Tributes are popping up about Sun-Sentinel managing editor Sharon Rosenhause, who is departing the newspaper today. Sentinel reporter Gregory Lewis calls her the "diversity queen" in his paean on his blog and Unity News, connected to the recent Unity/National Association of Black Journalists conference, described her as a champion for minority journalists.

No problem with this -- Rosenhause clearly left an indelible mark on many in the business -- but I wish more reporters who worked in this business so long (and may keep working in it) got their due as well.

Two more job losses to report, one at the Sun-Sentinel, the other at the North Broward Hospital District.

We'll start with Thomas Swick, the Sun-Sentinel's travel writer, who is among the recent cut of 50-plus newsroom staffers. He was apparently out of the country on Friday, so he learned about it after the weekend (thanks to those of you who notified me of his departure). There was a rather passionate debate about Swick in the comments section of last week's post, split between fans and detractors. I like Swick fine, but the decision doesn't surprise me in the least. Travel writing is a luxury for daily newspapers and these are the kinds of times that unfortunately make short work of all such indulgences.

The other lost job was that of North Broward Hospital District audit director David Richstone. The board voted during last week's meeting to can Richstone. This wasn't a huge surprise either. Commissioner Robert Bernstein (who owns the "Vote For John McCain" building along I-95 -- or that's what I think it says now anyway) told me a couple months back that he was going after Richstone's job. Richstone's crime: Auditing the expenses of former NBHD CEO Alan Levine.

This stinks on several levels. It sends a message to future hospital district auditors to back off when it comes to top executives. It nurtures a cover-up mentality. And it raises serious issues of possible Sunshine Law violations. Commissioner Rebecca Stoll, for instance, was reportedly taken completely by surprise by the vote BECAUSE IT HAD NEVER BEEN PUBLICLY DISCUSSED.

It's time for the secretive district -- which is run with our tax dollars -- to come clean the Levine investigation. There may not be more to it than what I revealed "Bleeding For Dollars." But we don't now for sure and now we certainly don't trust the leadership.

Charlie Crist had a great chance to bring some diversity to the Broward County bench when he replaced County Court Judge Jay Spechler, but instead went with one of his old fraternity brothers at Florida State.

Instead of going with one of three black applicants in a county where there are only three black judges among 90, Crist went with fellow Pike and political crony John "Jay" Hurley. Not saying Hurley isn't qualified, just saying Crist once again showed what a very very small man he really is.

Here's the take from JAABlog:

According to the 2006 Census, African-Americans make up 25.3% of the population of Broward County. Hispanics make up 22.8% of the population, and Asians 3%. Whites make up 48.7% of the population.

We are a minority-majority.

We have 90 judges in Broward County. Roughly 10 claim some Hispanic origin, and few, if any, claim any Asian background. There are only 3 African-American judges, less than 3% of the total.

Minorities are grossly over-represented in the criminal and dependency courts. Minorities are often judged by individuals who do not share or understand their cultural or socio-economic backgrounds. People are often needlessly caught up in the system. We all pay the tremendous social and economic costs driven by the lack of diversity.

The Governor had 6 names to choose from to fill the county seat that went to Jay Hurley. Three of the highly qualified applicants were African-American. A highly qualified white male won the appointment, despite the lack of African-American judges currently serving in our judiciary. This sends a strong message to our minority community members, and to the people who work within the justice system.

The Governor has yet to appoint a single African-American in Broward. He has seemingly failed to make an effort to correct a glaring inequity in our community. It is beginning to appear that he is ignorant of the problems here, or he simply does not care.

How about both.

Also today I need to refer you to Miami Herald sports columnist Greg Cote's blog, where he links his debut single, "Letting Go." If the song sounds familiar, it's because you heard it here two Fridays ago. Cote covered his old friend Alan Cherry's song, which was first recorded at Cherry's Sun-Sentinel going-away party.

Cote does a yeoman's job and his version is more polished, but there's nothing like the original.

