Journalism Replaced by TikTok Clips?

Reach, the company behind UK newspapers like the Mirror, Express, and Star, is cutting 600 jobs. Over 300 of those are newsroom roles, real journalists with pens, notebooks, and that one coworker who still swears by BlackBerry. In their place? Reach is creating 135 shiny new jobs in digital stuff like podcasts, videos, and live news updates.

Basically, fewer journalists chasing stories, more people chasing camera angles and YouTube thumbnails. Reach isn’t broke, they made nearly £100 million in profit last year. Yep, a company that’s actually making money is still saying, “Thanks for your service, but AI and TikTok are cheaper.”

That’s like a millionaire selling grandma’s wedding ring just because Apple dropped a new iPhone. This isn’t about survival; it’s about racing to look cool before the competition does. And when profitable companies start firing humans, you have to ask: if even the winners are cutting jobs, what happens to the losers?

Reach is trying to glow up from “your dad’s newspaper” to “your teenage cousin’s Snapchat feed.” Their rivals? Old-school publishers like The Guardian, who are probably sitting back sipping Earl Grey, smirking, and saying, “Told you print was dead years ago.” But the real heavyweight enemies are TikTok, Meta, and Google.

Newspapers are swinging rusty swords while TikTok is dropping viral fighter-jet memes. Spoiler: the internet always wins. If you’re a CEO, this is your wake-up call: even profitable businesses are chopping their own limbs off before the market hacks them down. The question is, are you brave enough to swing the axe on yourself?

If you’re a manager, ask yourself if your team is still equipped for the future, or if you’re leading a department destined to be replaced by “AI-powered synergy platforms” (translation: robots with better Wi-Fi).

If you’re an everyday person, this matters because fewer journalists means fewer watchdogs. And without watchdogs, guess what happens? Politicians, corporations, and school boards run wild. Imagine letting your kids’ school cafeteria serve “mystery meat surprise” every day with no one around to call it out. That’s what fewer reporters means.

Every industry is getting this treatment; it’s not just newspapers on the chopping block. AI is circling jobs like a vulture at an all-you-can-eat buffet. You may laugh at journalists losing out to TikTok clips today, but tomorrow it could be your job being rebranded as “AI-assisted efficiency management.” Sounds fancy until you realize it’s code for “you’ve been replaced by a chatbot.”

Let’s be blunt: Are you safe? Or are you just another name on the next layoff email draft waiting to hit “send”?

- Matt Masinga