New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, said he would put state resources behind the New York Daily News if it will help curb mass layoffs that reportedly just hit the left-leaning tabloid’s newsroom.
Cuomo said in a statement Monday that the state “stands ready to help” after the New York Times reported that the tabloid’s reporting staff would be reduced by about half.
“The Daily News, now owned by Tronc, Inc., is apparently firing a major portion of their reporting staff,” he said. “This will undoubtedly devastate many households and hurt an important New York institution and one of our nation’s journalism giants. These layoffs were made without notifying the state or asking for assistance.”
My statement on the layoffs at the @NYDailyNews: pic.twitter.com/R1FflH98DX
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) July 23, 2018
The Times reported Monday that the layoffs were expected and that the Daily News’s editor in chief, Jim Rich, would also lose his job.
A memo from Tronc sent to Daily News staff said, “We are reducing today the size of the editorial team by approximately 50 percent and refocusing much of our talent on breaking news — especially in areas of crime, civil justice and public responsibility,” according to the Times report.
The Daily News is New York’s biggest tabloid and competes with the New York Post, which is more conservative in its editorial content.
The Daily News has used its cover page to lambaste President Trump, including during the 2016 campaign, when the tabloid referred to his supporters as “brain dead.”
