id: nypost--2020-05-05--BuzzFeed News names Mark Schoofs editor-in-chief, replacing Ben Smith

source: nypost

content:
Four months after Ben Smith left as editor-in-chief of BuzzFeed News to become a media columnist at the New York Times , BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti has found his replacement .
Mark Schoofs , a well-respected investigative journalist who is currently a visiting professor at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism , is returning to BuzzFeed , the media company said .
In 2014 , Schoofs created BuzzFeed ’ s investigative team as the company was trying to shed its image as a home for cat video and listicles in pursuit of more serious fare .
During that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about wrongful imprisonment as well as abuses at psychiatric hospitals and for-profit foster-care facilities .
Schoofs , a veteran of the Wall Street Journal and Pro Publica , will also remain on the faculty of the USC school , which will benefit from visiting lectures by Peretti .
BuzzFeed also plans to establish an internship program with the Annenberg School .
Schoofs won a Pulitzer Prize for the Village Voice in 2000 for his reporting on AIDS in Africa in a year when it was the only NYC paper to land the prestigious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Prize at the Wall Street Journal for 9/11 coverage .
He returns at a time when Buzzfeed has been making deep cuts in the wake of the coronavirus that has caused ad dollars to plunge even as web traffic surges to an all-time high .
“ I ’ m thrilled to come back to BuzzFeed News , ” Schoofs said .

new_content:
Four months after Ben Smith left as editor-in-chief of BuzzFeed News to become a media columnist at the New York Times, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti has found his replacement.
Mark Schoofs, a well-respected investigative journalist who is currently a visiting professor at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, is returning to BuzzFeed, the media company said.
In 2014, Schoofs created BuzzFeed’s investigative team as the company was trying to shed its image as a home for cat video and listicles in pursuit of more serious fare. During that stint at BuzzFeed, Schoofs oversaw stories about wrongful imprisonment as well as abuses at psychiatric hospitals and for-profit foster-care facilities.
Schoofs, a veteran of the Wall Street Journal and Pro Publica, will also remain on the faculty of the USC school, which will benefit from visiting lectures by Peretti. BuzzFeed also plans to establish an internship program with the Annenberg School.
Schoofs won a Pulitzer Prize for the Village Voice in 2000 for his reporting on AIDS in Africa in a year when it was the only NYC paper to land the prestigious prize. He also shared a Pulitzer Prize at the Wall Street Journal for 9/11 coverage.
He returns at a time when Buzzfeed has been making deep cuts in the wake of the coronavirus that has caused ad dollars to plunge even as web traffic surges to an all-time high.
“I’m thrilled to come back to BuzzFeed News,” Schoofs said.


id: nypost--2020-05-06--BuzzFeed furloughing 68 staffers for three months, more cuts planned

content: In a bid to avoid layoffs , BuzzFeed is cutting staffers ’ ...

new_content:
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BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti is going for a second round of furloughs among other cost-cutting measures in a bid to keep the news organization’s coronavirus-related losses under $20 million this year.
Starting on May 16 Peretti will furlough 68 US employees for three months. Some overseas staffers will also be furloughed over varying periods.
Peretti will negotiate with the News Guild of New York about additional cuts to BuzzFeed News, the side of the BuzzFeed business that reports on news — versus cat videos and listicles — and which is unionized.
“The global economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic has inflicted increasingly negative impact on our business,” Peretti said in a memo Wednesday, following an all-hands-on-deck meeting.
“In recent weeks we have been confronted with even greater revenue declines than expected,” Peretti said. “Based on our projections and our goal to keep losses under $20M, we determined we must further reduce costs to sustain BuzzFeed through this crisis and positioning ourselves for eventual recovery.”
“We will begin a negotiation with the News Guild about the need to reduce costs in News,” said Peretti.
“While we weren’t planning for News to be profitable, we were hoping to minimize losses this year and increase our efforts at monetization. Unfortunately, given the current crisis, that will no longer be possible without further cuts similar to what we’re doing across other parts of the company.”
It’s the second round of cuts at BuzzFeed as ad revenue has evaporated due to the pandemic. In the first round of cuts unveiled in late March, Peretti said he would forgo pay until the pandemic was over while cutting employees pay on a sliding scale ranging from 5 percent for employees making less than $65,000 up to 10 percent for employees over $90,000 and 25 percent for top executives.


