Multichannel News
After two test issues, Hearst's HGTV Magazine, based on the Scripps Networks Interactive-owned network, is now an official publication. "The magazine's rate base will be 450,000, making it one of the largest consumer magazine launches of the past decade, Hearst and HGTV said," according to Multichannel News. No word yet on its exact frequency -- monthly or not? -- but its June/July issue wil hit newsstands in mid-May. And Dan Fuchs will be its publisher and chief revenue officer Fuchs was formerly associate publisher of O, The Oprah Magazine.
Chicago Tribune
Since Amy DuBois Barnett became Ebony's editor in chief a year and a half ago, redesigning the print and digital editions, the 66-year-old, iconic mag about the African-American experience has seen significant circulation growth again. This personal profile of Barnett also explains how she revamped the book, by, as she puts it, "basically dragging it by its ear into the 21st century."
Paid Content
In more news from Hearst today, the company is expanding its range of "e-singles" -- magazine-branded, single-format digital content -- with the likes of three Seventeen collections of 10 to 12 first-person articles published under the titles "Terrifying True Teen Stories,” “Shocking True Teen Stories” and “Inspiring True Teen Stories.” Cosmopolitan, meanwhile, is repurporsing its content for e-singles like “Cosmo’s Naughtiest Questions in 20 Words or Less,” set to be released this spring. E-singles are being used to upsell other print and digital products, Hearst Books publisher Jacqueline Deval tells Paid Content.
The New York Times
Nielsen will begin selling "what many advertisers have been clamoring for": cross-platform campaign ratings, a system that combines its existing TV ratings with its new online campaign metrics, according to Brian Stelter. Touted as a "major breakthrough" by a Nielsen exec, the system will show the overlap between the reach of a TV and online campaign, writes Stelter. "The lack of overlap has posed problems for media buyers in the past." Group M will be the first agency to use the system, which will -- of course! -- also be available to other companies.
Fishbowl NY
Liz Heron will join the Wall Street Journal as Director, Social Media and Engagement, April 9. She was formerly Social Media Editor at The New York Times. So what does one do in one as a social media editor at a newspaper? At the Times, Heron's duties included establishing "new ways of storytelling, gathering news and distributing journalism using social tools," according to a memo.
TV Newser
Katie Couric's ABC talk show, "Katie," will launch in 94% of local markets on Sept. 10, to be directed by Joe Terry, former director of "The Oprah Winfrey Show."
The Wrap
Especially because of its focus on politics in February, CNN was No. 1 in number of social media mentions that month, accounting for 13% of the total, Trendrr reports. But even while it significantly outperformed rivals Fox News and MSNBC in social media, CNN's ratings still lagged behind the other two channels. “To say that there is a direct correlation [between ratings points and social] right now would not be the right thing to say,” Trendrr's founder Mark Ghuneim tells TheWrap. “But there is definitely a correspondence. This is the beginning of the ability for networks to value their media …
Chicago Tribune
More news of newspaper layoffs in two big cities. First, 45 editorial staffers are
losing their jobs due to layoffs or buyouts at Philadelphia Media Network Inc.'s
The Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, and Philly.com. Next, an article in the
Chicago Tribune, reporting on the paper's own doings, says that 15 newsroom staffers had been let go. Sadly, the article reads like the reporter was dealing with an unwilling subject. The news is attributed to "company sources," and the only statement on record is one of those painful corporate-jargon quotes that says nothing: "'The
Chicago Tribune does not publicly discuss …
Women's Wear Daily
The first issue of the newly reincarnated Time Style & Design, the fashion spin-off of Time mag, is out, after a hibernation of almost three years. The new version will come out twice a year, with a new editor, Time managing editor Rick Stengel, and a focus expanded beyond the business of fashion to art and culture.
Advertising Age
Two years after it ventured into tablet publishing for many of its mags, Conde Nast has now begun providing regular readership metrics to its advertisers, reports Nat Ives. Among the stats available: number of readers who actually opened an issue, and the time readers spent with it. Premium advertisers will get more detailed reports. The publisher also notes that "the growing body of overall information on tablet readership is reinforcing some early impressions that are promising for magazines on tablets," writes Ives. For example, readers tend to browse tablet editions much the way they do print issues, "taking in ads …