Managing editor's note recognizes Times' 2003 coverage of Stevens

Here's the message from Davan Maharaj, sent July 30:

Colleagues,

The indictment of Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens received front page treatment in all the top papers today. Lost in all the hoopla was the fact that the federal investigation was sparked by great journalism from our DC bureau. Here's a link to Chuck Neubauer's story that ran in 2003.

It shows that our journalism is continuing to have wide impact.

Davan

Editor addresses recent cuts in staff and pages

Editor Russ Stanton's memo to the newsroom:

Colleagues,

A few weeks ago, we announced that we would be losing 150 of our newsroom colleagues and reducing the number of pages we printed by 15%. The announced layoffs are now concluded, and we are losing fewer colleagues (135) and fewer pages (14%) than initially forecast. The process has been painful, and we've had to say goodbye to too many good friends and co-workers.

Our challenge now is to focus on the tasks at hand -- to break stories online and in the paper and continue putting resources toward the in-depth investigative reports that we're known for. This week, we have magnificent examples of both:

Within hours, more than 300,000 readers turned to us for information about the quake. And the excellent Wildfire series is a great reminder of what we're capable of -- wonderful storytelling, brilliant documentary photography, video and graphics, and dazzling design, in print and online.

Blogging the news

The note from Lori Morse of Los Angeles explained that she was a longtime reader and she worried about the loss of features and staffers from The Times. She offered to help in any way she could. She also wrote, "I do not care for the blogs, I just see them interfering with real news reportage.  Everybody has an opinion but what are the FACTS." In a follow-up note, she added, "I feel it is a confusing term and one not associated with QUALITY news reporting."

On at least two counts, Morse is not alone. First, many readers have expressed fear and concern for their hometown paper, which they see and have been told is growing smaller. Second, many readers see "blog" and think "opinion."

The two points are related: As the print edition has fewer pages, the measure of The Times these days includes the reporting that appears online only. And the information on a growing number of blogs represents hundreds of reported pieces a week by the same writers whose work readers value in the printed news articles.

Tony Pierce, the editor who oversees the blogs, estimates that some 125 Times reporters contribute to at least one of the 43 blogs (each blog has two to 10 writers contributing). There are dispatches from Baghdad (Babylon & Beyond), news updates from Hollywood (Gold Derby, among others) and the great outdoors (Outposts). There's "the inside scoop on food in Los Angeles," as the Daily Dish describes itself. The Bottleneck Blog reports on Los Angeles traffic. Reporter Patrick Goldstein's The Big Picture, which started as a popular column in the Calendar section covering entertainment, media and pop culture, recently became a blog. Its transformation symbolizes how vital blogs are as vehicles for reporting. Goldstein noted in his first column online one reason for the growth to the Web: "The world of entertainment and pop culture is moving so fast that it's become impossible to keep up with all the action without weighing in more often than once a week."

None of the news blogs, though, is opinion.

Thus a reader of the Homeroom page could be informed by an exchange between education reporter Howard Blume and a reader asking a question based on Blume's article on how the state counts high school dropouts. The Health staff reported on its blog a study that suggests that the tobacco industry is manipulating the contents of cigarettes to appeal more to young people. And Countdown to Crawford ("the last days of the Bush administration") reports on a Supreme Court error.

"One thing worth noting is the difference between ‘voice’ and ‘opinion’ –- a lot of our blogs have a lot of voice, such as Top of the Ticket and L.A. Land," says Meredith Artley, who is the executive editor of interactive at The Times.

Reporter Mary Engel joins Science/Medicine department

Science and Medicine Editor Ashley Dunn makes the announcement in a staff memo:

Mary Engel is joining the science desk after almost two years as a healthcare reporter for the California section. She will cover infectious diseases and public health.

Mary joined The Times in 1999 as editorial page editor of the Valley edition. She moved to the downtown editorial pages in 2001. In 2005-2006, she was a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT, where she studied global health, infectious diseases and medical ethics.

Before joining The Times, Mary worked for the Anchorage Daily News and the Albuquerque Journal. She’s a graduate of Rhodes College in Memphis with a degree in American studies.

Editor outlines changes in print version of The Times

In a letter to readers in today's paper, Editor Russ Stanton introduces upcoming changes to the print version of the newspaper, while noting the breadth of coverage The Times continues to provide in print and online. Stanton's message is below; an inventory of the changes can be found in the posting that follows this one.

The future of the Los Angeles Times, in print and online, rests in our ability to meet the needs of our readers and deliver news and information that is unique, far-reaching and indispensable. In-depth journalism remains our hallmark and we are committed to that mission in the face of economic challenges to our industry and our nation as a whole.   

For proof, look no further than today’s front-page story on California’s war on wildfires, the first of a five-part series. It is news of vital importance to Southern Californians and it took a team of talented reporters, photographers and graphic journalists working on two continents to produce.  Latimes.com, which is increasingly becoming the destination of choice that busy readers turn to for breaking news coverage, also brings the series to multimedia life.

Our website just recorded its biggest month ever in June with 115 million page views, a 50% increase over last year.  Readers flocked to our online coverage of the overturning of the ban on gay marriage and the Lakers playoff run, and to a new database honoring California residents who lost their lives in the line of duty during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They also embraced our new Olympics, Technology, Countdown to Crawford, and The Big Picture blogs.

[More of the editor's note follows the jump.]

More print sections to change starting next Sunday

Writes Editor Russ Stanton in a note published in today's Times, "In-depth journalism remains our hallmark and we are committed to that mission in the face of economic challenges to our industry and our nation as a whole." Stanton's note to readers (which can be found in the post above this one) is part of an insert that details how The Times plans to meet those challenges while continuing to provide  "world-class coverage."

