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******* A major holiday weekend is approaching and that usually means one thing: American Media Inc. uses the moment to issue its latest financial results. The publishing company did so on Monday, and also shed a bit more light on former executive vice president and chief editorial director Bonnie Fuller's pay package. As of March 31, AMI had total operating revenues of $490.8 million, up from $470.9 million a year ago. The company said the increase was primarily due to "favorable results in advertising revenue." Meanwhile after two straight years of operating losses, the company had operating income of $67 million, compared with last year's $253.7 million operating loss. The turnaround is also due to growth in ad revenue, as well as cost reductions implemented by the company. Net losses also narrowed, to $61.9 million from $343.8 million. But not everything is rosy: the financial statement reiterates that if AMI does not refinance its 2009 notes on or prior to Feb. 1, the company may be required to liquidate assets, seek protection from creditors or it may be unable to continue as a going concern. In addition, as of March 2008, the company was carrying $1.1 billion in outstanding debt. MORE ONLINE
2. WWD
Blame the housing market crisis, the dip in advertising impacting every magazine or any one of myriad reasons, but Vogue Living will not publish a scheduled second issue this year. The Vogue shelter spin-off published a spring issue and had planned to produce a fall one, but a Vogue spokesman confirmed Monday that the fall issue has been nixed. "We decided earlier in the year that, given the current ad climate, this wasn't the time to roll out a second issue," he explained. However, said the spokesman, a spring 2009 issue is still under consideration. In all, Vogue Living, which executives have insisted since its inception was not a launch title, has had three issues. The magazine had a 500,000 rate base, including 300,000 copies that were polybagged to Vogue subscribers with household incomes over $100,000, or a net worth of over $1 million, or a home valued at more than $500,000. The first issue in November 2006 had 134 ad pages; its second, a year later, carried 34 percent fewer, at 85 pages. The latest issue, in April, carried 48 pages. But Vogue Living, published by WWD parent company Cond? Nast, hasn't been alone: according to Mediaweek, the shelter category has slid 5 percent in ad pages through July of this year.
3. WWD
Whether or not Cond? Nast is buying Rolling Stone or Us Weekly ? depending on whether you watch "Charlie Rose" or read The New York Post, respectively ? one thing is clear: Jann Wenner has been shopping his titles around town, and has been for a while. But the media mogul is likely to hold onto his baby, Rolling Stone, and it's in the middle of a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against R.J. Reynolds about an ad for Camel cigarettes in the magazine last November, hardly appealing to a buyer. So the two most likely titles on the block are Us Weekly and Men's Journal, observers said, just before warning they hadn't heard of any deal in the works and that it's not the best time to try to sell two magazines for northwards of $700 million. First, the shrinking economy is crunching most publishers' bottom lines as advertising declines, so gathering up the cash for acquisitions may not be a firm's top priority. And if a publisher wanted to borrow money to buy Wenner's magazines, good luck ? the credit markets have all but dried up. But say there was an interested buyer willing to spend $700 million-plus for the titles. What would they be getting? MORE ONLINE
4. WWD
When it came to winning this year's Mirror Awards, given out by Syracuse University's Newhouse School for excellence in media industry reporting, it helped, as it often seems to, to have "New York" somewhere in your publication name. The New Yorker's Ken Auletta won for coverage of Rupert Murdoch's purchase of Dow Jones, New York magazine won for a profile by Jeff Coplon of The New York Times' former managing editor Gerald Boyd, and The New York Times itself won twice, for overall excellence in its Monday media section and for Joe Nocera's business columns. Frontline also took home a prize for best investigative piece for its two specials on the future of news. Tim Russert had been named winner of a lifetime achievement award well before his death on June 13, so the tribute video of his friends and colleagues was particularly poignant. NBC anchor Brian Williams accepted in his stead, having noted in the video that it was Russert's idea to have the First Amendment etched outside the new Newseum. He disputed the idea that "the king has died, thus we must mourn the passing of the kingdom....Will we see his kind again? No. Will we practice his kind of journalism again? Yes."
