What happened to our bylines? Ask Gannett

We began withdrawing our bylines from our work on June 5. Here’s what the protest means for IndyStar sports columnist Gregg Doyel.

Colts cornerback Isaiah Rodgers reportedly broke NFL gambling rules and the PGA Tour definitely sold its soul to the Saudis, and I had lots to say about both over the weekend, but there’s a reason you didn’t see it.

It’s the same reason you didn’t see most of my colleagues’ names above their work last week, a byline protest that will continue this week: We’re tired of Gannett screwing us.

Do the 42 members of the Indianapolis News Guild think a byline protest will bring our Gannett overlords to their knees? Of course not. We’re not that stupid, thanks very much.

But short of a strike, where everybody would lose and lose badly, we’re showing our displeasure as publicly as possible, and the results have been encouraging behind the scenes as well as out front.

The action has generated several stories from other local news organizations – and hundreds of emails from readers to our bosses, wondering what the hell’s going on.

What is going on?

We’re tired of Gannett screwing us. Please don’t make me repeat myself.

Sorry, but nerves are raw, and not just mine, though I’ve had several NSFW calls recently with bosses.

Guild membership is tired of Gannett screwing us by (1) refusing for years to give the newsroom cost-of-living adjustments during the worst inflation in decades while (2) no longer contributing to our 401(k) plan even as we (3) win one Pulitzer for our work on the dangers of Indiana’s K-9 units and (4) bring down evil Dr. Larry Nassar in a series of stories that should have won another Pulitzer.

(5) Hell, for nearly three years Gannett has made it as difficult as possible to renegotiate a collective bargaining agreement that expired in September 2020, par for the course for an enormous company that gives similar treatment to newsrooms around the country.

See why we’re unhappy? Our byline protest will continue indefinitely as we seek higher profile ways to express our displeasure without disrupting our work for the community.

As for me, well… it’s complicated. 

Gannett refuses to run opinion pieces without a byline, because a generic “IndyStar staff report” atop my column would indicate that whatever I’ve written is the position of the paper, and my bosses don’t want that – and I understand that.

That gives me two unpalatable options going forward: Don’t write at all – essentially wage a one-person work stoppage – or step out of line with my guild colleagues participating in the byline protest.

I’ve chosen to write. It’s what I do, who I am, and I’m supporting our guild in other ways. Writing this note, for example.

As for the larger picture, such as Gannett going almost three years without updating our pay scale? No 401(k) contributions for almost a year? Refusing to compensate us fairly, to invest in newsrooms at the local level?

Nope, I don’t understand that.

Listen, we need your help. No, not money. I don’t want charity. What I’d like is for the community we defend to stand by us in the form of messages to our bosses. I promise you, those make a mark.

And I promise you this: You don’t want to see what would happen around here if Gannett continues to take out chunks of IndyStar until there’s nothing left.

You can write our bosses a letter here: tinyurl.com/2hj4nf7h

Thank you.

Gregg Doyel, alongside dozens of Indianapolis News Guild colleagues