Mark I. Pinsky's piece arguing for a bailout of laid-off reporters has new urgency today: The Tribune Company may be filing for bankruptcy, possibly this week, and The New York Times is planning a $225 million mortgage against its 52-story headquarters, built just last year. The Tribune Company owns twelve major newspapers, including The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times, and Pinsky's former employer, The Orlando Sentinel.
Today, there are many dislocated "old media" journalists from newspapers, radio, and television on the street--here I declare my personal interest, as one of them--who could provide a skilled pool to staff a new Federal Writers Project. But since these journalists represent only a fraction of the larger displaced workforce, it is fair to ask what the public benefit would be of money spent.
Read the whole piece here.