The plans are part of a reorganization of the paper brought on by a requirement to cut costs, as reported in a July 3 news article that said the paper would reduce the number of pages it publishes each week by 15%.

The latest changes and cutbacks start next Sunday in the Book Review and Opinion section, and Real Estate.

Today is the last issue of the combined Opinion and Book Review section. Starting next Sunday, Opinion moves to the back pages of the main news section, where it appears during the week. (More opinion continues to be published online, at latimes.com/opinion.)

The Book Review will become part of the second section in Calendar on Sundays starting next week. That section, now called Arts & Music, will become Arts & Books, and will include book reviews and features. (Book reviews will continue to run in Calendar during the week, and more book reviews and news can be found at latimes.com/books.)

Today's Real Estate section is the final issue, a number of its features moving to Home, others to Business. Home, which shifts from Thursday publication date to Saturdays, will add Hot Property, Neighborly Advice and other columns to its lineup. (Additional photos of homes from Hot Property columns will continue to be published at latimes.com/realestate.) The Sunday Business section will expand its focus on personal finance to add more coverage of real estate, including Home of the Week.

The candidates: Who makes the news?

John McCain might call media coverage of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama "fawning," as Times reporter Maeve Reston wrote on Tuesday, but so did several dozen Times readers in the past few weeks who sent messages like this from Walter Mielke of Pasadena: "Bias towards Obama. Front page everyday. Tired of it."

A recent surge in such comments, with readers also saying they see bias against Republican candidate McCain, started July 11, when an article on McCain's first marriage was published. The story reported that "McCain, who is about to become the GOP nominee, has made several statements about how he divorced Carol and married Hensley that conflict with the public record," and examined the conflicting information. Typical was a response from the reader who wrote an angry e-mail saying that The Times "will do anything to help Obama and hurt McCain."  (Response to those readers is below.)

But it's the string of Page 1 stories and photos that has brought the most recent protests: On Sunday, July 20, the Campaign '08 banner was over a story about the Iraqi prime minister's endorsement of Obama's plan for withdrawing U.S. troops; on Monday the article was about the political furor triggered by that withdrawal plan. On Tuesday the front-page story was "Obama's views resonate in Iraq." (That was the headline in print; headlines on the online versions are often different.) Each story included an above-the-fold photograph. There were front-page stories, too, last week, on July 15 ("Obama re-admonishes blacks"), 16 ("Obama stands by his plan to end war"), and 17 (a profile of Obama and his father headlined "So alike and yet so different").

Wrote another reader: "I can't take four more months of flattering Obama articles and pictures."

It isn't all flattering, say editors, as evidenced in the July 24 front-page: The photo showed Obama in front of thousands in Berlin. However, the article reported that "Fresh polls show that he has been unable to convert weeks of extensive media coverage into a widened lead."

The news itself dictates the amount of coverage, editors point out. Times reporters are on the trail with both McCain and Obama. In recent days, coverage of McCain has included two front-page pieces ("Housing crisis is a test for McCain" on July 19 and "McCain takes a risk on Social Security," July 14), several brief stories as well as two longer ones inside the main section ("McCain wins some respect," about his address before the NAACP convention, Page A14 on July 17; "McCain's turn before La Raza in San Diego," Page A11, July 15). 

New assignments in Metro

California Editor David Lauter announces new posts for three veteran Times staffers:

I’m happy to announce several important staff changes. Long-time Metro denizens Jean Merl and Ted Rohrlich are taking on new assignments, and Science team reporter Alan Zarembo is transferring to Metro.

Changes in The Guide, Home section

Two sections that have been published in print on Thursdays today announce some changes, with one of them ending its run in the print edition.

Those changes are part of the cost-cutting reported in a July 3 news article that told of layoffs and also noted, "In a further cost-cutting step, the newspaper will reduce the number of pages it publishes each week by 15%."

Today's Guide includes this note:

CALLING ALL READERS: This is the last print issue of The Guide. Turn to daily Calendar for highlights from The Guide starting July 31. So what will you do with your life? Meet The Guide online anytime for listings and picks of what’s happening at theguide.latimes.com.

Editors also used its Underrated/Overrated column to talk about the change:

Underrated
THE GUIDE
Since we overrated ourselves in our first issue last year, we figured we’d “underrate” The Guide here in our final standalone issue. Well-rounded, deftly curated, geographically diverse, concise and yet packed with information and events you won’t find anywhere else, The Guide was a place you could find the unexpected, and then take it with you to the beach. Highlights of The Guide will continue in daily Calendar, but chances are you’ll miss us.

Overrated
NEWSPRINT
OK, so we’re a little melancholy about not having our own section in the paper anymore, but in all honesty, the Web is the place to be. Luckily for us, we’re already there (theguide.latimes.com). And we’re only getting better. Expect more online stories, more photos, more videos. It’s a new world — and we’ll be your Guide.

Though the standalone section is discontinued after today, many of its features and some listings will appear throughout the week in daily Calendar and the weekly Food section. Comprehensive listings will continue to appear online.

The Home section announces changes in this note to readers in today's paper:

We’re moving! Starting next week, the Home section will appear on Saturdays. You’ll still find your favorite columns, including “The Scout” and “Man of the House,” as well as new features for do-it-yourselfers, bargain-hunters and market-watchers. Look for it all, in print and online, Aug. 2.

For information on other cuts, see these earlier postings: Changes in Sports and motoring coverage; and Highway 1.

Ombudsmen columns

Below are links to some of the past week's columns by ombudsmen, readers' representatives and editors around the nation. More columns and information about ombudsmen in the U.S. and around the world can be found at the Organization of News Ombudsmen website (which has a permanent link on the right side of this page).