The State is reporting that its award-winning editorial cartoonist Robert Ariail is resigning effective Friday from South Carolina newspaper
Ariail, a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 1995 and 2000, turned down a part-time job that had been offered in the wake of cost-cutting measures taken by the paper’s parent, The McClatchy Company.
Last week, the paper laid off [...]

Editor & Publisher is reporting that The Austin American-Statesman is paying tribute to its Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist, Ben Sargent, whose last day is today after accepting a “pretty generous buyout.”
“When he started cartooning, Sargent’s hair was dark and Gerald Ford was president,” reads an unbylined story. “Much has changed in the years since. [...]

Longtime Austin-American Statesman cartoonist Ben Sargent has opted to take a “pretty generous buyout.”
Rome Tribune cartoonist Mike Lester responds to reader comments about his controversial Obama/Kool-Aid cartoon.
United Media’s syndication unit and licensing businesses jumped 36% in the fourth quarter of 2008, attributed to the decision by the ABC television network to air 13 Peanuts specials [...]

The Austin American-Statesman has announced a voluntary early retirement program for employees 55 or older.
Publisher Michael Vivio spoke about the decision in a news release:
“During this time of economic difficulty, businesses are finding ways to operate more efficiently, and we are no different. The early retirement program is strictly voluntary and empowers eligible employees. Programs [...]