Layoffs at Paper Prompt Uproar Over Diversity

LAYOFFS AT PAPER PROMPT UPROAR OVER DIVERSITY
[SOURCE: New York Times 1/15, AUTHOR: Maria Aspan]
The recent layoffs at the embattled Philadelphia Inquirer have resulted in a round of finger-pointing over their disproportionate impact on diversity in the newsroom. On Jan. 3, the Inquirer began laying off 71 newsroom employees, or 17 percent of its staff, based on seniority guidelines in the newspaper union’s contract. According to the Newspaper Guild of Greater Philadelphia, 17 of the 71 journalists laid off, or about 24 percent, are minorities. In a Jan. 3 letter to Brian P. Tierney, the publisher of The Inquirer and The Daily News, the National Association of Black Journalists protested the sharp decline in newsroom diversity. Mr. Tierney and union leaders expressed dismay at the impact on newsroom diversity -- and promptly blamed each other.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/business/media/15philly.html
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