Pittsburgh Catholic newspaper lays off all employees
Publication has printed since 1844
The historic Pittsburgh Catholic newspaper — the official weekly publication of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh since 1844 — terminated all employees during a conference call that came as a surprise to staff Thursday.
“We were all terminated permanently,” said John Franko, a reporter who has been at the paper for nearly 30 years. “We were expecting layoffs, but this came as a shock. I guess they did what they had to do.”
The news came during a conference call with roughly 11 employees of the newspaper. Those laid off included a mix of reporters, editors, advertising salespeople, a business manager, a circulation manager and clerical staff.
The newspaper’s editor, Bill Cone, has served as head of the paper since October 2003.
“We didn’t really expect to completely lose our jobs,” Mr. Cone said. “The operations manager and I knew that our general financial situation at the newspaper was difficult. We’ve known that for months and years . ... We were thinking it would be more of a temporary thing, something like a hiatus. Now, they’re saying it could be months before the diocese itself is able to get back to normal with people going to Mass.”
Since the 1970s, Pittsburgh Catholic has operated as a separate entity from the diocese, and it receives the majority of its funding through parishes. Parishes need to receive enough newspapers for at least 40% of their households.
The circulation of Pittsburgh Catholic was about 83,000, Mr. Cone said. About 50,000 of those were mailed in bulk to the churches, and the other roughly 30,000 copies were mailed to households. In addition to circulation money from parishes, half of the budget comes from advertising.
Mr. Cone highlighted a massive decline in print interest in the last 15 years — especially since the U.S. economic crash of 2008.
“A lot of people pulled out of newspapers, especially print,” Mr. Cone said. “With parishes as the lifeblood of our funding, we knew that when the bishop ended all the public Masses due to COVID19, we would face even greater financial issues. A lot of people in the parishes pick up their papers in the back of the church. So when they go to Mass, that’s where they get their newspapers. We knew this past Monday there would be an issue with people receiving a paper, because they’re not showing up for church.”
Mr. Franko, 57, said there’s more to the paper’s closing than coronavirus concerns.
“Times are changing,” he said. “I guess they wanted to take things in a different direction here. There isn’t a huge call for diocese journalists.”
Friday would have been issue 1 of the newspaper’s 176th year. A handful of staff had been at the paper up to 36 years, Mr. Franko said.
“This is more than a job — It’s a vocation for most of the staff,” he said. “It gave us a chance to live our faith. But it’s difficult. I don’t have children like others do. The people here are great people. I believe God opens new doors, so this just gives me an opportunity to continue seeking.”
The diocese announced Thursday it was suspending operations until further notice amid the increasing shutdowns due to the coronavirus. Newspaper staff terminations and the fact that the publication would be officially closed were not mentioned in the diocese’s initial release.
“An email was sent to diocesan employees Thursday explaining that the Pittsburgh Catholic newspaper will suspend operations effective immediately and until further notice,” said Ellen Mady, chancellor for the Diocese of Pittsburgh. “This action is necessary since there is no distribution given the suspension of Masses in the Diocese of Pittsburgh due to coronavirus [COVID-19] concerns.” The Pittsburgh Catholic website remains live, she said.
Bishop David Zubik this week suspended Masses and other activities, such as midweek devotional services and Lenten fish fries, to reduce the spread of the virus.
It’s hard to know if the paper would have come to a close at this time if Mass hadn’t been canceled due to growing concerns of the coronavirus, Mr. Cone said.
“Something similar may have happened, but it’s hard to predict exactly when,” he said. “We’ve been dealing with financial issues for quite a few years. We had three people retire in the last several years, and we didn’t fill their positions. We’ve had yearly deficits over $100,000.”
According to the publication’s website, Pittsburgh Catholic was launched April 6, 1844, by Bishop Michael O’Connor, the first bishop of the diocese.
He stated its purpose as follows: “This paper will be devoted particularly to an exposition and defense of Catholic principles but will contain also a varied selection of articles on miscellaneous subjects and foreign news. All domestic party politics shall be carefully avoided.”
Despite the closure, Mr. Cone said he looks forward to the next phase of life. He is looking for new jobs and has a wife who is “always willing to move to where the work is,” he said with a laugh.
“God is very much in charge, and he has a plan for us all,” he said.