Although LA Times Publisher’s Head May Be On The Block

Employees See Johnson As A “Hero” For Standing Up To Tribune Co.

Tribune Co. has faced mounting organizational and monetary setbacks in recent years, which has led to massive budget cuts and employee layoffs. One of the publications owned by the corporation that has suffered such a fate is the venerable Los Angeles Times. Although publisher Jeffrey Johnson and editor Dean Baquet initially agreed to the decrease in funding and jobs proposed last year, when told to cut even more, the LA Times higher-ups showed Tribune Co. they were fed up by rejecting its latest demands to slash jobs.

Many at the LA Times have found Johnson’s behavior surprising uplifting—the publisher has nearly 20 years of tenure at the company, and oversaw the implementation of last year’s cuts and layoffs. According to Times reporter Mark Barabak, “Jeff has really emerged as a hero to a lot of us in the newsroom. You’d expect your editor to stand up and fight for the editorial integrity of the paper, but it was and is surprising and inspiring and courageous that the publisher stood alongside of him.”

FULL ARTICLE