Monday, July 19, 2021

Newsroom Employment Has Fallen 26 Percent

Newsroom employment has plummeted since 2008, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The number of people employed in newsrooms fell from 114,000 in 2008 to just 85,000 in 2020—a 26 percent decline. Pew defines newsroom employment as reporters, editors, photographers, and videographers who work for newspapers, radio, broadcast television, cable, and "other information services" (digital-native news publishers). 

Newspapers dominated newsroom employment in 2008. But employment at newspapers fell by a whopping 57 percent between 2008 and 2020. Consequently, the newspaper industry is just a shadow of its former self. At the other extreme, the number of newsroom employees who work in the digital-native industry has more than doubled and now accounts for 21 percent of the total.

Newsroom employment by industry, 2008 and 2020
   2020     2008     % change
Total    84,640   100.0%       114,260   100.0%          -26%
Newspapers    30,820     36.4         71,070    62.2          -57
Broadcast TV    29,700     35.1         28,390    24.8             5
Digital-native    18,030     21.3           7,400      6.5         144
Radio      3,360      4.0           4,570      4.0          -26
Cable TV      2,730      3.2           2,830      2.5            -4

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