TALKING head Julia Allison has lost her editor-at-large gig at Star magazine.
Allison, 27, is a prolific blogger, a relationship columnist for Time Out New York and a frequent guest on everything from “Access Hollywood” to “Red Eye w/Greg Gutfeld,” on Fox News Channel, which like The Post, is owned by News Corp.
She was snagging an estimated $125,000 a year at Star.
Her shameless self-promotion was chronicled by gawker.com, which seemed to have a love-hate relationship with her, recently taking her to task for telling a German newspaper that she is an updated version of the “Sex and the City” main character.
“I am Carrie Bradshaw 2.0,” she was quoted as saying.
Allison actually never did any writing for Star, but in frequent TV appearances commenting on everything from celebrity scandals to dating problems and politics, she was described as a Star editor-at-large.
Allison was hired when Bonnie Fuller was editorial director of Star publisher American Media. Of course, Fuller is now gone.
American Media declined to comment on what was behind her ouster, and why her one-year deal is not being renewed.
Allison also had not returned an e-mail by presstime.
Fuller left American Media last month, walking away from her $2 million a year job with a severance package of unknown size. Her three-year contract was set to expire in March 2009.
No takers
The Forbes Building was put on the block nearly a year ago, and nobody has stepped forward to buy it – even though sources say the price tag has dropped to the $100-million range.
When the 145,000-square-foot headquarters at 60 Fifth Ave. in Greenwich Village first went on the market in July 2007, real estate broker Cushman & Wakefield was expecting it to fetch a lofty $140 million.
At one point late last year, in siders said that the company was close to a deal with a developer who had plans to convert the building to a multi-use retailing and residential condo structure.
“But they went away,” said a source.
The latest rumor inside regarding the building is that speculators have disappeared, but a deep-pocketed educational institution remains interested.
The rumored suitors in that category include The New School and New York University.
Several calls and e-mails to Scott Lathan of Cushman & Wakefield were not returned.
A Forbes spokeswoman said, “It is still for sale, but there are no specific offers.”
The third generation of family members include four Forbes brothers – company Chairman Steve, COO Timothy, Christopher and Robert, who hold executive jobs at the company – plus sister Moira, who is not active in the company.
They all appear to have been engaging in some serious estate planning over the past two years, liquidating much of the non-media portion of the Forbes empire. The headquarters sale was to be a part of that process.
Sandstorm
Freelance photographer Steve Sands nearly went to war with New York magazine over what he claims was an improperly obtained photo of actress Anne Hathaway, the star of the soon to be released “Get Smart” and “The Devil Wears Prada.”
The photo, snapped by Sands earlier this month, depicts Hathaway with what appears to be a particularly bad fake tan that leaves her skin an orange color.
The photo had made its way onto the Just Jared fan Web site, where Sand’s photo agency Bauer Griffith had given it the OK to run.
Sands said that New York lifted the photo from the Just Jared Web site and used it on nymag.com on June 5, initially without pay or attribution to himself or his photo agency.
He said that when he called nymag.com Editor Ben Williams, he was told the magazine believed it was entitled to use the photo under the fair use provision of the copyright law.
At first, Sands was incensed.
“We’re not talking about a mom-and-pop fan site,” said Sands, who also freelances for The Post. “We’re talking about New York magazine, which is a commercial venture.
“If New York magazine’s contention is correct, then nobody would ever have to pay for anybody’s stuff once the first publication ran it,” Sands said.
After getting no satisfaction, Sands contacted New York Chief Operating Officer Kit Taylor.
Media Ink also made a few calls. And like that, the problem went away.
“It’s a non-issue,” said Taylor, who had initially sided with her editor. “The whole thing is amicable.”
Said Sands, “It is more than amicable. Kit Taylor did the right thing.”
Ip out
Gregory Ip is jumping from The Wall Street Journal to The Economist after an 11-year run in the Washington bureau of the paper where he has been the chief economic correspondent.
Ip said he will be responsible for writing and reporting on all aspects of the US economy and economic policy, including the Federal Reserve.
“This is an extraordinary opportunity for me to expand my horizons,” said Ip. “I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to The Wall Street Journal and the people here for the experience and opportunity they have given me these last 11 years.”
The Economist has been booming in recent years. In its most recent report from the Audit Bureau of Circulations, its paid circulation jumped 13 percent to 720,883 in North America.
Media Industry Newsletter reported that in an era when most weeklies are slumping, The Economist’s ad pages through May 31 were up 2 percent to 1,030.