The 3 percent staff cuts in Gannett Co. Inc. are costing The Des Moines Register its longtime farm writer and one of its two reporters in Washington, other Iowa news sources are reporting today.
The Business Record of Des Moines reports that Farm Editor Jerry Perkins asked for and received a buyout, according to a newsroom memo, and "Sources also say that Jane Norman, a reporter at the Register's Washington bureau since 1988, has been laid off, with a severance package." We have confirmed that.
Remaining in the Washington bureau is Philip Brasher, who specializes in agriculture and trade coverage. Norman did most of the coverage of Iowa's congressional delegation. The paper is also losing veteran reporter Ken Fuson, who asked for and took a buyout, according to the memo from Editor Carolyn Washburn and Managing Editor Randy Brubaker.
"Perkins started with the Des Moines Tribune in 1978 and has been the Register's farm editor since 1993," the Record reports. "Fuson has been with the Register for 25 years and has won several awards, including the Register's top writing award and Gannett Co. Inc.'s 25th anniversary Outstanding Achievement Award for Writing." For the Register's newsroom memo, via Jim Romenesko, click here.
Jason Hancock of The Iowa Independent reports that Perkins and Fuson are "the first of what will be 15 jobs to be eliminated today from within the paper’s newsroom." The Register announced last week that it would cut 23 full-time positions, 11 by not filling them. At this posting, the Register's site is silent on the subject, and so is Gannett Blog, but the latter has been busy tracking Gannett's stock price, which rallied when the cuts were revealed but has now dropped to pre-layoff levels.
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