id: nypost--2020-03-26--BuzzFeed cuts employee pay by up to 25 percent as coronavirus slams economy

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In a bid to avoid layoffs , BuzzFeed is cutting staffers ’ pay by as much as 25 percent while CEO Jonah Peretti will forgo pay as long as the coronavirus wracks the economy .
Peretti broke the news in a memo to staffers Wednesday , saying salaries will be slashed in April and May on a sliding scale based on salary .
Staffers making less than $ 65,000 a year will see their salaries trimmed by 5 percent , according to the Daily Beast , which was first to report the cuts .
Employees making $ 65,000 to $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 7 percent pay cut , while staffers above that bracket will take a 10 percent haircut .
Top executives will see pay cut between 14 percent and 25 percent .
“ I will not be taking a salary until we are on the other side of this crisis , ” Peretti stated .
“ I understand this will be a real hardship for everyone , but our goal is to make it possible for all of us to get through this.
” Peretti made the move in anticipation of a drop in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — eliminating the need for marketing .
Complicating the picture for BuzzFeed is its reliance of video ads known as native advertising , which are more time-consuming and and labor-intensive than digital banner ads .
The company has also been diversifying its ad sales .
In 2019 , 30 percent of its revenue came from native ads in 2019 , down from 60 percent 2017 .
Twenty-one percent of ad revenues are now derived from tech platforms like Facebook and Google-owned You Tube , nearly double that segment ’ s revenue stream two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t know how long this will last but we want to move quickly to make sure our business remains sustainable , ” Peretti said , adding that the company “ will lift the program and re-evaluate if things improve.
” The NewsGuild , which has clashed with the company in the past and staged a walkout over stalled negotiations in mid-2019 , said it is supportive of the latest move .
“ While this obviously isn ’ t ideal for anyone , we ’ re glad the company is taking a proactive approach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t result in job losses , ” the NewsGuild said in a statement released late Wednesday .
“ The work being done by BuzzFeed News staff has never been more vital .
”

new_content:
In a bid to avoid layoffs, BuzzFeed is cutting staffers’ pay by as much as 25 percent while CEO Jonah Peretti will forgo pay as long as the coronavirus wracks the economy.
Peretti broke the news in a memo to staffers Wednesday, saying salaries will be slashed in April and May on a sliding scale based on salary.
Staffers making less than $65,000 a year will see their salaries trimmed by 5 percent, according to the Daily Beast, which was first to report the cuts. Employees making $65,000 to $90,000 annually will reportedly be hit with a 7 percent pay cut, while staffers above that bracket will take a 10 percent haircut. Top executives will see pay cut between 14 percent and 25 percent.
“I will not be taking a salary until we are on the other side of this crisis,” Peretti stated. “I understand this will be a real hardship for everyone, but our goal is to make it possible for all of us to get through this.”
Peretti made the move in anticipation of a drop in advertising sales as the virus shutters businesses — eliminating the need for marketing. Complicating the picture for BuzzFeed is its reliance of video ads known as native advertising, which are more time-consuming and and labor-intensive than digital banner ads.
The company has also been diversifying its ad sales. In 2019, 30 percent of its revenue came from native ads in 2019, down from 60 percent 2017. Twenty-one percent of ad revenues are now derived from tech platforms like Facebook and Google-owned You Tube, nearly double that segment’s revenue stream two years earlier.
“We don’t know how long this will last but we want to move quickly to make sure our business remains sustainable,” Peretti said, adding that the company “will lift the program and re-evaluate if things improve.”
The NewsGuild, which has clashed with the company in the past and staged a walkout over stalled negotiations in mid-2019, said it is supportive of the latest move.
“While this obviously isn’t ideal for anyone, we’re glad the company is taking a proactive approach and pursuing options to cut costs that don’t result in job losses,” the NewsGuild said in a statement released late Wednesday. “The work being done by BuzzFeed News staff has never been more vital.”


