Amid Newsroom Cuts, 'N.Y. Times' Finds Way To Hire Biz Reporters

Fitz: Nothing better symbolized the wrenching changes roiling newsrooms than The New York Times earlier this year offering buyouts -- packages that were accepted even by Pulitzer Prize winners. But even a casual reader will notice that the Times business coverage has grown stronger in the past year.

New York Observer reporter John Koblin tells us why. It seems  the  Times has an "investment fund" for the section. ‘We’ve gotten money budgeted to invest in business verticals on the Web site this year—economics, green business, small business, expanded technology,’ Editor Bill Keller tells Koblin. "The money has gone to hire a small number of editors, reporters and producers. Most of the vertical expansions are already launched, and some of their work has appeared in the printed page as well.’

The money comes from the digital budget, which under the reorganized newsroom, can be used to fund newsroom hires, Keller says.