What the??? No more Metro Pulse? Layoffs lead to reorganization

So, apparently a bunch of boring newspaper peeps are now tasked with putting together the snarky alternative.

For the two of you in the Knoxville area who don't know, the Metro Pulse, the local alternative weekly, shut down today under some kind of reorganizational plan or other.

And, parent company E.W. Scripps, which also owns the Knoxville News Sentinel, laid off the entire staff. (In addition, KNS laid off a number of its own employees.)

You can follow the Metro Pulse mess on Twitter, RIGHT SMACK HERE. Also, folks are commenting OVER HERE and wishing the former staffers well.

In the meantime, the new plan is have the KNS newsroom produce the Pulse and distribute it inside the Sentinel and in free-distribution racks.

Here's the rest, according to an email, by head KNS editor Jack McElroy:

"A bit more information to go with the note (Publisher) Patrick (Birmingham) distributed and the story on Knoxnews:

Effective immediately, Amy Vellucci will be directing our local news operations as city editor. She will be looking to promote someone within the local staff to assistant city editor to support her.

Amy Nolan will become News Sentinel business editor as well as editor and publisher of the Knoxville Business Journal. Josh Flory will report to her as assistant business editor and will continue as News Sentinel data editor.

Vivian Vega will move into the newsroom and continue to direct special publications. The newsroom will provide production support, but newsroom writers will not be producing any advertorial content.

Chuck Campbell, Susan Alexander and Lori Wilson will be working with the combined features and entertainment staff on a merger of knoxville.com and Metro Pulse, which will be produced by the newsroom and distributed in-paper and in free-distribution racks. Jennifer Dedman will be assisting in this project.

Department meetings will be scheduled in the next few days to discuss plans further."