A secret group of investors bought LA Weekly, then fired most of its writers and editors


On Wednesday, a group called Semanal Media finished its purchase of Los Angeles alt-weekly newspaper LA Weekly — then promptly laid off nine of the 13 members of the editorial staff, including all five editors and all but one staff writer. "We were expecting there to be some pain with the sale," tweeted Mara Shalhoup, who was editor of the publication until Wednesday. "But we weren't expecting the Red Wedding. That's how deep the cuts are." Voice Media Group put LA Weekly, founded in 1978, up for sale in January, saying it was profitable.
Only one of Semenal's investors is publicly known, lawyer and CEO David Welch, and the company was created just to purchase LA Weekly. The company named Brian Calle to manage operations earlier this month; The Wrap describes him as "a conservative-leaning former opinion editor for the Orange County Register." Nobody seems to know what his, or Semenal's, plans are for the newspaper. "I would find it very hard to know what to do in the next few days, given the amount of institutional knowledge that's walking out the door," Shalhoup told the Los Angeles Times. Billionaire Joe Ricketts closed another local news organization, LAist, at the beginning of the month.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff display
Speed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loom
Speed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panels
Speed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of business
Speed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pauses
Speed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect