After Kevin Merida’s surprise exit, will LA Times’ new editor listen to the paper’s owner or its workers?
Despite tributes to the editor pouring in from industry colleagues, cracks had emerged in his image among some of his own employees – months before his exit.
Amidst tough financial spells, layoffs, and internal tension over the removal of journalists from stories covering Israel’s military devastation of Gaza, Friday marked the surprise exit of Los Angeles Times executive editor Kevin Merida. His departure summoned tributes from around elite American media — and distressed staffers.
More than two-and-a-half years after Merida’s arrival in El Segundo as the first Black executive to lead the newsroom in 20 years, the paper’s publisher, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, described his departure as “mutually-agreed upon.” Industry colleagues past and present this week described Merida as “one of the good ones,” a compassionate leader who sincerely cared for reporters and brought calm — even new life — to his prior homes at ESPN and The Washington Post.
Meanwhile, Times employees expressed surprise and resigned uncertainty online.
The last few months made apparent a misalignment between Merida’s industry image and his standing among some of his own rank-and-file. Staffers began to perceive a disconnect through a variety of crises, according to one recently departed and two current Times employees who spoke with The Objective on the condition of anonymity.
They pointed to Merida struggling for answers — or words — in the face of cutting employees of color during mass layoffs last June, unproductive union bargaining sessions, and internal questions about a “bloated” masthead of better-paid managers.
And both current staff members recalled a “tone-deaf” all-hands November staff call, in which Merida spoke vaguely about the state of the industry and the newsroom’s future direction, full of unspecific ideas about reorganization — including a slide with just the words “Be Brave.”
Merida declined to comment over the phone for this story.
Related: ‘There’s just no really good answers’: The L.A. Times struggles to explain mass layoffs
“It always felt like there was a general disconnect between what his ideals and visions were and what the lived reality in front of us was,” said one of the current staffers, who told The Objective that the paper’s more urgent focus on profitability — which has threatened colleagues’ livelihoods and even severed digital connections between reporters and communities — has in recent months outlined a clear difference between their own values and those of the news organization.
“I want us to do well as a newsroom … but a lot of the language here is about being profitable, and getting conversions and clicks and getting millions of views, it just rings hollow to me, and I think it honestly rings hollow to a lot of people,” they continued. “That’s why there’s some resentment of praising teams like Fast Break [a relatively new team dedicated to fast coverage of breaking news and trending topics] because, you know, are we rewarding the right thing?”
Removal of staffers from Gaza coverage disillusioned and drew ire
More recently, both current staffers added, Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza drew a further internal wedge between Merida and his employees.
In November, Merida removed three dozen Times employees from covering stories related to Gaza for at least three months, due to their signing of a letter denouncing Israel’s killing of Palestinian journalists and calling for more accurate reporting of the Israeli military’s bombardments on the Gaza Strip.
One of the current staffers told The Objective the decision was “devastating” to deal with after they and other colleagues devoted time to preparing for such coverage.
”My mental health definitely dipped in the immediate aftermath of that … it made us feel even more disconnected and disembodied from the work that we were doing,” they said. “ I think what sucks most was seeing Arab, Muslim, Palestinian journalists at the organization who couldn’t be a part of that coverage anymore.”
The staffer said they were informed of Merida’s decision “impersonally” — that it had come down through a manager who wasn’t in the room when the decision was made, which neutered any ability to answer questions and “created further disconnect.”
“It felt like this was more of a PR move, acting from a place that would anticipate bad faith critics and bad faith actors … as opposed to, you know, actually engaging with the substance of the values of that letter and what it was calling for,” they said.
The decision – and its callous delivery from someone meant to represent the Times and its values – also signaled a turning point for the staffer, who said the last few months helped them realize they’ve outgrown the institution, and that the paper’s values are pushing them to go back to local news that might not be sustainable for for-profit operations but are of “direct benefit to the community.”
“‘I am at this point now where it’s possible to outgrow a place like the LA Times, and if my values don’t align with it, the world is bigger than that,’” they said. “It was the first time in my career where I’m like, ‘Okay, maybe this place isn’t where I need to be forever.’”
The employee said Merida’s response to the letter’s signatories also drove a wedge between him and Soon-Shiong, the latter of whom told the Times — in its story on Merida’s exit — that he was “disappointed” he was not keyed in on Merida’s adverse action toward the employees.
But the issue didn’t play a role in Merida’s departure, Soon-Shiong told the Times.
Merida’s replacement to face the Times’ ongoing financial, internal pressures
Soon-Shiong also told reporters that Merida’s exit means he’ll be more involved in newsroom operations, along with beginning the process of finding a new executive editor. In the meantime, the role will be fulfilled by the paper’s senior leadership team.
He vowed no interest in selling the paper, but said more “cost-cutting” is possible.
What’s clear is that the Times is struggling to boost revenue — a situation that has contributed to the paper severing ties with digital audiences and letting its reporters go a year without a contract.
Soon-Shiong’s 2018 purchase of the Times was well-publicized as a bid to save American journalism. But the summer layoffs at the paper became a canary call for the billionaire’s emerging frustration over the Times’ slowness to sustainability, an idea that’s translated into a devastating force throughout the industry.
Last year, a staggering number of media organizations, including newsrooms like NPR, ABC News, and The Washington Post, have announced layoffs.
The billionaire media mogul’s anxieties about his own media stake later manifested in his sale of the San Diego Union-Tribune – which he had acquired with the Times – to Alden Global Capital, a hedge fund that’s become notorious for buying and downsizing American newspapers. The move also devastated and shocked Union-Tribune staff.
The LA Times Guild, the union representing Times employees, reacted to Merida’s exit in a Tuesday statement to members that echoed the tone taken by Times leadership and industry leaders.
“Kevin Merida has been a smart and thoughtful leader under extraordinarily difficult circumstances. We wish him the best as he steps down.”
The guild added:
“As you, our members, know all too well, The Times faces significant challenges. But we also know that this is one of the best newsrooms in the country, and we have faced tumultuous times before — together.”
And as Soon-Shiong mentioned, the Times isn’t through with cuts: The paper has reported that L.A. Times Studios, the ambitious venture toward original video and audio content which Merida once hailed as an avenue to growth, is being downsized.
One of the current Times staffers interviewed told The Objective that Merida was functioning “under a lot of that pressure [to increase revenue].”
“The newsroom is being run as a for-profit company owned by a billionaire who wants to steer toward profit,” they said. “And that was his [Merida’s] edict and he had to do it. So, you know, he had a job to do, but I don’t think it was a vision that I could fully get on board with, anyway.”
Brandon Pho is a San Jose Spotlight reporter covering Santa Clara County who formerly covered north/central Orange County, as well as broader regional issues around law enforcement, transportation, the environment, the OC Fair, and Little Saigon, as part of Voice of OC.
This piece was edited by James Salanga. Copy edits by Gabe Schneider.
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