AP | Inquirer | Washington Post
The sale of Philadelphia Media Network could be a done deal by the end of this month, reports the Associated Press. The sale price for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com is between $40 and $70 million, the AP reports. The papers were purchased for $130 million in 2010 by hedge funds that are now selling them once again. When PMN changes hands, the news organization will have its fifth owner in six years. And it will be leaner than ever. This week, 21 Guild members took buyouts, 19 Guild members were laid off and five nonunion employees were laid off (a total of 45 departures), leaving the paper with a newsroom staff of about 350.
Sarah Glover, the sole woman of color on the photo staff of either paper, is among those leaving. The National Association of Black Journalists condemned her departure in a statement.
“Newsrooms suffer greatly when they lose individuals who have the journalistic impact of Sarah Glover. We view her departure from the Daily News as another unsettling attack on diversity. She is a leader in the newsroom and the community. She was among the first photojournalists at the Daily News to develop and hone video skills that she also taught others. Her departure sends a disturbing message.”
Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Signe Wilkinson will be staying at the paper, though her job was in jeopardy. Wilkinson tells The Washington Post’s Michael Cavna that she “will draw five cartoons a week for the Daily News and three cartoons a week for the Inquirer.” Inquirer cartoonist Tony Auth, also a Pulitzer winner, took the buyout and will go work at WHYY.
