“To the bankers that run the place, you have a redheaded stepchild that is a rounding error in the scheme of things that is managing to create a lot of trouble,” one news employee said.

This person, like the more than two dozen current and former business and news executives interviewed for this article, agreed to discuss the company’s operations but insisted on anonymity, citing strict nondisclosure agreements.

In an interview last week, Mr. Doctoroff said the backlash this spring over reporters’ monitoring of clients “did prompt self-reflection,” and one senior executive said the mayor’s return would be a “reset” moment for the company.

Last Monday, Bloomberg began to lay off roughly 40 people, about 2 percent of its news staff. Coverage of culture and sports would be scaled back, and the investigative unit had losses as well. The signal accompanying the announcement was clear: “We must have the courage to say no to certain areas of coverage in order to have enough firepower in areas we want to own,” Mr. Winkler wrote to the staff.

Bloomberg said it would add around 100 newsroom positions next year, many in a division called First Word, which produces a Twitter-like burst of short-form news of market-moving importance. (A spokesman said that even with the recent cuts, the number of employees at Bloomberg News by the end of 2013 would be up from last year.)

Mr. Doctoroff said the terminals’ users are a “very narrow audience” for news articles. (One of the most popular articles on Friday was “Day J.F.K. Died We Traded Through Tears as N.Y.S.E. Shut.”) But, he added, the company’s journalism serves a vital role in bringing credibility to Bloomberg, and added value to the terminals, which make up about 85 percent of the company’s revenue.

“Our audience wants to change the world, and they want to invest better in the world,” said Laurie Hays, a senior executive editor at Bloomberg News. “These long stories inform them in their decision-making.”