• The Hollywood Reporter, Friday, March 6, 2009 9:45 AM

It may come as consolation to some -- or maybe not. Layoffs in the media business don't come close to the carnage in some other sectors. In the first two months of this year, 7,453 jobs were lost at media companies, per a new Challenger, Gray & Christmas report.

In contrast, the industry suffering the most is retail, which slashed 72,727 jobs in January and February. Automotive had the second-most job losses, at 70,058, followed by industrial goods, with 51,545 jobs lost. Challenger breaks its data down into 25 industries. Fourteen industries suffered more layoffs than media.

In all of 2008, the media sector suffered 28,083 layoffs. In the first two months last year, 5,544 jobs were lost, 34% less than in the first two months this year.

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