American Press cuts carriers to remain cost-effective

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - In December of 2022 The Lake Charles American Press announced it would no longer print a Sunday or Monday edition. This past Saturday, the newspaper announced that it will no longer be delivered by carriers.

Data indicates that in the United States and Europe, newspapers are experiencing fluctuations in popularity and sales.

“Several people have reached out to us as the 10 carriers, but it’s also important to know that it wasn’t just the ten of us that lost our positions with the newspaper, it was also the printers,” former carrier Cassie Shah said.

The carriers were independent contractors, however the printers were employees of the American Press. According to a 2022 study by Northwestern University, between late 2019 and May 2022, the United States witnessed the closure of an average of two newspapers per week.

“Many of us had been carriers for a number of years; one carrier had worked in the position for more than 40 years,” Shah said. “Several of us had been in our position for 10 or more years, I was an 11-year carrier.”

In order to survive, newspapers are contemplating consolidation and exploring other options to remain cost-effective and avoid closure.

“On September 19, we were notified by the American Press that there was to be a mandatory meeting for us 10 carriers and we were told on September 20 that we were being terminated from our contracts and that the American Press was switching to postal delivery,” Shah said.

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