The staff at Bloomberg BusinessWeek is bracing for a sweeping restructuring that will see many of the magazine’s editorial staff reassigned within Bloomberg LP, while around 30 people are slated to get pink slips, sources tell Media Ink.
An announcement is expected to come later this week, after editors wrap up the mag’s double issue and settle in for a week of not publishing.
Among those expected to go in the first round of layoffs since Bloomberg purchased the magazine from McGraw-Hill Cos. last year will be photo-department editors, insiders said.
The moves come as a major redesign of the magazine is in the works, with the new look set to be introduced in the April 23 issue.
British import Richard Turley, who came from The Guardian newspaper in London, is overseeing the changes.
The makeover and cuts follow a 30 percent decline in ad pages last year, and are designed to stem the magazine’s red ink. Last year, BusinessWeek lost $60 million.
Norman Pearlstine, a former top Time Inc. editor, is now Bloomberg’s chief content officer, overseeing the BW makeover.
Bloomberg, the financial information and media company founded by Mayor Bloomberg, paid just over $9 million for BusinessWeek. At the end of last year, while BusinessWeek was still owned by McGraw-Hill, the magazine slashed 130, or one-third, of its editorial positions.
The pressure is on to reverse the 30 percent ad-page decline that BW and its rivals suffered over the past year.
Also bearing down on the magazine, Time Inc. rival Fortune just unveiled its redesigned look last week, capping a nine-month effort that included focus groups.
Sources said BusinessWeek’s overhaul was being put together a little more hastily.
BW officials did not return calls by presstime.
Foes no more
Although Forbes magazine has yet to get around to naming a new president of the media company, it has ended a power struggle among its ad-sales staff.
Kevin Gentzel has been given the new title of chief revenue officer, and as a result, Chief Advertising Officer Avery Stirratt has quietly left the company.
Said a company spokeswoman, “Last week, Kevin Gentzel was appointed chief revenue officer at Forbes. This is the top advertising and marketing position for the US and Europe.”
“For years Avery and Kevin were peers at Forbes. Avery decided he should step aside and let Kevin build his own team. This was Avery’s decision,” the spokeswoman said.
Stirratt was president and chief advertising officer for Forbes Media, directing print and online advertising sales efforts in North America and Europe, while Gentzel was president and group publisher of Forbes Media, where he led the brand intelligence group.
Meanwhile, the hunt for an overall president has not been called off. “That search is still underway,” the spokeswoman said.
Big changes
American Media, publisher of the National Enquirer and owner of gossip Web site Radaronline.com, last week found itself dealing with a topic often reserved for the people it covers when Chris Meyers, the top Hollywood-based editor for Radar, checked into a rehab clinic for substance abuse.
David Perel, who before moving to Radar was part of the editorial team at the Enquirer that exposed the long-running affair between former presidential candidate John Edwards and Rielle Hunter, was dispatched to Hollywood to fill in for Meyers.
Reached yesterday, Perel said, “How did you get my cell phone? Dude, I really don’t want to talk to you.” He then hung up the phone.
That’s not the only editorial upheaval at American Media in Hollywood. Martin Gould, who had been directing coverage in LA for Star since 2006, was also given the old heave-ho last week.
Candice Trunzo, Star’s editor-in-chief, said, “I can confirm we decided to make a change,” adding that the decision was not financially motivated and that there is a search taking place for a successor. “We decided it was time for someone else to come into the position.”