Business

RUMORS SWIRLING OVER A COURIC MEMOIR

KATIE Couric may be plagued by low ratings and rumblings that she will exit her anchor chair at CBS, but in the book publishing world, she is still golden.

Given the turmoil, and her moving first-person article in the current issue of Newsweek, speculation has been swirling in recent days that her next career move could be a memoir, which would likely fetch millions.

(For the latest on Couric, see page 121.)

Couric hasn’t yet penned a serious non-fiction tome, but she has expressed interest in writing a memoir, said one source close to her. The source, however, insists there are no specific plans right now.

She did write several well-received children’s books for Doubleday a few years ago. She’d would have a lot of themes to work with – from the turmoil of being in the hot seat at a time of great media upheaval to the wrenching personal story of being a single mom with two young daughters.

In this week’s edition of Newsweek, she penned a moving article about how, for the first time, she let her teenage daughters read some of the letters she received after her husband Jay Monahan’s death 10 years ago.

Couric’s taciturn agent, Esther “Lobster” Newberg at ICM, had not returned calls by presstime.

Another celeb TV newscaster, Barbara Walters, received $5 million from the Knopf imprint of Random House for her memoir, “Audition,” which is expected to be one of the big books of the spring when it hits May 5. Walters was spotted in the Random House Inc. building earlier this week clutching one of the advance copies of the embargoed book.

Hurry up

Entrepreneur Media had better hurry up and sell, or there won’t be anyone left inside.

The company was quietly put on the block in February as owner Peter Shea, who’s owned it since 1986, decided to cash out. He’s seeking $200 million.

However, another staffer has already hit the road. In the latest exit, Editorial Direc tor Rieva Lesonsky quit to go into her own business.

She had turned in her resignation a month ago, but didn’t officially leave until April 7, ending a 26-year run at the company.

No replacement has been named as the company searches for a buyer.

“I just felt it was time to do something different,” she said.

Lesonsky, meanwhile, has started her own company, SMB Connects, which she said is designed to help big companies connect with entrepreneurs. One of her first clients is Moran Media Group, a custom-publishing operation in Paramus, NJ, where she will work as the editorial director of several of the magazines that the company makes publishes for marketers. She has taken another Entrepreneur editorial staffer with her, Maria Anton.

Also exiting the company recently was Chuck Fuller, a senior vice president of business development, who jumped to Autobytel, and Kate Rodler, a vice president of ad sales who is jumping to the Web site ladieswholaunch.com, founded by Victoria Colligan and Beth Schoenfeld and backed by venture capitalist Alan Patricof, Google exec Tim Armstrong, and Joanne Bradford.

Six appeal

Page Six reporter Paula Froelich just sold her debut novel to Simon & Schuster’s Atria imprint. The novel, “Mercury in Retrograde,” centers around the lives of three New York women – a newspaper reporter named Penelope Mercury, who gets fired, a wealthy socialite fashion editor, Lena “Lipstick” Lippencraff, and a newlywed corporate lawyer Dana Gluck, who moves out on her husband when she dis covers he’s having an affair.

They all end up moving into the same SoHo apartment building.

“The voices are pitch perfect, really funny, but there is heart to the characters and relatability,” said Greer Hendricks, the senior editor at Atria who purchased the book based on several chapters and an outline. Greer said she hopes to have it out as a beach read next summer. Kate Lee at ICM was the agent. Froelich declined to comment on the size of her advance.

“None of the characters are based on anyone who works at the Post, so they don’t have to worry,” she added.

Outta style

In Style Photo Editor Alix Campbell exited suddenly last week, with sources saying that she is the latest victim of a redesign that has been underway for months.

Time Inc. Group Editor Martha Nelson had been very concerned about the direction of In Style and late last year dispatched a whole new team to assist Managing Editor Charla Lawhon.

At the time it included a new creative director, Rina Stone, dispatched from People, and Ariel Foxman, the one-time editor of Cargo at Condé Nast who is now a kind of roving trouble shooter inside Time Inc. Elidih MacAs kill, one-time editor of Happy in Britain, arrived last November and a month later went on three months maternity leave. Six weeks ago she returned.

Campbell was said to have voiced her displeasure over her treatment rather vocally in the hallways of Time Inc.

Reached by Media Ink, Campbell insisted “That’s not true.” She declined further comment.

Marie Suter has been named the acting photo editor.

Industry sources said that the brass is pushing more fashion and less celebrity coverage. Their concern was fueled by an 8.6 percent drop in newsstand sales to 700,123 as part of a total drop in circulation of 2.1 percent to 1,723,840 in the second half of 2007, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

Ad sales in the first quarter of this year were down a worrisome 8.6 percent to 612.4 pages.

keith.kelly@nypost.com