Day Publishing Co., owner of the New London Day daily newspaper, announced it is reducing the number of its “Times”-branded weeklies from nine to three, effective Thursday.
The weeklies have been struggling due to less advertising, specifically related to its inserts, according to Business Editor Lee Howard, who writes for the New London Day and has overseen the weeklies.
“It’s a regrettable decision, but one that had to be made to save jobs and content in the Day paper,” Howard told the Hartford Business Journal Wednesday.
Howard said the weeklies that will remain are: The eight-page Mystic Times that serves Mystic and surrounding communities; the eight-page Norwich Times, which serves Norwich and surrounding communities; and the 12-page The Times, which is distributed in New London, Waterford and other nearby communities.
At one time, the nine weeklies had 21 employees, Howard said. He said one part-timer was let go and he is the only person writing for the three remaining weeklies. Howard said the three weeklies, which are free and have a combined circulation of about 105,000, will feature a cover story with local content. The rest of the paper will be devoted to advertising, primarily classifieds.
Howard said the Day will pick up some of the content and features that were staples in the weeklies.
Howard, who has spent 42 of his last 45 years in journalism working for Day Publishing, said the changes will allow him to spend more time writing business stories for the Day’s Sunday business section.
There will be no layoffs at the Day’s daily paper, which has about 18 news and sports reporters, Howard said.
Howard said he didn’t have any numbers on how much Day Publishing is saving from consolidating its weeklies.
News of the consolidation comes months after the Hearst Connecticut Media Group announced that the Torrington Register Citizen would discontinue printing its daily newspaper in favor of a weekly print publication. The weekly’s first edition was on March 12.
