McClatchy laid off more than 90 unionized journalists and media workers on September 10 across 17 U.S. publications, according to The NewsGuild CWA. The cuts removed reporters, photographers, and other newsroom staff from papers including The Miami Herald, The Sacramento Bee, and The Kansas City Star, leaving some local newsrooms without dedicated coverage of public institutions.
- Jobs cut
- More than 90 unionized journalists and media workers
- Publications affected
- 17 McClatchy publications
- Immediate deadline
- Centre Daily Times reporters leave on September 25
Seventeen publications lost unionized staff
The layoffs were reported by The NewsGuild CWA on September 11, after McClatchy employees were informed on September 10. The union said more than 90 journalists and media workers were affected across 17 publications, representing about 30 percent of the company workers it represents.
The cuts reached newsrooms in multiple states. WPSU reported that three reporters at The Centre Daily Times in State College, Pennsylvania, lost their positions. Their beats included education and business, Penn State and State College, and local government and development. Their last day is September 25.
The NewsGuild said the reductions also affected The Miami Herald, The Sacramento Bee, The Kansas City Star, The Charlotte Observer, the Fort Worth Star Telegram, and other McClatchy publications. The company has not published a complete public list of the positions eliminated.
The cuts remove coverage that is difficult to replace
The immediate consequence is not simply a smaller headcount. The union said Tacoma will no longer have a dedicated journalist covering city hall, Pierce County government, or local schools. At The Charlotte Observer, both investigative reporters were among those cut, according to the union account.
At The Centre Daily Times, the reductions leave a managing editor, a visuals editor, two news reporters, and one sports reporter in the newsroom, according to WPSU. That change narrows the number of people available to attend public meetings, build sources, verify documents, and follow a story after the first announcement.
McClatchy executive vice president Greg Farmer told staff in an internal memo seen by The Associated Press that the company was changing course because subscriber interest did not support the existing level of investment. The union has linked the cuts to a wider fight over how publishers use high skilled employees and artificial intelligence, but the company has not said that AI caused these specific layoffs.
A warning for workers in digital media
The McClatchy reductions show how quickly a restructuring can change the job market for workers whose roles depend on local knowledge and repeat reporting. The affected staff include reporters, photographers, videographers, and other newsroom employees whose work is tied to particular communities rather than a single transferable production line.
The cuts also follow months of tension over automation. WPSU noted that Centre Daily Times reporters ratified their first union contract in August after concerns that their bylines could be used on AI generated articles. That context does not prove a direct link between the contract and the layoffs, but it explains why workers see staffing decisions and AI deployment as part of the same employment question.
For now, the next test is whether the remaining newsrooms can maintain the public coverage that McClatchy says it wants to strengthen. The company has described the restructuring as a move toward journalism that is differentiated and difficult to replicate. The communities losing dedicated reporters will be the ones that reveal whether the new model can deliver it.
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