

We stand against freelanced “pay-to-play stories” on behalf of advertisers. We stand against unjust terminations and reductions in force, against unilateral changes and cuts to retirement plans, against unreasonable workloads and demands. We stand for respect and dignity for our journalists, for fair wages, well-defined minimum levels of pay, and a transparent and standardized system for promotion and pay increases. We stand for newsrooms as diverse as the readers they serve. What is lost is the local voice, the sense of place, and what it means to live here. The consolidation is not in the service of local journalism, but at the convenience of corporate cost-cutting. The once-proud Rockland Journal-News, a fixture for 169 years, no longer has offices in the county it serves. In Poughkeepsie and Middletown, local autonomy has vanished, along with staff, in the name of regionalization. Our health-care options are limited and costly. The wages offered for vacant positions do not reflect living in one of the nation’s most-expensive regions.

We have watched our newsrooms atrophy through layoffs and corporate cuts. We were given the “collective sacrifice” of unpaid furloughs, a vanishing 401(k) match, and advice on buying bike helmets to cover protests. The Gannett CFO was given a $600,000 bonus for working through the pandemic. We have formed a union with the NewsGuild of New York to advocate for ourselves, our profession, and those we serve.ĭespite dwindling resources, we have captured three groundswell moments in our communities: the global pandemic, the economic downturn, and a long-overdue reckoning on race. It is a role we take seriously.ĭecisions by corporate owners at Gannett in Virginia have undermined our efforts to fulfill this mission. The National Suicide Hotline number is 988.As reporters, photographers and editorial staff at The Journal News, Poughkeepsie Journal, and Middletown Times Herald-Record, we bear witness to our readers’ lives, hold the powerful accountable, and amplify the voices of diverse and underrepresented communities. In Dutchess County, the 24-hour helpline number is 84. Suicide hotlines: In Ulster County, the Family of Woodstock Crisis Hotline number is 84. The Dutchess County Medical Examiner’s Office, the town of Lloyd Police and the city of Poughkeepsie Fire Department also assisted at the scene, according to a press release sent by the sheriff’s office. He added that the body had drifted “a long way, probably from the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge” - which is 20 miles north. “We’re usually the first to catch everything,” Carufe said. The sheriff’s office marine patrol responded to the scene and pulled the body from the water with help from the dockmaster and assistant dockmaster at Hyde Park Marina, said Paul Carufe, the dockmaster who operates the marina.Ĭarufe said that the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office docks its boats at Hyde Park Marina and that his crew will occasionally assist local police when bodies are found near the bridge. According to police, at around 10 a.m. Monday, the sheriff’s office was alerted to a body that had been observed in the water near the bridge, which spans from Highland to Poughkeepsie.