It's been an historically bad month for South Florida newspapers. Hundreds of jobs lost, lots of tears, existential fear, lost hope, and teeth-gnashing. Most of those who have left the newspapers will be busy trying to find new jobs and build new lives. But what of those who remain?

One Palm Beach Post reporter taking the buyout wrote to the Pulp, "I'm more worried about the people left behind." Several remaining staffers have told me that they are worried about cuts that they believe are coming next year. The "next round" is what it's usually called.

Basically, it's becoming a situation where the living are envying the dead in this business.

More work, less benefits, with the Sword of Damocles -- as the Tribune COO Randy Michaels last week referred to employment fears -- still hovering over very newsroom in America.

Michaels and Tribune owner Sam Zell tried to quell fears about further cuts last week during a company-wide conference call. The key exchange on the topic came between Hartford Courant reporter Matthew Kauffman and Sam Zell. From the transcript of the July 23 call, which was obtained by the Pulp:

Matthew Kauffman: You guys know the financial picture better than I do, so can you give me your thinking of how much time this round of elimination buys for the employees who are staying? For example, how likely is it, in your mind, that additional sort of broad based staff reductions will be required before the end of say, the calendar year?

Sam Zell: This is Sam. I think the answer is that we're not interested in trial by torture. We're not interested in having -- dying by 1,000 cuts. We are doing everything we can to make this downsizing happen as quickly and as painlessly as possible. I think that there are different time frames for different parts of this organization, so I can't tell you specifically as it relates to your situation.

But I think that, particularly in the T6 papers, we've moved much closer to being finished than we are to starting. Having said that, we're all sitting here looking at a very perilous environment. And we're attempting to make our best judgment as to what we need to do, both to survive and to produce a product. So all I can tell you is that we think we've taken the steps in the newsroom that were required and are relevant. And we're hopeful that we can go forward from this point, and that's certainly our objective.

Gary Weitman: Matt, do you have a follow up?

Matthew Kauffman: I do. Sam, you were here almost exactly six months ago and had told the staff, I'll quote, "I do not believe that anybody can grow a business by reducing the number of employees. It is not our game plan to in effect, try and figure out how few people we can have run this business." And I think we've moved maybe a little bit more in that direction.

As I understand it, cash flow projections continue to fall at, I'm guessing at all the newspaper properties. And I don't think those numbers are anywhere near the numbers that you had expected to see when you were valuing the Company a year or so ago. Have you figured out for yourself, what went wrong in your analysis and how you could have been so far off in projecting what 2008 would look like for the industry?

Sam Zell: The answer is, that when we underwrote this transaction, we
assumed a continued suppression of newspaper revenue, somewhere in the minus 5% to minus 7%. This was in line with everybody's expectations.
As a matter of fact, our expectations were somewhat more pessimistic than conventional wisdom at the time. We have now confronted almost 20%
depreciation in revenue. i don't believe it's fair to hold me to the sentence that I expressed when I was there six months ago, when in fact, we've had a very traumatic, and frankly this is dramatically worse than September 11th.

I mean, I don't know that anybody has a frame of reference on advertising
revenue destruction that in effect is as bad as this, going all the way
back to The Depression. So, I think the circumstances are dramatically
worse than anyone could have possibly predicted. And we're dealing
with it accordingly. There aren't a lot of other options if you want to stay in business.

How comforting. All Zell did was compare the current financial situation to September 11 and the Great Depression at the same time. Before he said that, Michaels had already brought up the year 1929:

And look, this is not without precedent. I just read that in 1929 after The Crash, the Colonel [legendary owner Col. Robert R. McCormick] cut the Chicago's Tribune size, closed a lot of the foreign bureaus and cut the number of reporters in Chicago down to 83 in order to stay alive through the Depression. So this is hardly unprecedented, it's not the first time. But we're seeing revenue declines that start to approach those levels. And I think we're going to come nowhere near those kind of draconian cuts that had been made before to keep these papers alive.

