New trend: Phasing out graphics departments?
Regarding last night’s shocking news about the Atlanta Journal-Constitution bagging its entire graphics operation, “Jenn B” posted to this blog today:
I’m wondering if this will be the beginning of a new trend among newspapers, take out the graphics dept.
Dean Lockwood of the San Antonio Express-News writes:
These past few decades where visual journalism ascended — did it ever really, really take in the fiber of newsrooms? Was there every real understanding? Real, down-in-the-DNA buy-in? Was it just the trendy thing and a luxury to be afforded during the Happy Times of gargantuan profit margins?
Good questions, gang. It certainly seems like a trend.
Fort Worth’s Steve Wilson reports to us via Facebook:
Texas update: The Star-Telegram finished its layoffs last week and the art department is officially three, now. The Houston Chronicle just had theirs — they are now down to two. (That’s a huge paper for a two-person art department.)
The Chronicle used to have five artists, Chronicle artist Alberto Cuadra says. The newsroom there was told:
“From now on we are going to be a lot more selective with the graphics we choose to produce and the layout guys will help producing locators and charts”.
Well, the reality is: none of that is happening. Designers have no time to produce even locators and we are finding ourselves in a situation in which all we do — all we can do from now on — is half-ass maps and charts.
Steve Wilson writes:
And I hear Dallas was this week.
Right you are. We’re hearing of cuts across the board at the Dallas Morning News — no specific information about visuals departments, though. If anyone from there would like to fill us in, we’d love to hear more.
(And before we forget again, all you laid-off souls out there might want to read and bookmark this. It’s been handy to a a lot of people who found themselves suddenly out of work.)
The only DMN staffer we’ve heard from personally is former assistant news editor Jennifer Enfinger, who was laid off Tuesday. She’s been entertaining her Facebook friends this week with a satirical day-by-day post-layoff diary:
Unemployment log, Day 2Woke up at 2 p.m. Migrated to couch in my Mrs. Roper caftan.
Filled out one job application. Considered doing laundry. Declined to do laundry.Considered going back to sleep. Resisted siren song of pillows. (too lazy to leave couch?)
Hungry. May leave house. Should I wear the caftan to Kroger? Yes. Yes I should.
Back to graphics departments: “Darla” posted, in a comment to our earlier blog entry:
The Tulsa World eliminated its entire graphics department — full of awesome, talented veterans — in January, except the department editor.
Not sure where this is going for visual journalism, but I don’t think I like it…
And the trend has spread to the Virginian-Pilot. Damn near, anyway.
The Pilot announced this week it would lay off another 40 employees, including 12 in the newsroom. Including one of two remaining graphic journalists.
So from my outstanding department — shown here in the summer of 2007 — there will be only one guy left: Second from the right. Bob Voros.
Just stunning. I came to the Pilot in 2003 to help build up the graphics end of the paper’s visuals team. Instead, I’ve watched it get hacked down to nearly nothing.
(Full disclosure: The multimedia genius + print artist + graphics reporter who ended up as our final hire — Miranda Mulligan, on the right — is still at the Pilot, but as a member of another team.)
We’ll end on a wistful note. This is Steve Wilson again, in Fort Worth:
I posted a video the other day on a couple of co-workers leaving. I just happened to have my camera with me that day:
Layoffs, buyouts and goodbyes. I know it is happening in every newsroom. I sure hope things turn around soon.
We do too, Steve. We do, too.
April 10th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
There were ten people when I arrived in the graphics department at Newsweek in 1996 and about seven when I left in 2006. Now, there is one part time artist and a researcher…
April 10th, 2009 at 9:47 pm
EXACTLY, Karl! Great example!
I bought copies of Newsweek and Time during my trip to Louisiana back in January and then to Austin in March.
I found Time a better read than Newsweek, but only marginally so. Both magazines were very thin — much more so than the last time I had read either. Newsweek really blew me away, though, by how text-heavy it was. Page after page after page of just sticks of text.
The next airplane trip I took — to Iowa last week — I bought Toyfare and Wizard. I enjoyed that experience much more.
So what would magazine producers learn from observing my buying habits? That this guy in Virginia Beach, Reader X, is no longer interested in reading news? That he’s more interested in science fiction or entertainment? In fact, I’m fed up with buying a crappy-ass news weekly that doesn’t deliver what I expect and delivers less and less with each issue I buy.
I suspect we’re doing that same thing to the readers of our newspapers, too. Now’s not the time to cut back; now’s the time to invest in content, to invest in investigative journalism, to invest in innovative storytelling.
But we can’t invest. We have all our money tied up in paying off bad debt.
It’s not the internet that’s killing newspapers or newsweeklies. Its the people who RUN the newspapers and the newsweeklies.
April 10th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
There no real point trying to figure out what has happened to newspapers, it is too late. It is certain that our speciality will not survive this winter. It is the end of the great denial, the blanket can no longer lie about the cold. Newspapers are fundamentaly ruined by the severe weathering of the years of missed opportunities and false assumptions. I will miss dearly the rush of presenting news visually. My passage through this profession is sadly complete.
April 10th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
But you know what, if someone is willing to convert their medium to small circulation paper or new site into a graphic centric pub. I’m back in the mix :-)
April 10th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
Welcome to the nuclear winter for US newsrooms. Good luck for all of us.
