The total number of reported redundancies reached around 3,400, marking an 11 per cent decline compared with the previous year.
More than 3,000 jobs were cut in the journalism sector across the United Kingdom and the United States in 2025, according to ongoing industry monitoring throughout the year.
Based on company announcements and media reports, the estimated total number of redundancies in both countries reached at least 3,434 over the course of the year. This represents a decline of 11 per cent compared with 2024 and 57 per cent compared with 2023. However, the 2023 figures also included around 2,000 job losses in Canada. Excluding those, the year-on-year decrease compared with 2023 stands at 42 per cent.
Sharpest losses at the start of the year
The highest number of job cuts was recorded in January 2025, when at least 939 employees lost their jobs. This was followed by October with 499 redundancies and May with 482. The quietest month was August, with just 15 job losses recorded.
Regionally, around 67 per cent of the journalism job cuts in 2025 occurred in the United States, while just over 30 per cent took place in the United Kingdom. A similar pattern was seen in 2024, when at least three quarters of job losses were concentrated in the US.
The figures mainly cover editorial roles, but also include cuts outside newsrooms, such as in product, technology and commercial teams. Since the data largely relies on publicly announced measures by major media companies, the actual number of redundancies is likely to be significantly higher.
Major publishers lead the cuts
The hardest-hit company in 2025 was People Inc, the largest consumer publisher in the United States. The company cut 143 jobs in January and a further 226 positions in October. These followed earlier layoffs of around 53 employees in November 2024.
In January, when the company was still operating under the name Dotdash Meredith, chief executive Neil Vogel told staff that investments would focus on growth areas such as entertainment, food and advertising technology. In October, Vogel described the layoffs as “a difficult but necessary step” in reshaping the business, while noting that 320 new employees had been hired over the past year and that more than 40 roles remained open.
Second on the list was the UK-based publisher Reach, which cut up to 186 net editorial roles in the autumn. The restructuring involved the elimination of up to 321 positions, alongside the creation of 135 new roles, mainly in video production and live news operations.
David Higgerson, the company’s chief content executive, described the move as the largest reorganisation in Reach’s history, “even greater than during the early days of the digital revolution.” Earlier in the summer, the company also cut around 50 roles in its sports division to reduce duplication and improve efficiency.
Television and international news networks affected
The third-largest round of cuts came from UK broadcaster ITV, which announced in May that it would eliminate more than 220 roles across news, current affairs and daytime programming. Affected shows included Good Morning Britain, Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women. At the same time, ITV said it would reinvest in streaming-friendly formats, particularly drama and sport.
In the United States, both ABC News Group and CNN also made significant reductions, each cutting around 200 jobs during 2025.
Hidden losses remain
Despite extensive tracking, industry observers believe that not all redundancies have been captured, particularly at smaller media outlets and among freelance journalists. As a result, the published figures are widely seen as reflecting only part of the ongoing employment crisis facing the journalism industry.
