made it official. Berkeley-based Center for Investigative Reporting has acquired The Bay Citizen, the 2010 startup whose future became increasingly murky after the death of chief benefactor Warren Hellman and the departure of its CEO and top editors. The merger agreement was signed today. Although the new entity retains The Bay Citizen as one of three brands—the others being California Watch and CIR—it’s clearly the end of the line for The Bay Citizen as it was originally constituted. From TBC:The Bay Citizen will likely no longer cover breaking news or culture, as CIR leaders have said they see those as commodities that don’t fit the expanded organization’s core mission. CIR is also considering whether to continue providing coverage for The New York Times. The Bay Citizen’s reporting currently appears twice weekly in the Bay Area section of The Times.Add: As expected, former Chronicle editor Phil Bronstein becomes executive chairman and Robert Rosenthal, who once worked for Bronstein as managing editor at the Chronicle, retains his title as CIR’s executive director. No one from TBC’s senior editorial management has a leadership role in the expanded organization.
Also: The new regime is saying that there will be no layoffs, for now at least. That means a combined staff of 70—at a location still to be determined.
