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Friday, January 9, 2004 Publishing Industry Soundbytes Launches and Redesigns | People People · Tribune Publishing announced that Howard Tyner, vice president/editorial, and a former editor of the Chicago Tribune, will retire effective December 31. Gerould Kern, who has served as the group's editorial director since 2001, will succeed Tyner. Tyner joined the Tribune in 1977 after 10 years in Europe with United Press International as a foreign correspondent. After five years of covering a broad range of domestic and international stories, he was appointed Moscow bureau chief in 1982. In 1985, he became the Tribune's foreign editor and, in 1988, was named associate managing editor/foreign and national news. He became deputy managing editor in 1990 and associate editor/features in 1992. In September 1993, Tyner was appointed the 19th editor of the Chicago Tribune. In February 2001, Tyner relinquished the Tribune editorship to focus exclusively on his role with Tribune Publishing. An interview with Howard Tyner from 1997 can be found here. · The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. has elected journalist, author and media executive Walter Isaacson to the company's Board of Directors. Mr. Isaacson becomes the ninth current member of the Board. Mr. Isaacson, 51, is President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, an international education and leadership institute founded in 1950. · American Profile has tapped veteran trade marketing executive Chuck Priest in Bentonville, AK, to build marketing and media programs with the magazine specifically geared to advancing suppliers' sales in Wal-Mart stores. As director of retail programs for American Profile, Priest will work with Wal-Mart and its suppliers to create brand advertising and direct marketing programs with measurable impact in the chain's stores. In addition to the magazine, which is delivered to 5.7 million households via hometown newspapers every week, Priest will use Clip 'n Save, the company's coupon program for rural neighborhoods, to design programs that fit the Wal-Mart promotional schedule. · Meredith Corporation announced that David Kahn will become Publisher of Country Home magazine, effective November 24. Kahn, 42, is the publisher of Latina magazine, a publication of Latina Media Ventures, LLC, where he has been responsible for the sales and marketing of the publication since August 2002. · Time Inc. Chairman & CEO Ann Moore has announced some major executive appointments at the company. Fabio Freyre was named Group Vice President, Corporate Sales & Marketing. He had been Publisher of Sports Illustrated. Succeeding Freyre as Sports Illustrated's Publisher is Dave Morris, who was Publisher of Entertainment Weekly. Paul Caine will be Entertainment Weekly's new Publisher; he had been Publisher of Teen People. Cathy O'Brien, most recently Vice President and General Manager of Entertainment Weekly, will be taking on a new role as Group Publisher of the newly established Growth Markets Group, which will comprise Teen People, People en Espanol, Time For Kids, Sports Illustrated for Kids, gathering the company's expertise in youth and ethnic markets. · John Birmingham has been named vice president/marketing for Chicago Tribune. The announcement was made by Dick Malone, senior vice president and general manager for the newspaper. In his new role, Birmingham will have marketing responsibility for Chicago Tribune and its related businesses, with direct responsibility for strategic marketing, including brand, advertiser, classified, multimedia marketing and marketing research. Most recently, Birmingham was director of advertising and brand management for Discover Financial Services. · Hollinger International Inc. announced that John Cruickshank has been promoted to the position of publisher of The Chicago Sun-Times and Chief Operating Officer of the Company's Chicago Group, which includes more than 100 newspapers in the Chicago area, effective immediately. Mr. Cruickshank has been Vice President of Editorial at The Chicago Sun-Times since 2000. Prior to joining The Chicago Sun-Times, Mr. Cruickshank served as Editor-in-Chief of The Vancouver Sun from 1995 to 2000. He had previously been Managing Editor of The Globe and Mail in Canada, which he joined as a reporter in 1981. Mr. Cruickshank is married to S. Jennifer Hunter, editor of Northshore Magazine. They have two children. · Alastair Campbell, the prime minister's former director of communications, is joining The Times to write about sport. At the heart of the British government for more than six years, Campbell was a key player in the recent international crises. A lifelong supporter of Burnley Football Club, Campbell draws many parallels between succeeding in sport and in politics. His columns will take a wide-angle lens to the world of sport covering a range of issues and offering comment that will engage, entertain and provoke the reader. · Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. has announced the appointment of Jorge Cauz as the company's president. Cauz will be Britannica's senior executive, and all of the company's operations worldwide will report to him. Cauz will report to the board of directors. A veteran Britannica executive, Cauz plans to continue the expansion of the company's product line and marketing strategy, areas in which he has played a key role for nearly eight years. During that time the company began publishing in all digital media, adding to its traditional market in multivolume encyclopedias