The Plain Dealer is dissolving its news guild and will publish coverage exclusively from cleveland.com.
The paper announced the changes Tuesday . The four remaining journalists at The Plain Dealer have been offered jobs at cleveland.com to continue their work, according to Warsinskey.
鈥淥ur ethos at The Plain Dealer during my four years as managing editor and a brief tenure as editor has been to focus on journalism that makes Northeast Ohio a better place for us to live, and help readers discover and celebrate better ways to live in it,鈥� Warsinskey wrote.
Warsinskey in February, after George Rodrigue accepted a position with paper鈥檚 sister company, Advance Local, which also operates cleveland.com Warsinskey will now transition to the role of Senior Editor of Special Projects for Advance Local, effective June 1.
The PD News Guild will be dissolved as of May 17, according to a statement from the union , after representing Plain Dealer staff for 80 years.
鈥淭he Guild hoped the company would see the value of the work our members provided and the deep connections and trust we built in the community as a way to strengthen journalism in Greater Cleveland,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淚nstead, it chose to systematically squeeze the Guild out of existence. It was excruciating for those laid off over the past year and our members who remained to be kept in limbo.鈥�
Thirty-two reporters and editors in April in two rounds of staffing cuts. after Warsinskey announced most of the remaining, seasoned reporters would instead shifting to outlying areas.
鈥淭wenty years ago, The Plain Dealer had more than 340 journalists. In its heyday, it had even more. Today, it has four,鈥� the Guild wrote. 鈥淎dvance and The Plain Dealer have slashed the newsroom while creating a separate nonunion newsroom, clevelanddotcom.鈥�
The Northeast Ohio Newspaper Guild will continue representing journalists working at other publications in the region, including the Akron Beacon Journal and Canton Repository. But that guild did agree not to participate in any efforts to organize the cleveland.com newsroom for the next year, according to the PD News Guild.
The cleveland.com newsroom has 64 journalists and content producers, Warsinskey said, who will provide content for the Plain Dealer鈥檚 printed issues. The paper will continue its current print publication schedule, he said.
鈥淏efore anyone starts pounding nails in coffins, as some of my more sensationalist brethren and harsh critics are wont to do, take a breath,鈥� Warsinskey said. 鈥淭his is not the end of The Plain Dealer. Far from it.鈥�
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