NPR Announces 10% Layoffs
• NPR CEO John Lansing announced the network would lay off roughly 10% of its current workforce — at least 100 people — and eliminate most vacant positions. Lansing cited the erosion of advertising dollars, particularly for NPR podcasts, and the tough financial outlook for the media industry more generally as the reason for the downsizing.
Lansing (pictured, below) broke the unfortunate news in a staff memo that reads, in part, “When we say we are eliminating filled positions, we are talking about our colleagues — people whose skills, spirit and talents help make NPR what it is today. This will be a major loss.”
On an annual budget of roughly $300 million, Lansing says, revenues are likely to fall short by close to $30 million, although that gap could reach $32 million. “We’re not seeing signs of a recovery in the advertising market,” Lansing says in an interview. “Nothing is nailed down yet except the principles and what we know we have to reach.”
NPR’s programming division, which produces its industry-leading podcasts, has more than doubled since 2019. Lansing says he remains committed to podcasting “1,000 percent,” as well as the network’s hallmark news magazines, such as Morning Edition and All Things Considered.
Lansing says he does not yet know who within NPR will be affected, but said the job cuts would not fall evenly across the organization. “I don’t anticipate that it would be like a haircut across every division, because that’s just not management,” Lansing says. “Management is about committing to strategy, making tough decisions.” He also vowed to make sure job cuts do not fall disproportionately on employees of color.
An NPR spokeswoman said final decisions on which jobs will be eliminated should occur by the week of March 20. [Lansing photo: Mike Morgan / NPR]
