Some Personal News

Some Personal News is a Poynter series that shares experiences of people who were laid off from their journalism jobs or left the news during the pandemic. We know thousands of people lost their jobs last year, and want to capture the stories of journalists, printing plant employees, ad sales people, news researchers and anyone else whose employment by newsrooms ended or was altered because of the pandemic. You can tell us your story here.

This TV journalist left a 20-year career for the CDC

‘I realized I don’t necessarily have to work in news to use the ability to write or communicate or lead people’

August 25, 2021

Tamara Lush left the AP and journalism for fiction. She has no regrets.

'For a large chunk of my career, I knew there would be a day where either journalism would leave me, or I would want to leave journalism.'

August 18, 2021

Amaris Castillo

After getting laid off from the same newsroom, this couple took an epic pandemic road trip

Jim and Holly Weber worked at The Daily Memphian and documented their unemployment journey

August 11, 2021

Why Stacy-Marie Ishmael doesn’t see leaving a job as a failure

Working through one crisis after another presents questions about sustainability, not just burnout.

August 5, 2021

He was the first college football writer for ESPN.com. That didn’t save his job.

Ivan Maisel looks back on his storied journey at the worldwide leader in sports — and untimely departure.

July 8, 2021

This journalist has spent his entire career working at newspapers. After multiple layoffs, he’s considering letting them go.

‘Maybe it’s time to get out of newspapers — maybe not journalism essentially — but maybe there’s a better life than … working a second shift.’

July 8, 2021

A seasoned music and culture journalist lost his dream job. But this time, he was prepared.

When William E. Ketchum III lost his job at Vibe, he launched into a protocol he’d developed from previous layoffs.

July 8, 2021

Amaris Castillo

Baltimore Sun furloughs gave him time to rethink everything, including his job

Sameer Rao left his dream job at the paper for one with more stability, better pay

June 9, 2021

This editor couldn’t afford to stay in journalism

Matthew Gerring quit his job as a software engineer to pursue journalism. Four years later, he decided to go back.

June 9, 2021

When CNN eliminated her job, she was devastated. Now she’s on a new path.

Elisa Berkowitz Gill was able to save her team’s jobs, but not her own.

June 9, 2021

Amaris Castillo

Some personal news: We have a new series on layoffs and the people who left news during the pandemic

Please tell us your story

April 15, 2021

Her newspaper closed. She kept reporting.

Marchel Espina had lost her job. She wasn’t ready to lose journalism.

April 13, 2021

This new journalist found isolation, not her dream job

Dynahlee Star Padilla finally got the opportunity she had been hoping for. But then came a backdrop of multiple stresses fueled by the pandemic.

April 13, 2021

Amaris Castillo

After a layoff, David Clinch isn’t done with journalism

After getting laid off from Storyful, the veteran journalist ‘very quickly began to see the possibilities.’

April 13, 2021