Creative Loafing, Now Monthly, Cuts Staff

ATLANTA, GA — Creative Loafing, Atlanta's long-running alternative arts and entertainment paper, has cut jobs on its staff in a move that says "goodbye to an era that is likely gone."

In a statement on Wednesday, the publication — which went from a weekly print format to monthly several months ago — announced it has cut three editorial staff positions and four positions in sales and marketing.

The statement said CL has "returned to its roots working with a full complement of freelance writers and columnists."

"Our social media channels, website and monthly newspaper each demand a lot of care that is best done by critics and scene watchers nestled deep in our community," Creative Loafing CEO Ben Eason said. "We’ve had a nice run with a staff driven model and needed to finally say goodbye to an era that is likely gone.”

"The Loaf," has invested in new music columns and plans to unveil a new website next month, according to the statement.

The announcement was met by mourning and anger by many in Atlanta who have come to rely on the 45-year-old publication for news about local politics, arts and, especially, the live music scene.

"I’m mourning the loss of @cl_atlanta, and angry that owner Ben Eason is mocking a civic institution’s demise with his marketing double-speak about returning to 'roots'," wrote Andisheh Nouraee, the digital-engagement director for CARE who has worked as a writer, photographer and musician in Atlanta, on Twitter.

Nouraee, who previously worked for Creative Loafing, recalled religiously waiting for the weekly paper to arrive at a paper box in Little Five Points, sometimes meeting the delivery driver there because he knew their schedule so well.

"I read Creative Loafing’s music writer Greg Nicoll like it was my job. When he wrote about my band and said I had a 'voice for the ages' it meant the world to me," he wrote. "I was 23 and I wanted CL and people who liked CL to like what I did."

"It's worth repeating what's been said often in 2017," added writer Max Blau, another Creative Loafing alumnus. "The demise of alt-weeklies like @cl_atlanta aren't just bad for readers but for young journalists who learned to write and experiment."

Creative Loafing publishes 60,000 copies each month of its newspaper and has a combined audience of 500,000+ Atlantans on social, its website and via emails.

Photo courtesy Creative Loafing