What's being said about the Fairfax cuts

FAIRFAX MEDIA JOB CUTS: WHAT THEY SAID:

* "Make no mistake, this is an existential threat to the Sydney Morning Herald in Sydney and The Age in Melbourne." - SMH journalist Sean Nicholls.

* "We've seen cut after cut after cut to quality journalism - it becomes such that we can't really keep going on like we do." - SMH letters editor Helen Pitt.

* "If you want to put out quality media, it does require investment and support for staff and you can't make something out of nothing." - The Age journalist Nick Richardson.

* "Seven days is a long time for people to go without a pay cheque but this is a way of telling people, management, that we are really serious about this." - The Age house committee member Bianca Hall.

* "We just can't see how we can continue to do what we've always done with such big cuts." - The Age social affairs reporter Miki Perkins.

* "None of the other parts of the Fairfax business are worth anything without the journalism and yet it is the journalism that Fairfax always cuts." - Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance CEO Paul Murphy.

* "Fairfax axing 125 journalistic jobs: own fault: pitched inner-city PC Leftist crap to just 10% of potential audience. No wonder going broke." - Former Labor leader and controversial commentator Mark Latham.

* "The Sydney Morning Herald actually has the nation's biggest newspaper audience, you sad, bitter loser." - SMH federal editor Bevan Shields, replying to Mr Latham.

* "We are disappointed in the decision by some of our masthead journalists to take unprotected industrial action for seven days after a month-long consultation period about necessary changes in our Metro Media business ... we will continue to publish across print and digital as usual." - Fairfax Media spokesman.