The Sun-Times fired its entire staff of photographers Thursday. Nesita Kwan reports on what that could mean for how the newspaper tells stories.
The Chicago Newspaper Guild this week vowed to take action after the Chicago Sun-Times laid off its entire staff of photographers.
"We are taking steps to fight this move by the company and inform the public of this recent counterproductive action," union president Dave Pollard said.
The photojournalists, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning John White and photo editor Ernie Torres, received the news during a Thursday morning meeting.
The Sun-Times in a statement said the firings were part of its move toward digital content as "audiences are consistently seeking more video content with their news."
The paper's editor reportedly plans to train reporters to take photos and hire freelance photographers.
"The loss of such an important part of the editorial staff is unprecedented for an operation of the Sun-Times’ size," the Newspaper Guild said.
Pollard called the move "both shocking and disheartening" and noted the paper didn't reach out to the union to help prevent or reduce the magnitude of the layoffs.
He said the Guild plans to fight for the photographers' jobs and believes the cuts are illegal.