and other printed reference works. The company has also expanded its print line, with such products as the Encyclopaedia Britannica Almanac, My First Britannica and Britannica Learning Library. Cauz says he'll continue the creation of new products and services while emphasizing direct-to-consumer distribution channels and capitalizing on opportunities in the institutional market. · The San Francisco Chronicle has announced that it has named Stephen R. Proctor as deputy managing editor -- news. The announcement was made by Phil Bronstein, editor and executive vice president of the San Francisco Chronicle. Proctor, 46, will oversee the metro, business, sports, national/foreign and political desks. Proctor has worked at the Baltimore Sun for 17 years, most recently doing a three-year stint as DME for sports and features. Previous positions at the Sun include county editor and regional editor. · Time Warner Inc. has announced the appointment of Lisa Quiroz, publisher of the Company's bestselling Hispanic magazine, People en Espanol, to the newly created position of vice president, corporate responsibility at Time Warner. Reporting to Patricia Fili-Krushel, Time Warner's executive vice president, administration, Ms. Quiroz, 42, will be responsible for overseeing all of Time Warner's corporate-based public service initiatives, including its activities in the areas of arts and culture, community relations, volunteerism and literacy and education. She will also work closely with Time Warner's divisions to strengthen collaboration in their public service activities. · CNET Networks, Inc. has announced the appointment of Betsey Nelson and Jarl Mohn to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Betsey Nelson has served as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and Secretary of Macromedia since November 1997. Ms. Nelson will serve as a member of CNET Networks' Audit Committee. Jarl Mohn, also know as Lee Masters, was the founding president of Liberty Digital, a publicly traded subsidiary of Liberty Media Group, involved in interactive television, cable television networks and Internet enterprises, and served as its Chief Executive Officer from June 1999 to March 2002. · Advanstar Communications announced that Joseph Loggia will become its Chief Executive Officer effective January 1, 2004. Mr. Loggia is currently the President & Chief Operating Officer of the Company. Robert Krakoff, currently the Chairman & CEO, will continue as Chairman of the Company. In his new role, Mr. Loggia will have complete responsibility for the management and operation of the Company and its affiliates. He will report directly to the Board of Directors. As Chairman, Mr. Krakoff will exclusively focus on potential external growth opportunities for Advanstar through acquisitions, and will continue to report to the Board of Directors. Mr. Loggia joined Advanstar in 1998 as part of the acquisition of MAGIC International. · Advanstar Communications Frontline Solutions magazine, which includes frontlinetoday.com and the e-newsletter, Frontline Newswire, has announced the appointment of George D. Miller to the position of editor in chief. Frontline Solutions, a monthly business publication, serves corporate, operations and IT managers with strategic information on how to implement technology to manage their supply chains. Miller' has been editorial director or editor in chief of such publications as EDN News (Cahners Publishing Company, now Reed Business Information), Lightwave, Networking Management, Cabling Installation and CleanRooms (Pennwell Publishing). · Knight Ridder has named Carole Leigh Hutton, executive editor of the Detroit Free Press, publisher and executive editor effective Jan. 1, 2004. She succeeds Heath J Meriwether, who will retire at the end of the year. Hutton, 47, serves on the board of directors of the Detroit-based Women's Leadership Forum, the research and education arm of the Women's Economic Club; and on the Media Board of Ready to Succeed, Michigan's early childhood learning initiative. She is also a former board president of the Michigan Associated Press Editors Association; a member and former committee chair of the American Society of Newspaper Editors; and a member and former committee chair of the Associated Press Managing Editors. Since joining the Free Press in 1990, Hutton has been an assistant city editor, deputy city editor, city editor, deputy managing editor/news, and was managing editor for six years. Prior to that, she held several editor positions at The Detroit News from 1988 to 1990. · The Aviation Week Group of The McGraw-Hill Companies announced that Tony Velocci has been named Editor-In-Chief of Aviation Week & Space Technology and Editorial Director of the Aviation Week Group. Mr. Velocci succeeds David North, who will retire after a 27-year career with The McGraw-Hill Companies. The appointment will be effective February 1st. · Mary Parent and Scott Stuber have each been appointed to the position of Vice Chairman, Worldwide Production for Universal Pictures, it was announced by Stacey Snider, Chairman, Universal Pictures. In their newly-created positions as Vice Chairman, Worldwide Production, Parent and Stuber will continue to oversee the worldwide acquisition, creative development and production of all Universal Pictures feature films, and in addition will oversee Universal's original made-for-video productions as well as the creative development and production of its original animation properties. Parent and Stuber, whose new deal with Universal extends through 2006, will continue