New spot news desk aims to correct 'structural deficiencies' in Washington

Editorial managers have identified “structural deficiencies”, Americas editor Dayan Candappa told union representatives recently.

The new spot news desk - to be operational by the end of this month - aims to remedy those deficiencies by focusing on monitoring and snapping. It will play a critical role in snapping, covering pick-ups and original reporting in the bureau.

The new desk will be built on top of the bureau’s existing breaking news team and will comprise about 15 people, down from two dozen originally envisaged.

The Newspaper Guild of New York, which represents journalists at Reuters in the United States, said it discussed the importance of the new operation with management at length on 7 January, “with intense focus on the challenge of getting Guild reporters to join it without fear of jeopardizing their beat reporting careers”. The discussion took place in a partnership committee comprising union and management representatives.

“Guild members on the committee got a clearer idea of management's thinking, while the managers on the panel, including real decision-makers, got valuable insight from their front-line employees that helped shape their plans,” the union said in a statement.

The initiative, announced in November, was to “create a larger spot news team dedicated to winning the news of the day by delivering fast, accurate snaps and insightful spot stories.”

The union said the idea, and uncertainty surrounding it, had prompted widespread concern among journalists in the bureau, especially after the recent departure of bureau chief Marilyn Thompson. Candappa said he hoped to announce her replacement by the end of the first quarter. No candidates, either internal or external, have been identified thus far, he said.

The Guild suggested starting with six-month voluntary assignments to the new desk, and managers expressed hope they would not have to resort to a rotation or draft to fill what Candappa described as “heroic” roles. Managers agreed with the Guild’s observation that drafting staff against their will was a likely recipe for individual failure and a threat to the operation.

Guild participants at the meeting also asked whether Washington beats like the departments of agriculture, homeland security, tax and transportation, which have been uncovered for some time, will ever be staffed again.

“The response was that some beats will remain uncovered, some will not, and there will likely be a few new hires,” it said. Either way, Candappa emphasised that beat reporters need “to think about sourcing around stories and not around buildings”.

Separately, the Guild said incremental progress in contract negotiations was achieved in another meeting on Tuesday, with agreement to increase paid paternity leave from the current three days to two weeks.

“But we’re still waiting for a response to the Guild’s extensive information request regarding the use of freelancers, contractors and stringers. Management said the departure of General Manager Rob Doherty this month has delayed things, since he was leading the effort to gather the information. We made the request in September.”

The union said the primary focus of the session was to get management's rationale for proposing to wipe out minimums for overtime or other premium pay when called into work on the sixth or seventh day of a five-day week, when called in while on standby, when working in a higher classification, when deputising for an absent supervisor, or when working on a holiday.

The next contract negotiating session is scheduled for 18 February. ■