LA Times editor note to buyouts: 'We will miss you'

With the paper-wide buyout kicking in this week, Los Angeles Times Editor Davan Maharaj this morning sent a note to the newsroom saying thanks to those who are leaving. I'll be adding to my running list of confirmed departures in the coming days and weeks — some are staying into December. Add Carol Williams, the longtime foreign correspondent who more recently has reported for the foreign desk from Los Angeles. That's 26 years of LA Times experience, from more than 80 countries, out the door. "I intend to stay engaged in international affairs but from a different platform," she told me.

Here is the memo from Maharaj.

From: "Maharaj, Davan"
Date: November 17, 2015 at 9:39:49 AM PST
To: yyeditall
Subject: Heartfelt Thanks

Friends,

As you know, many treasured colleagues have decided to leave the Los Angeles Times through the buyout offer, after long and distinguished careers. They have helped make The Times the great newspaper that it is.

We will be saying formal goodbyes soon, but I wanted to say now: We’re going to miss you. We value your devotion to The Times, your talent and especially your friendship. Thank you for your tireless work over the years, most recently in helping to push the reinvention of the newsroom.

For the many who are staying, we look forward to carrying on the proud journalistic tradition of The Times. In the months ahead, many editors and reporters in the newsroom will step up to take important new roles, and we also will bring in new colleagues to fill essential jobs, as we continue the evolution of our journalism in the digital era. The newsroom will still rank among the nation’s largest. More important, in our estimation – and the estimation of our readers and peers – it ranks among the best.

Change is a constant for everyone in our business today. In the coming weeks, we will be meeting with people throughout the newsroom to work with you on our plans to keep evolving and serving our community. Our readers can be assured that they will still be able to count on us to illuminate important issues, to hold institutions accountable, and to capture the rich vibrancy of life in Los Angeles and California.

Our departing colleagues, who have shared in our mission for so long, have helped make this place extraordinary. The best way to honor and thank them is to carry our mission forward.

– Davan