Way OT: I got laid off today
So, after 11 years in the newspaper industry, I was called into that office no one wants to go into this morning and told I'm getting let go at the end of the month.
My sources, naturally, are pretty pissed, and right now I feel numb.
I really had hope for this profession, as I love it so much, but the newspaper industry is going the way of the dinosaur. Oh well.
Sorry to put this on here, just needed to vent.
October 6th, 2009 at 6:58 PM ^
I don't know how old your daughter is, but when she grows up, she will look back on the time you two got to spend together and she will really appreciate it. My dad's work permitted him to spend a lot of time with us growing up, and I know both he and I have treasured it.
October 6th, 2009 at 10:12 PM ^
I'm in a similar position myself. We had our daughter in february so its been me and her while my wife's been at work. So in a way it was a blessing in disguise. Not sure how much more time i have left before i go back to work. but i've been enjoying the time that i get to spend with her
October 6th, 2009 at 11:24 PM ^
and you've been able to accumulate over 1,000 pts on mgoblog with all your free time ;)
Great story good for you.
October 6th, 2009 at 6:45 PM ^
Sorry to hear man, we all need to stick together right now.
I graduated in May, moved to California, and am still looking for work. Going on six months now. :(
October 6th, 2009 at 7:11 PM ^
I am just curious, since you say the newspaper industry is going the way of the dinosaurs, are you going to look for a more modern journalistic kind of job, or slowly get ready to change professions? Just curious how you see this, because printed media sure looks on the way to extintion.
October 6th, 2009 at 9:09 PM ^
I was going to ask this same question. I hope you can continue doing what you love somewhere down the line. Maybe you can find a niche like Brian Cook did.
Being unemployed was the most depressing time of my life. Luckily with determination and my parents support I was able to pull through.
October 6th, 2009 at 9:25 PM ^
I've seen the writing on the wall for a long time concerning the future of newspapers. Here in Southwest Florida, we're somewhat padded to a degree because of the older population that resides here. Generally, most of these people still love newspapers, and our circulation numbers haven't gone down during this recession. It's been the opposite. The problem is ad revenue. Newspapers, and I have no idea who came up with this formula, depend on advertising to survive. Subscription revenue is meaningless in the grand scheme of things. The whole product depends on ads. Until they fix this model, there is no hope for papers.
In terms of changing professions, the only other thing I would like to do - besides journalism - is teach.
October 6th, 2009 at 7:28 PM ^
I'll be praying for you and your family.
Keep your head up best of luck!
October 6th, 2009 at 7:33 PM ^
That is awful news, and I agree with TomVH's thoughts on how to handle the situation. Best of luck.
That said...there is a real "meta" issue here about the changing of media and whether there will be a loss of investigative journalism (and other valuable media elements/reporting such as what you provide) under the new media paradigm. I tend to consider any "the world is going to hell in a handbasket aaargh things were better in my day" arguments with a massive grain of salt, but I have some degree of concern about what reporting will look like in the media of the future.
Your personal story here is perfectly illustrative of the change taking place, and after you've had some time to collect your thoughts I'd be interested to hear your take on the matter and whether you feel there will be a reduction in the quality of media content.
Again - best of luck.
October 6th, 2009 at 8:24 PM ^
Investigative journalism SHOULD continue to thrive with such easy access to info on the internet and a variety of ways to find and contact sources.
The real issue is the quality of information. People who don't have backgrounds in journalism are now able to write and publish stories with ease. Anyone can pretend to be a journalist nowdays and that is scary for those who cherish news that is well written, factually based, and accurate.
October 6th, 2009 at 9:29 PM ^
This is spot on. And it is part of the problem the medium is dying. But people like Brian do an excellent job at what they do. I dare say he would make a fine reporter.
October 6th, 2009 at 8:35 PM ^
I have been through this myself and it is not pleasant, so I hope the Lord uses His Grace to pull you through.
