Trinity Mirror‘s decision to restructure and largely merge its Midlands newspapers – with the loss of up to 65 editorial jobs – has been condemned by the NUJ as a “massive blow to journalism in the Midlands”.
NUJ general secretary Jeremy Dear said: “Despite the gloss put on it by Trinity Mirror, today’s announcement represents a massive blow to journalism in the Midlands.
‘The NUJ condemns these cuts, which will inevitably hit these papers – and the communities they serve – hard.
‘Let’s be clear: Trinity Mirror is cutting back on quality at its newspapers in pursuit of short-term, share price driven goals. It just goes to show how little the company values its readers in comparison to the demands of the City.
‘Whatever the company may claim, you simply can’t take dozens of journalists out of your local operations and continue to report news to the same standard. Bosses at the company are sacrificing quality journalism to appease the short-term whims of the financial markets.
‘This is a deeply uncertain time for journalists working across all the titles affected. It’s also a very bad day for people in the Midlands who genuinely care about their community.”
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