The Minnesota Star Tribune reported last week that it will cut its staff by 15% through a round of layoffs and buyouts.
The cuts will result in a loss of 65 jobs at the 495-person organization, including about 25 positions in the newsroom, the outlet reported.
The Star Tribune Guild, a union representing most of the newsroom, said in a statement that it “will fight the decision.”
“The argument made by Star Tribune management that these layoffs are going to improve our company in any way, shape, or form lacks any foundation in reality,” the guild said, calling the cuts a “direct attack” on the paper’s staff.
Additionally, the outlet reported that the Star Tribune is exploring a nonprofit ownership structure.
In fact, for several weeks, lawyers for the nonprofit Alpha News engaged in talks with the ownership of the Star Tribune related to Alpha News’ purchase of the paper, including the negotiation of a non-disclosure agreement. During those negotiations, the Star Tribune’s lawyers indicated that ownership was moving in another direction.
The latest round of layoffs comes after the Star Tribune announced in September that it would be shutting down its Minneapolis printing facility and laying off 125 employees. The paper is now printed at a Gannett facility in Des Moines, Iowa.
Ironically, Star Tribune CEO Steve Grove previously served in Democratic Gov. Tim Walz’s cabinet as commissioner of the Department of Employment and Economic Development. In this role, Grove frequently touted Minnesota’s business climate, in one case saying that “people who start things in Minnesota tend to stick to it.”
State Sen. Zach Duckworth, R-Lakeville, pointed out that the Star Tribune moved printing operations to Iowa, announced layoffs, and hinted at becoming a nonprofit “shortly after a slew of new expensive employee mandates & taxes” were passed into law in Minnesota.
The paper named Grove its new publisher and CEO in 2023, a move that raised eyebrows because he was hired directly from a political position to lead the state’s largest newspaper.
Reports later indicated that Grove maintained contact with Gov. Walz’s office, texting the governor’s chief of staff to say he “didn’t see or approve of” a cartoon the paper published and complimenting the governor on his State of the State address.
Additionally, the Star Tribune faced widespread criticism for its coverage of fraud last year, with one national commentator saying the outlet “masquerades as a newspaper” but is “actually a Democrat front.”
Anthony Gockowski
Anthony Gockowski is Editor-in-Chief of Alpha News. He previously worked as an editor for The Minnesota Sun and Campus Reform, and wrote for the Daily Caller.
