I used to work for USA Today. I was proud to work for USA Today. It was wrenching for me to leave USA Today (although I am every bit as proud to now work for NPR).

But…just since October, USA Today has lost:

• The publisher
• The editor
• One of two executive editors (the No. 2 slot in the newsroom)
• The graphics/design managing editor (remember what newspaper we’re talking about here, too)
• Me; I ran the rewrite/continuous news desk and was the editor of the dot-com news section.
• The breaking news and White House/politics bloggers. These blogs often were the most popular features of any kind on USATODAY.com.
• One of the nation’s best-known politics reporters.

Those are just the changes of which I’m aware. Keep in mind that this has happened over a mere six months.

In that same time, USA Today-ers have had their pay frozen and have been forced to take two to three weeks of unpaid leave.

Not long ago, this sort of turnover would have taken several years, if it happened then. I’ll bet that several other big newspapers have had similar recent turmoil. And once again, you don’t have to be a weatherman to see which way the wind blows.