• by Ray Schultz , September 3, 2024

Gannett Satellite Information Network Inc. is planning to lay off 74 employees in Massachusetts by November 14, according to a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act) filing with the state. 

The planned layoffs will start on November 1. 

Companies are required to warn employees 60 days prior to a mass layoff. 

Presumably, the affected employees work on Reviewed, the review site Gannett announced it is closing. 

“After careful consideration and evaluation of our Reviewed business, we have decided to close the operation,” said spokesperson Lark-Marie Antón in August.  

However, the NewsGuild of New York, which represents Gannett’s unionized employees, criticized the closure. 

“We are deeply troubled by Gannett’s decision to shutter Reviewed,”  says Susan DeCarava, president. “We are concerned for the future of dozens of workers represented by The NewsGuild of New York working at Reviewed, and about the broader impact of this announcement on the media industry at large.” 

Gannett claims the shutdown has nothing to do with allegations that Reviewed published AI-written reviews.

Another interpretation is that Google’s constant algorithm changes have degraded Reviewed’s business model.