The Front Page is The Objective’s twice-monthly newsletter that examines systems of power and inequity in journalism. Thanks for your patience during our unannounced two-month hiatus! Our most recent issue was sent on Nov. 17. We're now moving our publishing date to Mondays, but you'll still see us in your inbox twice a month.

We may be in a new year, but a number of journalism trends persist — including layoffs.

If you’re involved in the media world, odds are that you’ve heard of the job cuts that have occurred last month. In the past 30-something days, publications of all sizes and mediums have been affected, including the L.A. Times, the Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, TIME Magazine, National Geographic, TechCrunch, and Business Insider. The high-profile media startup The Messenger, on the last day of the month, also announced it would be closing after less than a year, leaving 300 journalists without jobs.

Why does the media industry keep finding itself in a position where journalists — regardless of experience level — are unsure of their future?

In his 2024 Nieman Lab prediction for journalism, Robert Hernandez almost-prophetically stated that “the wrong people will be laid off… again.” 

Hernandez argued that responsibility shouldn’t fall on workers. Instead, he wrote, “What has continued to fail is the leadership and executives running the business. [...] What I’m saying is it’s time to hold our business executives accountable. [...] How often do these executives face consequences, like a general assignment reporter in the newsroom? Chances are they’ve gotten bonuses and raises, while newsrooms fight for better pay.”

The Messenger had $50 million to its name when it launched last year and claimed it could raise twice that amount this year. Its founder, former The Hill owner Jimmy Finkelstein, insisted that the publication would be different and the company desired to reach an audience of 100 million monthly viewers. This pressure was reflected in the quality of the site’s content. Eli Walsh, former breaking news reporter at The Messenger, wrote on X that the majority of the stories he wrote at the outlet consisted of “copying and pasting work that other reporters put time and effort into [...] for the sake of driving traffic at any and all costs.” 

This unsustainable model led to the publication losing $38 million dollars last year. Ultimately, the staff bore the brunt of this loss — a pattern reflected by other newsrooms.

The L.A. Times layoffs, which the paper’s owner Patrick Soon-Shiong attributed to cost-cutting as the newsroom saw financial losses, if they continue as planned, created a major loss of journalists at the Times’ Washington bureau. And according to Erin B. Logan,, a journalist who was recently laid off from the L.A. Times, the publication “laid off every single Black person in its Washington [b]ureau.” De Los, an initiative focused on Latine issues, was also among the teams affected by the layoffs. 

We are currently in an election year, which means it is especially important to keep an eye on what is happening in Washington, and as Nieman Lab notes, De Los was an effort to connect with an audience typically overlooked by the L.A. Times. It is alarming when a large number of laid-off journalists are of color or are focused on minority communities. 

What does all of this mean for journalists who have suddenly found themselves without a job? Freelancing may seem to be an obvious option, but it is not the solution. 

As a writer who has been a freelancer for the vast majority of my journalism career, I believe it is very difficult and is filled with uncertainty; it really is not for everyone. As Jewel Wicker, an Atlanta-based journalist, elaborates, freelancing comes with its own set of issues, including the pressure to pay for your own medical care. It is great for those who decide they want to do it or have the capability to, but journalists should not be forced to freelance to remain in the industry. 

In the midst of these layoffs, media workers have been circulating mutual aid resources in order to support their peers. Some include emergency grants, the LA Journalists' Mutual Aid Network and the community aid network.

Last month also saw a number of labor actions: Employees at places such as

Condé Nast and the New York Daily News went on a one-day strike last week to protest contract negotiations. Unions can be helpful in the face of mismanagement due to power in numbers — in fact, former The Messenger workers are the publication’s founder for the sudden layoffs, and the NewsGuild of New York is suing Sports Illustrated’s publisher for the layoffs being alleged union-busting. But there still needs to be a fundamental change in how we can make news sustainable and which business models prevail.

Publications are businesses, but it feels that executives often forget the humans who are working to produce the stories. Journalists should not be wondering when they’re going to be laid off next.

—Houreidja Tali

The Civic Media Series continues: Read the latest in our Civic Media Series, including dispatches from Scalawag’s Cierra Hinton about the necessity of a media ecosystem that urges justice while using narrative as a tool to dismantle systemic oppression and the Listening Post Collective’s Jesse Hardman about growing information gardens in so-called “news deserts” by supporting local media-makers from artists to journalists and grassroots organizations. (The Objective) 

Martin Luther King Jr. and the well-adjusted journalism industry: Last month, Uyiosa Elegon wrote about journalism’s adjustment to three “evils” — militarism, racism, and poverty — that the reverend cautioned against, and the Disneyification of King Jr.’s legacy. Elegon also wrote about efforts in the industry to go against the grain and chafe against acceptance of said “evils”, including reflections from Baltimore Beat editor-in-chief Lisa Snowden and Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists president Ernest Owens. (The Objective)

Texan newsrooms unionize: Last month, staff at two newsrooms in the state — the Texas Tribune and the San Antonio Report — announced they were forming unions, respectively the Texas Tribune Guild and San Antonio Report Union. SA Report management chose to recognize the latter after union members went on a one-day unfair labor practice strike after an unexpected staff layoff. The unionization comes after Texan newsrooms, particularly the Houston Landing and the Tribune, had seen devastating staff cuts in recent months. (Texas Tribune Guild, San Antonio Report Union, Texas Monthly)

CNN staff say network’s pro-Israel slant amounts to “journalistic malpractice”: Since Oct. 7, Israeli military attacks have killed over 27,000 Palestinians. CNN staffers share accounts of the network’s tendency to more rigorously challenge Palestinian voices and views, including stories critical of the Israeli government. One staffer called the majority of CNN coverage “skewed by a systemic and institutional bias within the network toward Israel.” (The Guardian)

Craig Newmark School of Journalism on path to free tuition for all students: A $10 million launch gift from Craig Newmark Philanthropies will allow half of the journalism school’s August 2025 entering class to study for free. The school aims to raise another $30 million by the end of 2026 to enable all students at the school to offer free tuition to its entire student body. It’s part of steps the school has been taking to make journalism education more accessible, waiving application fees starting with this year’s applicants. (CUNY)

18 days until … the deadline to register for the 2024 Women in Journalism Workshop. The application is to confirm interest in registration, which costs $50 for students (or free for volunteers) and $75 for professionals. It’ll focus on “challenges, accomplishments and issues specific to women in the journalism industry today.”

21 days until … the deadline to apply to the Du Bois Data Lab. The all-expenses-paid program is for HBCU journalism students interested in using data, design and code to help tell stories. The in-person program will run from May 29 to June 5, 2024 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Looking for a job? Here are a few places to look: INN | ONA | JournalismJobs.com | 10 Jobs and a Dog | NABJ | AAJA | NAHJ | NLGJA | @WritersofColor | MEO Jobs | Freelance Journalist Rates | Source Jobs | Opportunities of the Week ($) | West Coast Media Jobs

How about a style guide? Trans Journalist Association | Diversity Style Guide | Tribal Nations Media Guide | NABJ Style Guide | Disability Language Style Guide | AAJA Guide to Covering Asian Pacific America | NAHJ Cultural Competence Handbook | SPJ Race & Gender Hotline | AMEJA Media Resource Guide | The Press in Prison | The Conscious Style Guide | Reporting on Addiction

Thanks for reading our newsletter. We appreciate you being here, and we’ll have more for you soon.

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