When Chuck Plunkett, the editorials page editor of The Denver Post, published a series of editorials criticizing the paper’s hedge fund owners in early April, there was cautious hope that the Post’s situation would get better. But instead it has become much worse—Mr. Plunkett resigned from his position at the newspaper on May 3, after earning national recognition and praise for his brave and truthful reporting. This is a major blow to the field of journalism and to the Denver area, but also to the public as a whole—though the newspaper industry is suffering, high-quality journalism remains absolutely central to our social well-being and our democracy. Mr. Plunkett’s resignation is deeply frightening, and it must inspire even more awareness of the devastation the paper’s parent company, Digital First Media (owned by Alden Global Capital), is doing to our community.
Mr. Plunkett joined the staff of The Denver Post in 2003 and had been the editorials page editor since 2016. He was the first to write about the problems related to Alden and Digital First Media, which involve significant cuts to newsroom staff and reduced resources even as the owners continue to draw in high profits. In an interview with The New York Times after publishing his initial attack, Mr. Plunkett stated that he was aware that he was risking his job by doing so, and in another New York Times article on the day of his resignation, he expressed his sadness, as well as anger, at the circumstances. The New York Times provided additional details that the Post’s coverage did not: Plunkett had written another editorial for Sunday’s paper further detailing the paper’s mistreatment by its owners, but the chief operating officer of Digital First Media prohibited its publication. In Plunkett’s words, “[To] sit quietly would have been hypocritical.”
Plunkett’s resignation also comes after the editorials page editor at the Boulder Daily Camera, Dave Krieger, was fired for self-publishing his own criticism of Alden Global Capital, which owns the Camera as well. The editorial had been rejected by the publisher, and Krieger chose to instead publish on the blog Boulder Free Press. In the post, Krieger tells a similar story to Plunkett: though the Camera’s problems have come about more gradually than the Post’s, they too have faced major cuts even as Alden profits from them. Plunkett’s resignation, Krieger’s firing and the departure of the large number of newsroom staff members in coming layoffs are terrifying because this means that Alden and Digital First, rather than the journalists committed to excellent reporting, are still getting their way.
Mr. Plunkett’s resignation is heartbreaking—just last week, he was on DU’s campus for Real News Day where he was presented the award for Journalism in the Public Interest as the entire room rose for a standing ovation. The work Mr. Plunkett has done has been devoted, without fail, to the public interest. Now, we have to do our part: the public has to be interested.
Speaking about the current situation of the Camera and the Post, Mr. Krieger explained the difficulty of getting the word out about what Alden Global Capital is doing and why they should care. Many people simply do not know what is happening. This is a story that is making headlines in some of the biggest national newspapers, all concerned about the quality of journalism that directly serves the people of Denver and Colorado. Our stake in this is biggest of all, and we each must ensure as many of our fellow Coloradans as possible are aware of the support the Post needs.
Finding a new owner, one of the central pleas of Mr. Plunkett’s editorials, remains the most important step, and a number of Colorado groups are focusing on this. On the individual level, the best possible thing to do is to continue to subscribe (or to start subscribing) to a local paper, be it in Boulder, Denver or anywhere. Though the reaction may be to want to unsubscribe so as to not support the profit-making of the papers’ owner, this is not the right response; subscribing to the paper shows that we care about high-quality journalism and its place in our city and beyond.
Private equity owners like Alden Global Capital that do not value newsroom staff or reporting quality will continue to take advantage of local newspapers and will continue to preside over the firings and resignations of those most devoted to these papers unless serious action is taken. The word is already out in major publications across the country, but the people with potential to have the biggest impact in fighting for the Post are those of us living in Denver and Colorado who benefit each day from quality local reporting. Mr. Plunkett sacrificed his job to stand up for truthful journalism. It is a mission that must be carried on.
