Eddy Hartenstein Stops the Presses

This morning we did something unusual, we heard the cry “STOP THE PRESSES” at 9:50 a.m., and this was not to update the pages of the Sunday Calendar Section we were producing at the time. The mighty presses at the Los Angeles Times had been stopped so Operations Employees could see and hear what our publisher, Eddy Hartenstein, had to share at the town hall meeting broadcast from Times Mirror Square.

As a direct result of this unusual event many in the audience at the Olympic Facility pondered what might be the outcome of the meeting, shuttering of the Orange County Facility, more layoffs, or additional newspapers to produce?

It was actually none of the above, Eddy shared the challenges facing every newspaper across the country, especially with the downturn in the economy, and where the Los Angeles Times stands compared to past years. The information shared, was something employees have become accustomed too, but it was given in such a manner of fact method, no one left the room with their heads hanging low.

The director of circulation, Jack Klunder, had the most positive news regarding the distribution of other newspapers with the Los Angeles Times, which generates a hefty profit for the company.

I would like to thank Eddy Hartenstein for allowing the employees of Operations to view the telecast, and not leave us in the dark as is the usual case at the newspaper. As Eddy closed the meeting he shared his email address at the newspaper, eddy at latimes.com.