South China Morning Post sacks 13 editorial staff

Asian Economic News, August 26, 2002

HONG KONG, Aug. 23 Kyodo

Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) said Friday it has fired 13 staff in an ongoing editorial restructuring exercise and does not rule out more sackings in the future.

The layoffs came following major personnel changes among top editorial management earlier this month, but the newspaper denied the dismissals are due to cost-cutting.

Those dismissed included reporters, sub-editors, a photographer, typists and librarians.

''We are undergoing a re-organization and restructuring of our editorial department. As a result, a number of positions have been affected or no longer fitted into the structure,'' SCMP spokeswoman Swee Lynn Chong told Kyodo News.

''This is not a cost-saving exercise nor is it an attempt to downsize,'' Chong said.

''In conjunction with the appointment of our new senior editorial team last week, this is a major review and restructuring of the editorial department with the aim to increase the effective leadership, professional and accountability and our mission to ensure the Post's role as one of the leading newspapers in the world,'' she added.

The newspaper still has about 300 staff in the editorial department after the latest job cuts, she said.

Asked if there will be more sackings, she said: ''We would not rule out that only because the review is still ongoing.''

Chong said those fired are mostly from junior ranks, across all divisions.

In October 2001, the newspaper cut 18 editorial jobs.

Earlier this month, the SCMP installed Thaddeus Beczak, the group's deputy chairman, as publisher to take charge of the strategic direction and business performance of the daily.

Immediately following that, the editor of the newspaper, Thomas Abraham, decided to step down while a deputy editor, Robin Bowman, was fired.

Last week, the newspaper announced major personnel changes among its senior editorial team, including promotions of three executive editors who would be collectively responsible for the content and presentation of the paper together with newly appointed managing editor Anthony Lawrence.

A number of English-language media based in Hong Kong fired some of their staff or combined operations with sister publications amid the current global economic downturn and adverse advertising market.

Last year, Asiaweek, a magazine of Time Inc., was closed down while Dow Jones & Co. merged the editorial staffs of its two publications, the Asian Wall Street Journal and the Far Eastern Economic Review, cutting 36 jobs.

The Hong Kong iMail, the other English daily that had been re-launched as the Hong Kong Standard, fired 100 members of its staff last year.