5. Fishbowl NY
Jonathan Feit, publisher of Citizen Culture, is back with another magazine. Today, he's relaunch WithThisRing-Magazine.com ? a publication aimed at "anything outside traditional white weddings," Feit says ? with plans to begin publishing a print magazine hopefully timed to the Spring 2009 wedding season. With the California Supreme Court recently overturning the ban on gay marriage, Feit sees this as a perfect opportunity to launch. "We've been waiting for this," he says. "We got a gift." He plans to build the brand online and then launch print magazines one by one in the top GLBT cities around the country, likely starting with San Francisco and Boston. "I don't want to fantasize that something will happen in the next six months, but if we can get some key companies onboard, I'd say [the print publication will come] within the next year," Feit says. . Feit, named a digital driver by the MPA, compares With This Ring to Paul Cloutier's JPG and Everywhere publications. WTR won't be entirely user-generated, but Feit hopes people will contribute to the Web site. He created a prototype for the magazine in 2006 and it's available on the Web site or upon request. MORE ONLINE
6. Folio
American Media Inc., a company which until recently had difficulty filing its financials on time, today announced its fiscal 2008 revenues were $491 million, up about 4 percent over 2007. Operating income was $67 million, as compared to a $254 million loss over 2007. The celebrity magazine publisher attributes its year-end revenue increase to ad revenue gains at Shape, Star and Men?s Fitness magazines. According to the publisher, Star?s ad pages spiked by 21.5 percent in fiscal 2008, Men?s Fitness increased by 13.2 percent and Shape?s was up 10.5 percent. Fourth quarter 2008 revenues (period ended March 31) slipped 1 percent to $123 million from $124 million during the same period last year. The company reported an operating loss for the quarter of $8 million compared to $22 million in operating income for the same period last year. MORE ONLINE
************ Ed Ad Roommate Wanted. Available immediately. Gorgeous 2 bedroom apartment on UWS/Morningside Heights (111th St. between Broadway and Amsterdam). 1 block from the 1 train. Steps to Columbia Campus. Quiet tree-lined street, spacious and windowed kitchen with dishwasher. Doorman and Elevator Building. Laundry Room and Bike Storage in basement. Entire apartment is completely furnished. Your share of rent $1725 + utilities-electric/cable/internet (average $100 per month). Please note, that I currently and will continue to live in the apt. I am a working professional in my late 20's looking for someone to share my apt with. The apt offers all modern day appliances, and the available bedroom is completely furnished. Please email elschwartz7@hotmail.com for more details or pics. JOBS ... that Unique Homes, a respected international magazine targeting high-end readers, seeks extremely organized college grad with strong writing, editing, and proofreading skills, to join its Princeton, NJ, office as an editorial/advertising coordinator. Must be a team player, and have excellent interpersonal skills for client contact. Mac literacy and clips/writing experience required; some publishing experience preferred. Salary $28K. Send resume and cover letter to KCR at krussell@uniquehomes.com or fax to 609/688-0201. (OK to mention Ed) For even more jobs, go to http://www.ed2010.com/jobs/whisperjobs or click here. INTERNSHIPS ... that Babytalk magazine seeks organized and enthusiastic part-time summer interns to assist the edit department beginning in July. This position is unpaid, and you must be able to receive college credit for your internship. An interest in fashion, toys, and babies is helpful, as is previous experience on a magazine staff. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to, calling in and returning product samples, updating PR contacts database, helping produce credits page, recruiting testers to try out baby products, attending press events and deskside appointments, sending out issues, researching and writing as assigned, and general administrative support. We're a small staff and consider our interns to be integral members! Please send a brief cover letter and resume to meredith.bodgas@bonniercorp.com. (OK to mention Ed) For even more internships, go to http://www.ed2010.com/ed-campus/internships/list or click here.
********* Whisper jobs or internships to share? Send 'em to whispers@ed2010.com. Ed'll keep it anonymous for you. Blogalicious! Catch up with Ed's Guy on the Hunt and Ed?s Determined Freelancer at ed2010guy.blogspot.com and www.ed2010.com/boards/section/ed-campus How to unsubscribe from this newsletter: How to subscribe: |
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July02, 2008 - Mark your calendars for the next Happy Hour! >> |
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