Missoula Newspaper Employees Locked Out, Told Office Will Close
The Lee Newspapers have continued their firing spree across Montana. Except this time they're actually shutting down an entire newspaper, one that until recently had been a competitor. (The Lee newspapers are formally known as Lee Enterprises)
Mike Dennison, one of Montana's top political reporters (who previously worked for the Lee Newspapers) also made the point via Twitter that The Missoulian basically just shut down a cross-town rival after saying that the paper would remain "editorially independent." Here's Dennison's full tweet:
Former Missoula Independent reporter John Adams said some employees didn't even get the news. They found out when they showed up for work, and the doors were locked.
Then why did you buy it? That was my first question after reading this response from The Missoulian's general manager:
"The Independent has consistently lost money for its owners and is not financially sustainable," said Matt Gibson, general manager for the Missoulian, the Ravalli Republic and the Independent.