L.A. Times, Chicago Tribune to combine foreign operations

Below is the memo from Editor Russ Stanton and Foreign Editor Bruce Wallace on the change.

Colleagues:

The Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune are unifying their foreign reporting operations to provide Tribune papers and websites with the enterprising overseas coverage that has brought such distinction to both news organizations.

Both have great traditions of reporting from abroad. The Chicago Tribune began sending correspondents into the field at the turn of the 20th century and has been home to such fabled correspondents as Wilfred Barber and William Shirer. Under publisher Otis Chandler, the Los Angeles Times built a network of foreign correspondents that was at the forefront of the paper’s commitment to excellence, producing talented reporters such as David Lamb and Michael Parks.

The new Tribune foreign operation will uphold that great legacy.

The joint operation will be run from Los Angeles, where the bulk of the editing staff is currently based, in consultation with editors in Chicago and across the Tribune family. The staff will consist of L.A. Times and Chicago Tribune correspondents, strategically based around the world, who will emphasize original reporting delivered in a unique voice for print and online audiences. Their mix of daily news and features will meet our readers’ expectations for sophisticated reporting and writing from outside the United States.

The foreign report will continue to be distributed on the L.A. Times-Washington Post News Service and to the Tribune family of papers and websites in a daily, ready-to-publish World and Nation report produced in Chicago. Our stories and reports will reach millions more digitally, be it online, via mobile devices or eEdition delivery.

We are proud of the many brave and talented correspondents upon whose shoulders we stand. Several generations of foreign correspondents from The Times and Tribune have covered wars and upheaval, including Africa in the 1930s, Vietnam and the horrors of 21st century Baghdad. They have reported through global economic depressions and have chronicled political and social changes from the capitals of Europe to villages in Asia. The current global turmoil demands that we continue to provide lively journalism that enlightens and entertains existing readers and new audiences alike. The new Tribune foreign operation will meet that challenge.

Russ Stanton
Editor

Bruce Wallace
Foreign Editor

Comments

[jayarr8]

The great reality is why do two closely joined national newspapers need more than one foreign reporting service to serve two communities. Save the money and combine your national reporting too.

[Ellen]

Jayarr, you're right -- realy why do we more than one newspaper covering the world? And why do we need newspapers covering foreign news at all? The government and military will tell us all we need to know.

[David]

Not sure what this means for jobs, amount of content, or quality of content.

I've been a subscriber to the newspaper since I was 18. I grew up in a house that subscribed to two newspapers. I was a paperboy in high school. I love newspapers.

Having said all of that, the writing is clearly on the wall for the future of newspapers. This paper needs to redirect its focus to the following priorities: 1) LA city; 2) LA county; 3) Southern California; 4) State politics coming out of Sacramento. In just those four buckets there is more than enough interesting material to publish a great newspaper with the same amount of editorial as currently exists.