October 6th, 2009 at 9:27 PM ^
The Lord and I are going to have a chat tonight. It's been a while since we talked, and I think it will do me some good.
October 6th, 2009 at 9:37 PM ^
Damn
October 6th, 2009 at 10:31 PM ^
wish you the best in what ever endeavor you decide to set your sights on.
October 6th, 2009 at 10:40 PM ^
Sorry to hear that.
Graduating from U of M this past year, I knew jobs were going to be tough to find so I went the grad school route. I don't know how old you are, not that that really matters, but getting another degree can never hurt, especially as the economy limps back.
October 6th, 2009 at 10:44 PM ^
I thought it said "I got laid today" -
sorry to hear that it is actually laid off - best of luck.
October 6th, 2009 at 10:47 PM ^
you're not the only one who thought you read that.
October 7th, 2009 at 12:45 AM ^
I got laid off, and it forced me to get out of Michigan. It's been one of the best things that could have happened to me. In the long run, hopefully you have a similar result from this misfortune.
I'd buy you a beer if I lived in Florida.
No sugarcoat.
October 7th, 2009 at 1:42 AM ^
It sounds way better if you take the word "off" out of the subject line.
October 7th, 2009 at 8:11 AM ^
(first though, sorry about losing your job)
Did you see this coming or was it a complete shock? I've got a friend who works for Rueters and he's known for a year that he's losing his job of 10 years next March. At least that has given him some time to try and find something else. I'm not sure which would be worse - knowing, or finding out the day of.
I work for a local government in Southeast Michigan, and with the proposed state revenue sharing cuts, there are a whole bunch of us worried about losing our jobs. Problem is, when you have a job like mine (and yours from the sounds of it) you can't just go find another job that easily.
Anyways - best of luck.
October 7th, 2009 at 8:46 AM ^
I didn't know this was coming. In hindsight, maybe I should have known.
October 7th, 2009 at 10:17 AM ^
This sucks for you and I'm sorry to hear it. I have nightmares every now and then where this happens to me. I imagine that if it does for real, it would be the worst day of my life. The problem with getting laid off is that even if you are really good at what you do, chances are, everyone else in the profession is laying off too. Which means you might have to start way back at square one doing something else.
OK, I'm sorry that I'm going to get a bit preachy now. This is why people should always live well below their means and save money for a rainy day. Ultimately, there is no excuse for not doing this. Getting laid off can happen to anyone and you don't want to be in a position where you will lose your house in two months if you lose your job. (directed at everyone not just OP).
October 7th, 2009 at 10:21 AM ^
so I disagree with you 100%. It's called having three school aged kids. The 7 & 5 year olds are constantly growing. They need new shoes, new clothes. There is lunch money, this week it was school pictures and girlscout uniform money. Last week it was money so my son could play flag football. There's book fairs, halloween costumes, birthday gifts and Christmas gifts. There's after school daycare (and in the summers, there's full daycare for the two youngest ones. My wife and I both work full time and make decent money, but still I drive a 1995 POS Ford F150 and she drives a 2000 Ford Taurus.
We don't go out to eat much or have all kinds of brand new nice things. That's because with the cost of living, school loans, gas, food & housing and trying to raise 3 children, we pretty much live paycheck to paycheck.
So not everyone is able to save money for a rainy day as much as we would like to. So yes, there is an excuse!
October 7th, 2009 at 9:08 PM ^
I'm sixty three. I have been laid off three times. The last was two and one half years ago. I could have given up, but ultimately got an excellent job, but in a different part of the country which I now call home.
Here is some advice that I will pass along, which has gotten me through the bad days. First, go to work every day. That is, set up a home office. Dress like you are at work. Put in 8 solid hours of looking for work. Secondly, comfort yourself with the fact that hunting for work is a series of "Nos" followed by a "Yes." Lastly prepare for the inevitable interviews and be yourself. Emphasize your accomplishments, and don't reveal negative information unless forced to.
The job will come. Hang in there!!!