to report to Snider. · MGM Pictures has named veteran producer Andrew Z. "Andy" Davis as executive vice president, physical production, announced studio President Michael Nathanson, to whom Davis will report. Davis will oversee physical production and post-production operations for all films created by MGM Pictures. Davis takes over the post immediately, replacing Jeff Coleman, who resigned to pursue other challenges. Davis has spent the past 12 years in various production capacities helping make more than 15 films. He served as executive producer on Red Dragon, Rush Hour 2, Family Man, Love & Basketball, Love Affair and Enemy of the State, among other pictures. Content Deals · The Morris Publishing Group subsidiary of Morris Communications Co. LLC has purchased The Girard Press, a nondaily newspaper serving Crawford County, Kan. The announcement was made by William S. Morris IV, president and CEO of Morris Publishing Group and president of the parent company. Published since 1869, The Girard Press is the oldest newspaper in Crawford County. Girard is approximately 20 miles northwest of Pittsburg, Kan., home of the Morris-owned daily The Morning Sun. Stephen M. Wade, The Morning Sun publisher, also will serve as publisher of The Girard Press. The Girard Press, published Wednesdays, has a circulation of approximately 2,300, and its publishing philosophy emphasizes strong local coverage. Launches and Redesigns · Orlando Sentinel Communications launched OrlandoCityBeat.com, which targets Central Florida's community of 18-to-34-year-olds. The site will provide reports on local music, nightlife, movies, restaurants, pop culture, dating and much more. Alicia Lewis Murray will serve as product manager of OrlandoCityBeat.com. · washingtonpost.com announced that it has begun a redesign, giving the site's homepage a new look, improving navigation and search, and adding a new arts section. The changes are part of an effort the company has initiated to respond to the needs of users and continually evolve the site. · U.S. Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., announced it will release the Duel Masters Trading Card Game (TCG) for English speaking markets in the first quarter of next year. A broad scope of Duel Masters toys and games are in the works, as well as a comic book series, TV show and range of Duel Masters consumer products through the Hasbro Properties Group. In Japan, the Duel Masters Trading Card Game has ranked #1 in toy and game category sales for the past eight consecutive months, according to Toy Weekly magazine. Duel Masters is about battling monsters -- or "Kaijudo!" - as players in the know exclaim. The first Duel Masters product to release in the U.S. will be a comic book series, due out before the end of this year. In addition to the Duel Masters Trading Card Game in 2004, plans are underway for Duel Masters action figures from Hasbro and a Duel Masters Gameboy game from Atari, Inc. In addition, Wizards will also launch an online Duel Masters club on duelmasters.com. · American Lawyer Media, Inc. (ALM), ta legal journalism and information company, has announced the launch of GC Mid-Atlantic, a new magazine for chief legal officers and in-house attorneys in the region. GC Mid-Atlantic's first issue, featuring a cover story on diversity efforts within legal departments at major local corporations, will reach an audience of more than 15,000 in Pennsylvania, South Jersey and Delaware. GC Mid-Atlantic joins GC South and GC New England, both introduced by ALM earlier this year. The four-color magazine, to be published quarterly, will focus on issues of interest to the region's corporate counsel, providing coverage of cases that impact companies, as well as people and personalities from the area's corporate legal departments. In addition to profiles of leaders in the field, GC Mid-Atlantic will examine departmental management issues, case studies and regional lists, rankings and compensation reports related to in-house legal departments. Film and Television · Showtime Networks has announced its "Showtime Independent Films" banner, which marks the first time Showtime has financed movies directly for the independent theatrical marketplace. The network has worked with established specialty producers and directors to create low budget films for theatrical premiere and, as a result, three films produced under this initiative have been accepted into the prestigious 2004 Sundance Film Festival January 15 - 25. The three Showtime Independent Films selected include The Best Thief in the World, which will premiere in the Dramatic Competition; Speak, which will screen in the American Spectrum and Gettin' The Man's Foot Outta Your Baadasssss, which will screen in the Premiere section, and was picked up for theatrical distribution by Sony Pictures Classics earlier this year. The other two films are available for theatrical release in 2004. · On the heels of the success of the comedy Elf, starring Will Ferrell, DreamWorks Pictures is premiering a specially selected clip from Ferrell's next feature film comedy, Anchorman, on Yahoo! Movies. The clip will also be available on the film's official website: anchorman-themovie.com. Opening nationwide on July 9, 2004, Anchorman stars Ferrell as Ron Burgundy, San Diego's top-rated anchorman in the 1970s. Christina Applegate (View From the Top, TV's Married With Children) stars opposite Ferrell as ambitious newswoman Veronica Corningstone. When Veronica joins Ron's news team, he is willing to play along at first -- as long as Veronica stays in her place, covering cat