Tamedia cuts 41 roles as Rafael Zeier films dismissal on YouTube

Tamedia Cuts 34 Full-Time Roles

Tamedia is eliminating 34 full-time positions in a fresh wave of job cuts across its newsrooms, prompting public departures and visible protests outside the publisher’s Zurich headquarters. Digital and society editor Rafael Zeier, who lost his job, published an eight-minute video on YouTube detailing his dismissal, persoenlich.com reported.

The publisher announced the restructuring on October 5, 2026, targeting 41 total employees across Switzerland. The affected headcount comprises 28 roles in Swiss-German editorial teams, nine in Western Switzerland, and four at the print desk. Consultation talks run through the end of October.

The Tech TL;DR:
• Tamedia is cutting 34 full-time roles as part of a 41-position reduction announced across Swiss editorial operations in October 2026.
• Impacted digital editor Rafael Zeier documented his termination day on YouTube, accumulating thousands of views within hours.
• The publisher previously cut 55 full-time jobs in 2024, operating without job security guarantees past September 2026.

The YouTube Announcement From Werdstrasse

Zeier recorded his video outside the Tamedia building on Werdstrasse in Zurich, noting that he received his termination email in the morning. Just one day prior, he had met with Tamedia CEO Jessica Peppel-Schulz to test and discuss Apple’s new foldable device, the iPhone Duo, for the Tages-Anzeiger. After walking inside for his formal termination meeting, Zeier returned to the camera to confirm the outcome. The video reached approximately 9,000 views and 1,000 comments within four hours of publication.

Addressing critics who accused him of sensationalism, Zeier stated that he filmed the response because he could not individually answer the high volume of inquiries he received. He remains employed for a three-month transition period through the end of January 2027, after which a social plan takes effect. Zeier joined Tamedia in 2011 as a page planner and producer for the Tages-Anzeiger iPad edition, later shifting to digital reporting and device testing in 2013.

Earlier Layoffs and Protests in Zurich

The current workforce reduction follows a prior layoff of 55 full-time positions in 2024. Following those cuts, Tamedia provided a guarantee pledging no journalist layoffs through the end of September 2026. No such assurance accompanies the current restructuring. Company spokesperson Edi Estermann told watson.ch that further reductions through layoffs or natural attrition are expected over the next two years.

Literary editor Nora Zukker also made her termination public on Instagram, as persoenlich.com reported. In response to the job cuts, staff members and supporters staged a public protest on Tuesday outside the main office at Werdstrasse in Zurich, objecting to the ongoing contraction.

How Media is Changing

Zeier attributed his departure to broader economic pressures rather than personal performance, noting that his first supervisor at the publisher described Tamedia positions as ejector seats. He rejected arguments blaming artificial intelligence or specific individuals for the cuts, pointing instead to structural shifts in the industry. The initial devaluation of articles by the internet and free publisher offerings paved the way for modern generative tools that allow anyone to write long-form articles or operate entire news sites.

Tamedia declined to comment on individual dismissals, maintaining its policy of not discussing personnel departures made public by affected employees. The consultation period for the current reduction of 41 positions concludes at the end of October 2026.