They should have Clark and Cat both go to the Daily Star, and kept it as the smaller paper/news source that would be the countervoice to the corporate controlled Daily Planet. With Lois, Perry and Jimmy all trapped there to a degree because they were under contract...Jimmy could probably get out the easiest.
Really, there is a ton of interesting dramatic stuff that can be done with journalist characters. It's a pretty dangerous profession, especially if you are an idealist character like Jimmy, Lois or Perry. They can get away from the old Daily Planet office/story setting, but they should never take Clark and his supporting cast away from journalism.