London Newspaper City AM Cuts Salaries By 50% As Coronavirus Keeps Readers Home

Topline: London-based freesheet newspaper City AM is the latest outlet to temporarily halt its print edition, while its reporters will have their pay cut in April as the city is emptied of its mostly commuter readership amid coronavirus work from home measures.

• City AM will temporarily switch to online only, and will publish a digital version of its paper online.
• No redundancies will be made, but cost-saving measures will mean staff will see their April salaries reduced by 50%, according to media publication Press Gazette, citing an email sent to employees.

• Some 85,000 copies of CityAM are distributed daily in stations and commuter hubs across London, but those sites have been emptied out after the U.K. government this week urged people to work from home where possible.
• According to Press Gazette, free newspapers that rely on advertising face threats to their survival as circulation dwindles amid an unprecedented fall in commuter journeys as the coronavirus pandemic rumbles on.
• On Thursday, London’s transport network started operating a reduced service while 40 tube stations were shut.

Crucial comment: The paper, in a message on the front page of its latest edition, wrote: “As we adapt to these extraordinary times, we’ve taken the decision to temporarily pause our print operation. 

“We will be back on the streets as soon as possible – that’s a promise – but until then you will be able to find your paper on our website. Just go to cityam.com/editions and keep an eye on cityam.com throughout the day for all the latest news, analysis and commentary. See you on the other side.”

Tangent: Playboy magazine announced on Wednesday it will shutter its print edition this Spring. The decision was already in discussion but was sped up by coronavirus, which has hit content production and supply chains, CEO Ben Kohn wrote on Medium.

Further reading: Coronavirus Forces London’s Transport Network To Start Shutting Down