But Michaels could make no promises: "I think what we're trying to avoid saying is, we're not going to guarantee you, there will never be another cut or that no one will ever lose their job," he said. "But it is certainly our intention to get it all out of the way right now, and move on with some focus and clarity."

The really scary part: Michael's is probably wrong about how Draconian the cuts will be. The way things are going newspapers across the country will get very close Depression era job-slashing, if not exceed it.

It's the debt, stupid. Remember that old riddle, "What's black and white and red all over?" Well the new answer is "newspaper balance sheets." The parent companies of the Sun-Sentinel and Miami Herald, in particular, are saddled with billions in debt. Their credit is basically considered junk. And with a worldwide recession looming and an historic credit crunch further gumming up the works, there's no escape hatch for McClatchy or Tribune.

You know the big Sun-Sentinel building on Las Olas and that giant Miami Herald builidng on Biscayne Bay? Unless there's an unforeseen dramatic turnaround in the economy (which seems impossible right now), they won't be in those buildings within a year or two. The only other option is the chopshop possibility, with the Herald and Sentinel sold as separate entities. Zell, in fact, said during the conference call that prospective buyers for the Sun-Sentinel and Orlando Sentinel have come forward. Bottom line: Bankruptcy isn't just a possibility at this point for the companies, it's a probability.

I hate to be such a doomsdayer and I don't say this lightly or without first examining both companies' books. I'm not a financial expert, but you don't need to be one to be an MBA to read the writing on the wall. It's the sad hard truth.

Now, as far as the recent Sun-Sentinel cuts go, I wonder if there's not more to go in this current round. Why? Because Editor Earl Maucker said there would be an article about them in the newspaper when they are complete. I haven't seen that yet.

In contrast to the Sentinel's self-secrecy is the Courant and the aforementioned Kauffman. Here's a link to his story on the conference call in the Courant. Admirable.

After the jump: The complete transcript of the Tribune conference call

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The Sun-Sentinel is laying off numerous staffers today and by the time its over 20 percent of the newsroom will be gone.

That amounts to about 55 employees. About half have either already taken the buyout voluntarily or been laid off. The remainder will be informed today that they are losing their jobs (those laid off will get the same severance package as those that took the buyout). Sources also say there was a shake-up at Sentinel offices in Palm Beach County yesterday involving transfers and layoffs.

"This week has been the weirdest and hardest in my professional life," one Sentinel staffer wrote to the Pulp. "It is like death row before a mass execution."

NEW: The first confirmed layoff today is reporter and former foreign correspondent Tim Collie, a first-rate journalist who deserves a blog post of his own. This seems to indicate the direction the Sentinel is going: cheap, cheap, cheap.

Here is the work-in-progress list of those who been laid off or given buyouts*:

-- Reporter Tim Collie (former foreign correspondent)
-- Investigations Editor Joe Demma
-- Race and Demographics Editor Michele Salcedo
-- Tallahassee Bureau Chief Linda Kleindienst (voluntary)
-- Reporter Robin Benedick (voluntary)
-- Reporter Sally Apgar
-- Reporter Chrystian Tejedor
-- Assistant City Editor John Rhodes (voluntary)
-- Photographer Bob Mayer (voluntary)
-- Condo columnist Joe Kollin (voluntary)
-- Online producer Jack Brennan (voluntary)
-- Online producer Ray Lynch (voluntary)
-- Reporter Nancy Othon (voluntary)
-- Sports reporter Craig Barnes (voluntary)
-- Copy editor Ed Giuliotti (voluntary)
-- Copy editor Marion Phelps (voluntary)
-- Copy editor and books writer Oline Cogdill (voluntary)
-- Features copy editor Sandra King (voluntary)
-- Arts writer Emma Trelles (voluntary)
-- Arts and entertainment editor Robin Berkowitz (didn't even take a buyout; just leaving)
-- Editorial assistant Cheryl Frost (voluntary)
-- Newsroom secretary Karen "K Bear" Osborne (voluntary)
-- Editorial page copy editor Ann Carter (voluntary)
-- Debra Gibbs, Help Team (voluntary)
-- Scott Stahmer, senior copy editor (voluntary)
-- Photographer Andrew Innerarity
-- Online producer Brian Wacker
-- Features copy editor and "The Skinny" blogger Gail Gedan Spencer
-- Copy editor Marci Shatzman
-- Editorial Assistant Heather Walker
-- Sports (tennis) writer Charles Bricker
-- Race and demographics reporter Tal Abbady (voluntary)
-- Business writer Margie Plunkett
-- Justin Knapfel, photo imaging
-- Bob Hudak, photo imaging
-- Reporter Thomas Monnay
-- Tallahassee editorial assistant Lynette Norris
-- Senior copy editor Steve Solomon (voluntary)
-- Sports copy editor Rich Biebrich (voluntary)
-- Copy editor Tina de la Fe

