People magazine has lost another top editor.
Deputy Editor Peter Castro, once rumored to be the running for the top job, announced Wednesday he is leaving the Time Inc. title after 26 years.
During his decades at Time Inc., Castro also served as the top editor of People en Espanol for 15 months before returning to People, where he would run the magazine whenever immediate boss Larry Hackett was absent.
Castro’s exit is another sign of change at Time Inc.’s top-selling and most profitable magazine as Hackett departed as managing editor in January after an eight-year run.
Hackett was replaced by former Entertainment Weekly Editor Jess Cagle.
Castro was dismayed and “furious” he was bypassed for the top job at People, sources speculated.
Castro had been a favorite of Martha Nelson, who rose from People editor to editor-in-chief of the corporation.
Nelson, though, was bounced by Time Inc. Chief Executive Joe Ripp as part of his plan to change the corporate structure. That move appeared to leave many of Nelson’s former people endangered.
However, People’s editorial staff was relatively unscathed in last week’s downsizing, which hit hard at the edit staff of other big weeklies, including Time and Sports Illustrated.
Overall, the layoffs will result in a headcount reduction of 500 people across the company in advance of its second quarter spinoff from Time Warner.
“The changes had nothing to do with it,” Castro insisted. “I’ve been here a long time — 26 years — and I am ready for new adventures.”
Castro said he had no immediate concrete plans.
A successor has yet to be named.