It's A Black Friday For Politicker

Lots of bad news out of Jared Kushner's Politicker websites today, we've learned.

(See a February 2008 New York Times profile of Politicker)

The drip, drip:

Politicker's two DC staffers -- Alex Isenstadt and Eric Pfeiffer -- have been let go. Deputy Managing Editor Michael Grass (formerly of the Express, DCist) was also let go.

Word is that 70% of staffers are being let go.

Only five of Politicker's state sites will remain -- Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York.

The cause? Well, besides the crappy economy and the crappier journalism industry, Politicker is opting to focus on states that have a better chance of bringing in revenue down the road (many state sites didn't have an ad sales team), and some state sites had dimmer prospects than others. Some staffers expressed a lack of confidence in the publication's management and leadership, to us.

Most of the casualties are getting two weeks severance pay.

Remaining editors will get pay cuts.

To be fair, we should outline some of Politicker's accomplishments. Among them: Politicker is a major player in some states, breaking news and driving the political news cycle on occasion. State-level political types love their work. "We did a lot
with very little," said one. "Too bad the economy sucks."

It's A Black Friday For Politicker

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