There's a lot of talent on that list. It was only a few years ago that the Sun-Sentinel and Palm Beach Post were two business powerhouses squaring off to do battle in Palm Beach. The Sun-Sentinel basically had regional domination in its sights. Ah,the best laid schemes o' mice and men.

GLTA.

*Thanks to everyone who has helped with the list. A lot of trust here, so it's possible the list might change slightly as we go forward.

Remember when the news hit that Broward County Commissioner John Rodstrom was laid off from Wachovia? He gave up some big income -- nearly $900,000 last year alone.

But don't feel too sorry for Rodstrom: He made $58,900 this morning alone.

No, he didn't hit a lottery ticket at the corner convenience store. The stock where he's invested a good deal of his money, Netsol Technologies (NTWK), shot up 19 cents. Since he owns 310,000 shares -- more than one percent of the Pakistani company -- his stock value rose nearly 60 G's (it's come off that high a bit since).

We know this not only from Rodstrom's financial disclosure, which was posted on the Sun-Sentinel website, but from the Yahoo financial board, where someone posted a link to the disclosure form that was titled simply, "John Rodstrom."

Rodstrom, whose Yahoo handle is "jrjaguar" (he used to drive a Jag), replied: "Busted!! For the record I own 310,000 today, cost basis $1.92."

That means he's up well over $300,000 on a stock he put nearly $600,000 into. But don't hate him for his good fortune. At one point last year, the stock was trading at almost $4.50 before it fell to $1.50. Rodstrom not only rode that painful wave down, but bought more as it plunged (political unrest in that part of the world combined with a worldwide recession can be, um, volatile).

I asked Rodstrom about his investment this morning.

"Folks are a little nervous about buying into a company in Pakistan," Rodstrom said. "I like the chart pattern. It’s the best chart pattern I’ve ever seen and I put my money where my mouth is."

I must say that I admire that. He thinks it's going to go all the way to $20 a share, but he knows that a new war (Iran) or terrorist act could send it back down to a buck-fifty. But Rodstrom is a long-time stock market player and chartist who is now day trading. He knows the risks and says that he's prepared to ride out any storms.

And if you want to know about stock market storms, talk to Sam Zell, owner of the Tribune Co. I posted here a while back about his investment in Starwood Hotels. I told you last month that he was down a very quick $60 million on his investment in the company that owns the Sheraton and other hotel brands. The stock then was trading at about $46. I wrote that I thought it could go under $40 in the coming weeks. Well, it's down more than $4 this morning to around $35. And that's doing well -- just last week it fell all the way to $30. Right now he's down about $225 million on his $740 million investment.

Yeah, newspapers and hotels. Yikes.

When Atlanta Constitution-Journal reporters take the buyout, they have to agree not to "disparage" the newspaper after they go. I wonder if the Herald, Post, or Sentinel have such a clause. Here's the story from Creative Loafing in Atlanta.