id: nypost--2020-05-15--BuzzFeed wields ax for third round of coronavirus cuts

content:
BuzzFeed made a third round of coronavirus-related cuts this week — and for the first time , took aim at the journalism side of the company .
The cuts involved the furloughs of 19 staffers by newly installed Editor-in-Chief Mark Schoofs , who was tapped earlier this month to succeed Ben Smith , who left for The New York Times .
Schoofs furloughed four people in the US , including BuzzFeed ’ s Washington , DC , bureau chief and the site ’ s creative director , as well as 10 journalists in London and five in Australia .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scrambles to keep coronavirus-induced losses under $ 20 million this year .
More reductions are expected as Peretti and Schoofs sit down with the NewsGuild this week to negotiate paring back the rank-and-file staff on the editorial side of the company , which produces the hard news and is unionized .
The side that produces the cat videos and listicles — and pulls in most of the traffic — is not unionized and has borne the brunt of the cost-savings thus far .
This week ’ s actions hit Kate Nocera , BuzzFeed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of New York Times columnist Joe Nocera , and Creative Director Dennis Huynh , a five-year veteran .
Nocera , who left BuzzFeed in 2015 for a public relations job only to return the next year , tweeted on Wednesday , “ This is such a strange time and I ’ m having a lot of feelings , but mostly just that this was the best job I ’ ve ever had.
” She added , “ There ’ s a reason I came back to BuzzFeed News 4 years go — it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ It has been a magical 5 years and a privilege to lead the wonderful people of @ BuzzFeedNewsArt and @ styleguide throughout the years.
” Although both tweets sounded like goodbye notes , a spokesman said any cuts this week involved three-month furloughs — not layoffs .
This latest round follows the earlier furlough of 68 people for three months unveiled on May 6 and effective May 16 .
The earlier moves were from the side of the company that generates quizzes , listicles and pet videos that helped BuzzFeed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ social media outlets like Facebook .
In yet another round of cuts unveiled in late March , Peretti said he would forgo pay until the pandemic was over while cutting employees pay on a sliding scale — ranging from 5 percent for employees making less than $ 65,000 , up to 10 percent for employees over $ 90,000 , and 25 percent for top executives .

new_content:
BuzzFeed made a third round of coronavirus-related cuts this week — and for the first time, took aim at the journalism side of the company.
The cuts involved the furloughs of 19 staffers by newly installed Editor-in-Chief Mark Schoofs, who was tapped earlier this month to succeed Ben Smith, who left for The New York Times.
Schoofs furloughed four people in the US, including BuzzFeed’s Washington, DC, bureau chief and the site’s creative director, as well as 10 journalists in London and five in Australia. The cutbacks come as BuzzFeed boss Jonah Peretti scrambles to keep coronavirus-induced losses under $20 million this year.
More reductions are expected as Peretti and Schoofs sit down with the NewsGuild this week to negotiate paring back the rank-and-file staff on the editorial side of the company, which produces the hard news and is unionized. The side that produces the cat videos and listicles — and pulls in most of the traffic — is not unionized and has borne the brunt of the cost-savings thus far.
This week’s actions hit Kate Nocera, BuzzFeed’s DC bureau chief and daughter of New York Times columnist Joe Nocera, and Creative Director Dennis Huynh, a five-year veteran.
Nocera, who left BuzzFeed in 2015 for a public relations job only to return the next year, tweeted on Wednesday, “This is such a strange time and I’m having a lot of feelings, but mostly just that this was the best job I’ve ever had.” She added, “There’s a reason I came back to BuzzFeed News 4 years go — it’s the people.”
Huynh tweeted, “It has been a magical 5 years and a privilege to lead the wonderful people of @BuzzFeedNewsArt and @styleguide throughout the years.”
Although both tweets sounded like goodbye notes, a spokesman said any cuts this week involved three-month furloughs — not layoffs.
This latest round follows the earlier furlough of 68 people for three months unveiled on May 6 and effective May 16. The earlier moves were from the side of the company that generates quizzes, listicles and pet videos that helped BuzzFeed in its early days by attracting readers from social media outlets like Facebook.
In yet another round of cuts unveiled in late March, Peretti said he would forgo pay until the pandemic was over while cutting employees pay on a sliding scale — ranging from 5 percent for employees making less than $65,000, up to 10 percent for employees over $90,000, and 25 percent for top executives.