fashion shows, cooking, and other "female" interests. But when Veronica refuses to settle for being eye candy and steps behind the news desk, it's more than a battle between two perfectly coiffed anchor- persons...it's war. Will Ferrell co-wrote the screenplay for Anchorman with Adam McKay, former Saturday Night Live head writer and founder of the Upright Citizen's Brigade comedy troupe. McKay is also making his directorial debut on Anchorman. Judd Apatow is producing the film, with David O. Russell and Shauna Weinberg executive producing and David Householter co-producing. · Silver Screen Studios, Inc., the Atlanta, GA (USA) based emerging entertainment company has announced its first film to enter production will be Murder by Deception. Murder by Deception is currently in pre-production and we expect to cast during the month of January and begin production in late February. The screenplay is nearing completion and we expect to have the completed version during December. Murder by Deception will be a direct to video product and will be distributed through a digital media distribution platform. Several other film projects, Heirs to Murder, Murder Times 2, and possibly Unit 1-A will be produced during 2004 once financing is arranged for the productions. · Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., a leading motion picture and television production and distribution company, announced that it has concluded its merger with Artisan Entertainment, a privately-held motion picture, family and home entertainment company. · Ewan McGregor, star of Moulin Rouge and Star Wars, will voice the title character in Vanguard Animation's CG animated feature film Valiant. The animated comedy tells the story of a lowly wood pigeon named Valiant, who overcomes his small size to become a hero in Great Britain's Royal Air Force Homing Pigeon Service during World War II. The RHPS advanced the Allied cause by flying vital messages about enemy movements across the English Channel, while evading brutal attacks by the enemy's Falcon brigade. Academy Award-winner Sir Ben Kingsley, will voice General Keyserlingk, the feared German falcon leader. Other actors lending their voices include Academy Award-winner Jim Broadbent, Rupert Everett, Hugh Laurie, John Hurt, and Ricky Gervais. Valiant, which will be completed in December 2004, is currently in production, with a staff of 95, at Vanguard Animation's recently completed CG studio built at Ealing Studios in London, as well as continuing at its Los Angeles and New York offices. Disney is distributing the picture in North America, and Odyssey Entertainment in the UK is handling international distribution. Disney holds worldwide merchandising, soundtrack, and video game rights as well. The producer is John H. Williams (Shrek 1 & 2) for Vanguard Animation. Executive Producers are Barnaby Thompson for Ealing Studios, Ralph Kamp for Odyssey Entertainment, Robert Jones for the UK Film Council, and Keith Evans for Baker Street Media Finance. Co-Producers are Eric M. Bennett, Curtis Augspurger and Buckley Collum for Vanguard Animation The picture is being directed by British character designer Gary Chapman. · Former Warner Bros. producer Tom Rooker and partners Stephen Monaco and William Venable have formed a new production company called ShootFirst Films. With offices in Los Angeles and Kansas City, ShootFirst Films specializes in producing films expected to be in the $2 million to $8 million range. ShootFirst's pending film projects include The Return of Captain Liberty, which is currently in negotiations with Bonnie Curtis of DreamWorks, the company founded by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. In addition, ShootFirst is securing financing for The River Road a co-production with actor Matthew McConaughey and his production company, j.k. livin. Negotiations with Fox are also underway to produce the action comedy film, Frost Bite. · Steve Martin has signed on to step into Inspector Jacques Clouseau's gumshoes in MGM Pictures' all-new comedy The Birth of the Pink Panther, it was announced by Chris McGurk, vice chairman and COO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc., and Michael Nathanson, president & COO of MGM Pictures. In what will be the ninth film in the studio's popular Pink Panther franchise, Martin will put his own touch on the beloved Clouseau character working with his Cheaper by the Dozen director Shawn Levy. Dozen's Robert Simonds will produce the comedy from a script by Len Blum, with Tracey Trench as executive producer. Production is set to begin in spring 2004. Book Deals and News · Zondervan announced that The Purpose-Driven Life, the #1 New York Times bestseller, has sold 10 million copies in the English language alone since its release in September of 2002. The Purpose-Driven Life by Rick Warren quickly became a bestseller and has been a mainstay on numerous bestseller lists including USA Today, Publisher's Weekly, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and The New York Times, where it has remained for 43 consecutive weeks, hitting the #1 spot five times. Over 1 million copies of The Purpose-Driven Life have sold through Sam's Club alone -- the first book ever in Sam's Club history to do so. The book was also named the 2003 Christian Book of the Year by the Evangelical Christian Publisher's Association. Click here to return to the homepage of The Write NewsTM Click here to subscribe to our free weekly email newsletter.  www.writenews.com Copyright © 1997-2011 by Writers Write, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