While I'm on the layoffs, need to mention an upcoming Society of Professional Journalists event: "Paper Cuts: Surviving and Preparing for the Layoff/Buyout." Yes, it's come to this. A panel consisting of lawyer Bill Amlong, journalismo Michael Koretzky, financial planner Laura Walsh, and former newspaper reporters Roberto Santiago and Bill Hirshman will counsel "address the crippling affects of layoffs to our industry."

Can't hurt, I guess. And it gives me the chance to do something I've been meaning to do: pimp Koretzky's job website. Click here to take a look. The event is at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, August 7th at ArtServe, 1350 East Sunrise Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale. Hey, there's "refreshments" but I'm pretty sure you have to bring your own booze for some serious sorrow-drowning activity.

Back to the Robert Wexler thing for a moment. It really shouldn't surprise us that he doesn't have a residence in his district. The guy's spent more time in Middle East than Lake Worth. Wonder if he has a house in Israel. Or perhaps a little place in Turkey. Remember how he played diplomat to the Turks back in 2002 and guaranteed that he could get that country to ally with America in Iraq? Yeah, Turkey eventually told both him and America to screw off.

I reamed him (and the now banished Peter Deutsch) before the war started for supporting it. Point: Wexler fancies himself a global statesman, not just some schmuck from Boca. There's something to be said for that mentality, I suppose, but it can get a guy in trouble.

Anyway, Bill O'Reilly was raging against Wexler tonight on The Factor again. O'Reilly, an oozing sore on the butt crack of America, was all atitter over the fact that Wexler had signed a petition by MoveOn.org telling Fox News to stop "injecting prejudice, racism, and fear into our political dialogue." O'Reilly bellyached about Wexler -- and showed more footage of the Fox news producer browbeating him in his front yard (it went from hard-hitting about the residence thing to just plain obnoxious) -- before the gracious host said he didn't think it was a "stretch" to say that "MoveOn is the new Klan." Say what you will about Bill (that he's an oozing sore on America's butt crack, for instance), but he can be racously funny. MoveOn must love the free pub.

Bill O'Reilly did a good number on "local" Congressman Robert Wexler tonight.

And I think Wexler is in a bit of trouble.

You see, the longtime Democratic rep says he lives in Delray Beach and he's required to maintain a residence in his district. But he really lives in Potomac MD. The house in Delray that he calls his "offical residence" is owned by Lawrence and Roslyn Cohen, the parents of Wexler's wife, Laurie. And it's in a restricted over-55 community, which makes it impossible for Wexler and and his three children to reside there.

"U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Delray Beach)"? I think not.

Wexler's Republican opponent, Edward Lynch, dug this stuff up and fed it to Fox News. O'Reilly ate it up.

A Fox News producer named Griff Jenkins caught up with Wexler in the front yard of his home in Potomac. When Jenkins walked up on his driveway, Wexler -- looking 100 percent the goofy suburban dad in a green hat, green t-shirt, and shorts -- didn't even wait for a question.

"No, I'm not doing this," Wexler said. "If you want to call my office, that's fine, I gotta drive my daughter to work."

Jenkins, like any good reporter, kept charging, asking Wexler by the congressman's silver Volvo SUV if his residency was in Delray.

"That's correct, that's my residence," he said.

Jenkins noted that it belonged to Wexler's in-laws.

"Is that true? You live with your mother-in-law?" Jenkins asked with a straight face.

That's when the fire-breathing liberal got what football man Bill Curry likes to call the "brook trout stare." His eyes went blank and you could practically hear his brain leaking out of his head.

"Uh, the, mm ..."

The stammering only lasted a second or two, but it seemed like an hour in at the DMV.

"My in-laws own that house, that's correct," he finally said.

"So you live with your mother-in-law?"

"My in-laws own that house, yes, that's my official residence."

To the videotape:

You might think this seems a small matter and you might not like the vigor with which O'Reilly goes after Wexler (fresh liberal meat, you know). But it's about more than partisan politics or even the fact that Wexler hasn't lived in his district for ten years and lists a sham residence in official papers. Put bluntly, this is a sleazy and unethical move by Wexler and O'Reilly and the Wall Street Journal's John Fund touch on the reasons why. For one, he gets a housing deduction from Congress to help him maintain two residences. Unless, he's paying Mrs. Cohen rent when he sleeps on the pull-out, he's just pocketing that little federal benefit.

