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The Dying Newsroom

After the latest round of layoffs left the San Jose Mercury News office empty as a morgue, a newspaper designer photographed what remained.

Photographs by Martin Gee
Produced by Laura McClure, Gary Moskowitz, and Mark Murrmann

The San Jose Mercury News, like many of its beleaguered competitors in the newspaper industry, has lost a quarter of its newsroom staff since the dotcom champagne bubble burst. In the wake of the exodus, debris shoals of outdated monitors, discarded Rolodexes, and broken headsets litter the empty cubicles. "This place feels like a morgue," writes San Jose Mercury News designer Martin Gee of his 47-photo Flickr collection documenting the loss. The photos, taken one night after the last round of layoffs and buyouts, show the very present sadness that remains. Below, our editors' selection of the lot, with Gee's comments about the photos. —Laura McClure




















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This article has been made possible by the Foundation for National Progress, the Investigative Fund of Mother Jones, and gifts from generous readers like you.

© 2008 The Foundation for National Progress

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