O`Shea y los costos del cambio

"No podemos ocultar que inteligentes competidores como Google o Craiglist nos están robando lectores y anunciantes", advertía James O`Shea, en ese entonces jefe de la redacción de Los Angeles Times. O`Shea había asumido el cargo con la idea de sacar a la LAT de la crisis en que estaba el periódico, luego que saliera de la propiedad del grupo Tribune y pasara a manos de Sam Zeller, un inversionista que lo adquirió el año pasado en US$13 mil millones. O` Shea salió del diario porque se oponía a mayores despidos y recortes presupuestarios, especialmente luego que se hiciera cambios importantes para revitalizar Los Angeles Times. El siguiente texto es la carta de despedida de O`Shea que a pesar de tener una primera parte muy obvia en este tipo de saludos, la segunda parte muestra los desafíos que enfrentan los editores de medios, los cambios a los que deben estar atentos y la sinergia que deben encontrar en las audiencias y en la web.

Por James O`Shea
Texto completo
I made these farewell remarks in the newsroom today and I wanted to share them with everyone in case they took off the holiday and were unable to attend. I wish all of you the best and thank you for all of the help you’ve given me over the last 14 months.

By now I am sure you have all heard I am leaving the Los Angeles Times after 14 months as editor of the paper. I will never forget the day that I walked into this newsroom, which was furious about the firing of my predecessor, Dean Baquet. As I entered the Globe Lobby, the security guard handed me a pass. It was good for one day. I remember thinking this was going to be one of the toughest days of my life. Actually, today is probably a little tougher. I am leaving here after making many great friends and before I got a chance to do everything that I wanted. But that’s life and I accept it.

I know there’s a lot of talk about why I am leaving so let me set the record straight. In discussions about the current and future budgets, it became clear that Publisher David Hiller and I didn’t share a common vision for the future of the Los Angeles Times. In fact, we were far apart. So David decided he wanted a new editor.

As I’ve said on numerous occasions over the past 14 months, I intended to stay here and lead this newspaper to the greatness it deserves. But David decided he wanted to terminate my employment and get another editor. I wish the new editor the best.

Although I didn’t really accomplish all of the goals that I set when I arrived, I know that this newsroom today is better off than when I walked into the door, and I am proud of all that we did together. We’ve accomplished a lot in just 14 months. When I came to this newsroom, I pledged to maintain the quality of the LA Times, and I did, even though I had to cut budgets and shrink the staff.