Another thing is that he might be using the sham Delray house for tax purposes -- as in, to not pay them. Florida doesn't have a state income tax, Maryland does. That means his little deceit might be bringing him more than a little coin. It's not proven, but his cars are, weirdly, registered in Florida and it deserves to be looked into.

Basically, this could be tantamount to fraud and it could actually have some legs, though I seriously doubt we'll see any criminal charges and I'm quite certain his loyal voters will quickly forgive him. He's good ol' Bobby Wexler, after all.

But good on Lynch for digging it up. So how did he do it? Well, Wexler can blame his own big mouth. Or, more specifically, his typing fingers. From Lynch's press release:

This revelation became known after reading Congressman Wexler’s book, “Fire Breathing Liberal.” On P. 52 he states, “While many members don’t bring their families with them to Washington, choosing instead to fly home each weekend, Laurie and I decided it would work best for our family if our three young children attended school in the Washington area.” It was that statement the caused this candidate to look further into Rep. Wexler’s past.

That's how he found a damn good story, though you wouldn't really have known it if you read the story about it in the Palm Beach Post this morning. Rather than treat it like a serious local political story, the Post basically wrote a preview of O'Reilly's show and brought up none of the more pertinent problems regarding Wexler's action. Headlined "Wexler residency dispute enters Fox's 'No Spin Zone'," it basically nullified itself as news and handed Fox the real scoop. It also reminded me of how chummy the Post has historically been with its long-time congressmen. Remember Mark Foley? The newspaper treated him like a near-deity until he finally went down in flames over the page scandal.

This isn't anywhere near a Foley-caliber story (even if O'Reilly treats it as one to push his famously non-existent political agenda). But it definitely deserves serious local coverage.

The winners of the Green Eyeshade Awards, the 11-state south regional Society of Professional Journalism competition, are listed after the jump. Congratulations to the local winners in the 11-state competition, including my own pub's Thomas Francis and Brandon K. Thorp. Of particular note is that the top award in the large print division went to "License To Carry," a Sun-Sentinel project done by Megan O'Matz and John Maines. Editing the series was Joe Demma, who was laid off Friday as part of the job cuts.

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This morning Joe Strupp at Editor & Publisher calls out the Sun-Sentinel on failing to report what's been reported here for weeks: that the newspaper is getting rid of at least 50 employees in the newsroom.

Editor Earl Maucker tells Strupp that he intends to have the layoffs "wrapped up" by the end of the month and that the newspaper is planning a redesign (oh lord) to be unveiled in a month. "Lot of things percolating here," he tells Strupp.

Gee, and here we just thought people were losing their livelihoods. That rascally Sentinel is always hopping! What I found especially dubious was Maucker's explanation for not running a story about the layoffs.

Of concern to several staffers, however, has been the Sun-Sentinel's lack of reporting on the cutbacks, with no stories appearing in the newspaper or on its Web site about the cuts. In most cases, newspapers have reported on their own cutbacks prior to the final reductions.

Maucker said he chose not to report on the changes until they are completed: "It serves nobody's interest to put it out ahead of time. As I've found, it gets butchered in the media, [there is] misinformation."

Since the Pulp is just about the only medium that actually reports on the Sun-Sentinel, I'm going to overlook the mischaracterization (though we do love us some bloody meat). I'm not going to ignore the bad logic, though. Maucker's got it exactly backwards. The reason that newspapers -- or any company -- reports what's happening internally is to head off any misinformation. Obviously, the facts are more likely to get mangled if the newspaper is secretive about it than if it lays it on the table for all to see. That's 101 shit right there.

