Pink-Slipped Journos Feeling Blue in R.I. & Mass.

The Providence Journal (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It's the same musical refrain: shrinking circulation, declining ad revenues and a redirection toward digital editions, but it has New England journalists singing the blues.

WPRI.com reported this week that The Providence Journal trimmed its 460-member workforce by 5 percent, including three photographers among the 23 employees given their walking papers. The Journal, which also saw 11 staffers accept a voluntary buyout in September, must make do with its remaining 10 photographers.

Journal parent company A.H. Belo pointed to sagging advertising linage, noting a 13 percent plunge in advertising revenue during the 3Q of 2012, compared to the same three-month period ending September 30 a year ago.

Meanwhile, The Boston Globe Web site, boston.com, reported this week that the Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. ("CNH") chain, whose stable of dailies includes The Lawrence Eagle-Tribune, Gloucester Daily Times, Salem News, The Daily (Newburyport) News, also slashed 5 percent of its 375-member workforce, cutting 21 jobs.

CNH, which is headquartered in Montgomery, Alabama, did not detail which papers would be impacted, though it was reported elsewhere that the Eagle-Tribune (against whom the ink-stained staff of "TUOL" competed at a rival paper back in the day) lost a couple of reporters.