By Josh Kelety | Phoenix New Times
Staff at the daily newspaper, the largest in Arizona, are quitting left and right. An estimated 21 employees left the paper between May 2020 and April 2021. And every passing week seems to bring a new, grim announcement on social media that another long-time journalist is leaving the paper.
Just this week, Maria Polleta, a veteran of the paper who most recently worked as a state government reporter, disclosed on Twitter that she is departing. And back on April 8, Uriel J. García, an award-winning public safety reporter, walked away from the paper.
Observers are left to wonder: Why are so many journalists jumping ship at a flagship newspaper in a major metropolitan area like Phoenix?
The answer, according to some current and former staffers, is multi-faceted. Some employees have moved on to jobs at other media outlets, including top-tier publications: reporter Angel Mendoza is now a social media editor for the Washington Post, for example, and education reporter Lily Altavena went to the Detroit Free Press. Why others left the paper isn’t as clear. Insiders cite factors such as low pay, burnout, a toxic work environment created by the paper’s executive editor, Greg Burton, gender and race-based pay disparities, and management’s allegedly superficial commitment to diversifying its staff and supporting women and people of color in the newsroom.
