January 21st, 2008 by Brian

L.A. Times loses another editor

James O’Shea got his walking papers as editor of the L.A. Times, the third top editor to leave in three years. Why? Disagreement over $4 million in ordered budget cuts.

But in fact, O’Shea should be promoted, shouldn’t he? Sam Zell, real estate mogul, bought the Tribune Co., which owns The Times, last year. Last week, his employee handbook got a fair amount of ink for its straight-talking ways.

“Rule #1: Use your best judgment; Rule #2: See Rule 1.”

O’Shea (right), who moved up through The Tribune newspaper ranks before heading West, obviously used his best judgment in resisting more newsroom cuts. There comes a point in every editor’s life, in these times, where enough is enough, and you follow your heart.

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Related posts:

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  4. Tribune ponders future; Times hangs in the balance
  5. Another editor leaves CMP

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  1. Loring Wirbel:

    January 21st, 2008 at 12:15 pm

    Editors can develop a universal language in “dialogue-ing” with publishers: “ESAD.” (Eat Shit and Die).

    There was a Firesign Theatre sketch where editors were supposed to universally confront media owners with guns a-blazing, screaming “Eat flaming death, fascist media pigs.” Except that they muffed their lines and screamed “Eat fascist death, flaming media pigs.” Forgot the point of that story, though it was cute at the time.

  2. Lou Covey:

    January 21st, 2008 at 1:02 pm

    There’s a larger trend going on here that we might be missing. The LA Times grew by knocking out competing publications in other areas of LA, creating the media giant we know now. But if advertising and readership is dropping, that means the Times has ceased to be of value to the people and business of the community, as well as the corporate organizations that buy most of the advertising.

    Perhaps it is time for the LA Times to start reducing it’s coverage area, rather than figure out how to cover the vast LA Basin, and allow smaller community focused pubs to flourish.

    Maybe the days of the large metroplex newspaper is over and it’s time for real community to rise up in LA.

  3. Loring Wirbel:

    January 21st, 2008 at 1:41 pm

    And you know who serves the inner metro community best in most cities, Lou? Those daily metro freebies they give away at the exits of subway stops.

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