Seven West Media has applied for the federal government's JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme designed to minimise the hit to employment from the coronavirus pandemic.

The troubled media group, which operates the Seven TV network and The West Australian newspaper and is chaired by WA billionaire Kerry Stokes, has been under significant pressure with the weak advertising market and a large debt load clouding its future.

Seven West Media chairman Kerry Stokes, right, and chief executive James Warburton. Credit:Peter Rae

The company was last month in talks with its lenders before withdrawing its ASX revenue guidance for 2020 citing a fall in the advertising market and loss of key sporting events.

Staff at Seven were also told to work four-day weeks and take a 20 per cent pay cut until the end of the financial year.