Just yesterday, after I reported that investigations editor Joe Demma had been laid off, a knowledgable and trenchant commenter wrote:

"I find it astounding that the Sun-Sentinel has not reported on any of this. How will it handle the next local company that lays off people and doesn't want to speak with a reporter?"

Now we know the answer. The Sentinel will say, "We've found that the media tends to butcher such news and spread misinformation, so we understand completely."

(Thanks to Cal Deal for the heads-up).

The leading newspaper in Southwest Florida isn't being spared the hatchet.

Carol Hudler, the publisher and president of The News-Press in Fort Myers, announced in a memo on Friday that the company was laying off 36 employees and eliminating several other currently unfilled positions (I'm hearing that number is 10). The newspaper is also killing Graceta Tropical, a weekly publication billed as the "leading Hispanic newspaper in Southwest Florida."

In her memo, Hudler cited "the worst local economy since perhaps the crash of 1929" as one of the reasons for the staff reduction at the Gannett-owned daily to "levels we had in 1995-2000." The other cited culprits: Migration to the Internet (or "digital information tools," as Hudler put it) and high newsprint and fuel prices. From the memo:

We're faced with three major forces challenging us today:

1. The worst local economy since perhaps the crash of 1929.
2. The rapid migration of both consumers and advertisers to digital information tools, made worse by misinformed predictions about how this will lead to our demise.
3. Soaring newsprint and fuel prices.

We will proactively respond to these conditions to ensure we remain strong and are best positioned for the future.

Unfortunately, part of our response involves a reduction in the size of our operation. We must shrink the number of employees back to the levels we had in 1995-2000. Our local economy has shrunk, and we must respond in kind. But even as we retract in total number, we must put more of our limited resources toward growing our digital business, both locally and nationally.

Today we implemented changes that will result in job losses for thirty-six employees and reductions in schedules and positions for others. Sadly, we're losing some good people with this workforce reduction. And we're suspending some good products that in better times would be flourishing, such as our Graceta Tropical, which will publish its last weekly issue July 25. It is all very painful, but it's necessary. We must preserve the franchise, preserve our ability to carry through with our mission, and preserve a strong future for the employees that remain.

The changes that will occur at the Sun-Sentinel's mother newspaper, the Chicago Tribune, look to be radical, according to an article in Crain's Chicago Business:

A version under consideration devotes the paper's front section to consumer-oriented and entertainment features. Local, national, international and business news is consolidated in the second section. Weather leads the third section, which also includes comics and classifieds, while the sports section is converted to a tabloid format.

Ever wondered how emasculated a newspaper can become? We may find the answer soon in the Trib.

(Via Romenesko)

UPDATE: Heard from a source that Sentinel investigations editor Joe Demma was laid off on Friday. The veteran Demma oversaw just about all the recent in-depth journalism that has won awards at the newspaper, including the FEMA Pulitzer finalist stuff and the more recent gun law series by Megan O'Matz. More evidence this business is going in an even more gutless and shallow direction.

More than 300 Palm Beach Post employees have applied for buyouts and all have been accepted, according to an internal memo obtained by the Pulp.

Though the newspaper announced it would cut 300 jobs, there will be additional layoffs. According to the memo:

The number of applications was more than expected. However, we received too many in some areas and not enough in others, So we still expect to begin a small number of involuntary separations, or layoffs, the week of Aug. 18 in some departments as needed. Thanks to all who applied. You have greatly reduced the number of involuntary separations needed. Your contribution to PBNI over the years and your dedication and patience during these recent difficult times is greatly appreciated.

Those layoffs, according to sources, are expected to hit the newsroom, which had 81 buyout applications by the initial deadline on Friday. The newspaper plans to cut a total of 130 from the newsroom. Sources say that since the Friday dealine, several newsroom staffers have applied for the buyout and been accepted. The buyouts become official on August 11.

