UPDATE: Chi-Town Daily News lays off reporters, employees
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Reporters and employees at nonprofit online newspaper Chi-Town Daily News were informed Wednesday that the entire staff was being laid off, effective Thursday, said former Chi-Town reporter (and occasional A.V. Club contributor) Peter Sachs. "[Founding editor Geoff Dougherty] told us Wednesday that we were out of money, and that was it," Sachs says, adding the staff won't be compensated for the time they had put in this week. Dougherty, a champion of the nonprofit newspaper model in Chicago, said a full statement would be up on the site shortly, but that the statement was "not what you'd think," which, presumably, would be that the site would cease operations.
UPDATE: Dougherty has posted a statement on the Chi-Town website, but it raises more questions than answers. Dougherty says he plans to shift from a non-profit model to a profit one, with details to come. Meanwhile, the site will continue to operate with content from volunteers and Loyola University's City News reporting class. Dougherty says he has "some angel funders lined up, and will be recruiting additional investors over the next few weeks" for his new endeavor, whatever that may entail. Dougherty has long voiced opinions about the viability of a nonprofit newsroom model, so it'll be interesting to see how those ideas translate to a for-profit model that has eluded so many of Chicago institutions.
