyst Frederick Searby called Tribune's latest advertising revenue revenues "the worst monthly...

It has finally happened. The left is beginning to turn against New York Times publisher Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr., known far and wide as “Pinch.” It is simple to understand why: the New York Times is becoming a failing business under his stewardship, and the Left needs the NYT. Faithful readers of The American Thinker have known this for over two years, as we have chronicled the journalistic and economic decline of the New York Times Company. We started warning investors that their money was at risk before the common stock lost half its value. We slogged through to SEC...