The losses in the newsroom are staggering. What follows is the updated list of those who have been accepted for the buyout, now standing at 41 names:

-- Political Editor Brian Crowley
-- Reporter Tim O'Meilia
-- 'Listening Post" columnist and ombudsman C.B. Hanif
-- Accent columnist and society photog Thom Smith
-- 'Real Life' columnist Emily J. Minor
-- Assistant Metro Editor (and author) Douglas Kalajian
-- Deputy Director of Photography John J. Lopinot
-- Crime writer Rochelle Gilken
-- Editorial writer Elisa Cramer
-- Golf writer Craig Dolch
-- Assistant Managing Editor Bill Greer
-- Washington Bureau Chief Larry Lipman
-- Business writer Steve Pounds
-- Multimedia Editor Mary Kate Leming
-- Business reporter and columnistLinda Rawls
-- High school sports writer Steve Dorsey
-- Cartoonist and Creative Director Pat Crowley
-- West Palm Beach reporter Tom Collins
-- Reporter Kelly Wolfe
-- Reporter Antigone Barton
-- Food Editor Jan Norris
-- Riviera Beach reporter William Cooper, Jr.
-- Accent/Health reporter Carolyn Susman
-- Reporter Ron Hayes
-- Reporter Rachel Sauer
-- Movie/Theater Critic Hap Erstein
-- Art Critic Gary Schwan
-- Transportation reporter Chuck McGinness
-- Delray Bureau Chief Price Patton
-- Videographer Susan Miller
-- Photographer Chris Matula
-- Photographer Bob Shanley
-- St. Lucie County reporter Jim Reeder
-- Port St. Lucie Bureau Chief Teresa Lane
-- Martin County Bureau Chief Glenn Henderson
-- Martin County crime reporter Jill Taylor
-- Courts reporter Sarah Prohaska
-- Treasure Coast photo chief Paul Milette
-- Photographer David Spencer
-- Opinion writer Sally Swartz
-- Reporter Michelle Mundy
-- Cartoonist Don Wright
-- Editorial writer Dan Moffett
-- TGIF editor Scott Simmons
-- Op-Ed editor Lou Ann Frala
-- Neighborhood Post reporter Tim Pallesen
-- Neighborhood Post reporter Joe Bonikowski
-- Graphic artist Mark Hemphill
-- Graphic artist: Tim Britton
-- Reporter Paul Lomartire
-- Photo editor Loren Hosack

[The list has been updated with ten additional names, bringing the total to 51]

The Pulp has been a grim and bloody business of late. Reporting on the slaughter of the press in South Florida is like being near the front in war, hearing the bombs, knowing they aren't far away and could strike at any time. And the number of casualties just keep growing and growing.

The Orlando Sentinel is going through its own set of fairly secret layoffs right now. Among those who have taken buyouts, according to several sources, are Maya Bell, who was the newspaper's walking South Florida bureau, and John Kennedy, the veteran Tallahassee reporter. These are two fine journalists (and Bell, the wife of Sun-Sentinel scribe Robert Nolin, is a friend). A very good new blog, The Amazing Shrinking Orlando Sentinel, posted several other names in a list that is similar to the one for the Palm Beach Post begun yesterday. Here are the names they came up with from the Orlando Sentinel, in addition to Bell and Kennedy:

Christopher Boyd
Dee Gugel
Mary Ann Horne
Scott Joseph
Tammy Lytle
Babita Persaud
Mark Pinsky
Tim Povtak
Lyndsay Sutton
Harry Wessel
Claudia Zequeria

The Sun-Sentinel news corps is still waiting to hear on the 55 or so buyouts/layoffs it is facing right now. That's bad enough, but the truth is that everyone knows this is only one wave in a continuing tide of destruction, a full turn in the death spiral. Several reporters at both the Sun-Sentinel and Miami Herald have told me that they aren't so much afraid right now, but dread the next round of cuts that they are certain are coming. And they're pretty sure the buyout money -- which is cushioning the blow right now -- will be all dried up by then. Sources say a new ax is about to fall at the Herald very soon. And this talk comes just a couple weeks after the recent carnage sent 42 in the newsroom out the door.

Good morning, and good luck.