Associated Press to Cut 8% of Staff Through Buyouts, Layoffs to ‘Accelerate’ Digital News Strategy

variety.com:

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor The Associated Press is making cutbacks in staff as the not-for-profit news organization seeks to “accelerate” its digital-first focus, according to Daisy Veerasingham, the AP’s president and CEO.

The AP will reduce its workforce by 8% through a combination of voluntary buyout offers and layoffs, Veerasingham wrote in a memo to staff Monday, a copy of which was obtained by Variety.

A rep for the AP declined to disclose how many employees the organization has. The reductions are necessary as the AP “must evolve to align with changing customer and market needs,” she wrote. “We all know this is a time of transformation in the media sector.

Our customers — both who they are and what they need from us — are changing rapidly. This is why we’ve focused on delivering a digital-first news report.