Two thoughts:
-Usually the graphic department’s professionals are among the most versatile, tech-savvy and resilient members of the newsroom. Most likely, they will do better out there than a company so shortsighted to let them go.
-After this crisis, the new publications (or websites, mobile papers or whatever shape they take) will need, MORE THAN EVER experienced graphic professionals. In this new media, graphic journalists will have a much more prevalent role than they have had traditionally in the old structures, but news media will have a very difficult time replacing the talent lost or destroyed in this terrible period.
Check this Microsoft glimpse of the future media: what do you see? graphics!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxVS5nYFnkA&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fdmultimedia%2Eblogspot%2Ecom%2F&feature=player_embedded
April 10th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
Leave it to Javier Zarracina to bring back the most positive, encouraging take on the whole issue.
What a perfect note upon which to end a very busy week, Javier. Thanks a bunch!
-C
April 11th, 2009 at 12:14 am
While it’s somewhat sad to see it come to this, are any of us really surprised? The newspaper industry has been wandering in the proverbial desert for years, and I don’t think it’s going to find its promised land. Management at many operations did too little too late.
Join me in web design land. You’ll be treated better, you won’t be told you can’t do something because your 30 year old press and the tissue paper it prints on will turn whatever you make into a mess that’d make a hairball jealous. And, this is the best part, IT’S A GROWTH INDUSTRY! The internets are here to stay (at least for the foreseeable future.)
I’ll admit, I was scared when I was laid off from the newspaper industry. I now think it’s the best thing that ever happened to me. I’m happy in a way I haven’t been in a long time. My creativity is appreciated, my opinions are considered and the feedback I get helps me grow. Sure there are annoyances to deal with (mostly involving browser compatibility) and xhtml/css are a little more hands on that many of us were used to with InDesign/Quark, but it’s worth it
For any who’ve been laid off, you have my deepest sympathy. Remeber, there is life beyond the newsroom.
April 11th, 2009 at 2:40 am
Boy, I feel for anyone affected by all this. Even working under the cloud of “will my/our jobs be here tomorrow” isn’t comforting either.
April 11th, 2009 at 7:59 am
Hey Chuck, actually I am heading back to graphics. So we will be a two-person team but I will be going back to doing both print graphics and online work.
Javier - I couldn’t agree with you more… unfortunately that is exactly why I keep getting moved all over the place.
Ryan - you have articulated my exact campaign for the past two years. We need more visual people to assert themselves into the we news presentation. It is both cowboy country and growth industry so I can see why people might be hesitant. But we need it! Desperately.
April 11th, 2009 at 10:33 am
Ryan, that’s good advice. There is a vast unexplored world out there, esp. on the web for graphics folks like us. Well said!
April 11th, 2009 at 11:57 am
Javier, I had exactly the same conversation las night with my now ex-coworker and friend Robert Dibrell. The term we used was crap-storm instead of nuclear winter but the concept is the same.
I absolutely agree with your reasoning but the problem is how long until the dust settles. Time is a huge factor when you have people that depends on your paycheck you don’t have the luxury to wait for the next thing or freely jump around to the next thing.
Ryan, you are in the right spot. Could you elaborate on how did you get in the web development world?
April 11th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
What the? Newspapers really do not get it. The populus is becoming more visually inclined not less. Heck, I’m not sure a couple generations from now will even need to read.
Regarding the question will the jobs be there? Information delivery is about “embracing change.” (Oral history… handwritten letters, books… printed pages… telegraph… radio… TV… internet. All moving away from written words as core delivery.) The jobs will be there in a different form. Infographics journalists are far more prepared to work on the web than a staff reporter or slot editor.
April 11th, 2009 at 3:55 pm
Steve
You are totally correct, and sum up my thoughts perfectly
April 11th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
This does not bode well…
April 11th, 2009 at 11:49 pm
The last two papers (Medianews 40k and NYT 90k circs) I have been at have fazed out the graphics staffs. From about 8 people in 2002ish to zero now. I left of my own accord and they never replaced me as graphics editor. But I would not have been surprised to have been layed off or had my all my staff layed off. So I guess at least the timing was my own.
But these days, 10 years in one field is a long time. Time to move on. I am glad that I did not have 30 years into it, and no other options.
April 13th, 2009 at 3:33 pm
Sorry I’m late to this posting, but I was off getting married this weekend.
For what it’s worth, not everything is doom and gloom. We have diversified the Sun-Sentinel graphics department — adding TV news and promotions graphics and three more artists to the mix.
Now print, web and TV have one place to get graphics and it is easier to produce for all platforms.
I’m the first to admit this experiment may not work. We’re walking a fine line and it could backfire. But with any luck, those of us who survive this “kill the art department” nonsense will emerge with new skills and be better equipped to capitalize on the opportunities of a resurgent economy.
We are also facing layoffs and would be surprised to make it through unscathed. But I am fortunate that upper management (Tim Frank and Earl Mauker) see Javier’s point — that the graphics department is positioned to help lead the way now AND the next time the technological ground shifts.
I don’t want to sound like a Pollyanna, especially since several people I really care for have been laid off. I just want to keep a spark of hope alive.
April 24th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
You know, another “trend” I’ve spotted — or at least wondered about — has been this business of canning designers right after a redesign.
It’d be interesting to see some pie charts of the makeup of newspapers before and after rounds of layoffs to see the real patterns, if any. Should be no lack of graphics folks with time on their hands :-|