Wanted: friendly advice for the Globe
In today's memo announcing the elimination of up to 50 newsroom jobs, Globe editor Marty Baron makes it clear--as publisher Steve Ainsley did earlier this month--that the Globe of the future is still undefined:
Once again, we will have to assess everything we do. And so we will
move promptly to evaluate a wide range of options. Not every option we
review will come to pass, but reductions of this magnitude obviously
will require us to make fundamental changes. Your ideas are welcome [emph. added].
So here's my question: what "fundamental changes" would Globe readers urge the paper's brain trust to consider?
As you offer your suggestions, bear in mind that, based on today's announcement, the Globe is about to lose roughly 20 percent* of its newsroom staff--and that the Globe is hardly alone in its struggles.
*NOTE: The Globe's online roster (click on "newsroom staff," above) suggests that the newsroom has 244 employees. But according to this NYT story, the Globe newsroom has the equivalent of 433 full-time positions--which means the impending cuts would cut staffing levels by about 12 percent.