Another local news outlet has been shut down. DCist, the popular news and lifestyle site, announced Feb. 23 that the site “will no longer publish new content.” Readers have been redirected to its owner WAMU.org.
Station general manager Erika Pulley-Hayes made the announcement that 15 layoffs would occur with the closure of the site during a 10-minute meeting last Friday where she took no questions. Pulley-Hayes told staffers that the shift was due to a shift to focus on more audio and less written journalism.
A “ripple effect across media consumption habits created by the pandemic,” as well as a decrease in advertising and a tough philanthropic scene as additional reasons for DCist’s demise.
Shortly after the announcement, many staffers took to X and other social media to express their sadness and frustration.
Natalie Delgadillo (@ndelgadillo07) wrote:
“Still reeling at the enormous and unnecessary cruelty of completely erasing decades of D.C. history by wiping the entire DCist archive off the face of the internet. We should be able to access our clips and you (readers) should be able to look back on that historical record.”
She is writing in reference to the fact that DCist’s archive is currently unavailable to the public. American University, who owns WAMU (DCist’s owner), said that staffers will be able to access their stories to pursue new jobs.
Employees were locked out of their Google Drive and their station’s content management system Friday.
WAMU’s union said, “Poor leadership has led us to this moment.”
[Editor’s note: Displaced freelancers should note that The Georgetowner is seeking additional news writers and reporters. Email editorial@georgetowner.com, if interested.]
