Motown Mystery

While there's been plenty of chatter about the Gannett layoffs this week, everywhere from the blogosphere to many of the affected newspapers' Web sites, it's been eeriely quiet in Detroit.

Gannett's Detroit Free Press never reported any layoffs on its Web site, even though it was among the papers expected to make cuts. Corporate's deadline of Thursday, Dec. 4 for action to occur came and went, and still, no official word out of Detroit.

The Free Press has had no shortage of economic issues to report on, just a few hours ago reporting that General Motors will lay off 2,000 employees at three factories, including one in Michigan, but it's been mum on itself.

Rumors are swirling. According to an anonymous comment at the independent Gannett Blog, 14 Detroit Media Partnership workers were laid off today, and the Free Press specifically will be making cuts in the next few days. Another anonymous user at the same blog notes that the DMP (Free Press and News ownership) may begin publishing primarily online.

While most Gannett papers are profitable (apparently not enough for corporate but that's another story), there's been plenty of speculation that Detroit is largely in the red. Things aren't getting any easier with the auto industry woes and other economic problems in Motown.

While I don't have any inside knowledge on this situation, something's definitely up, in my opinion. And it's not good. It will be interesting to see what decisions are made by Gannett when it comes to Detroit. It may rely heavily on Motown's hopes that the government passes an auto industry bailout. Something to keep an eye on.