• by May 2, 2019

Adweek editorial director Jim Cooper is stepping down at the trade publisher. A 21-year veteran, he provided a steady hand as the parent company changed owners four times. He will focus on special projects as an editor-at-large.

The company will split his duties among existing editors who report to CEO Jeff Litvack, according to an announcement.

Lisa Granatstein will be editor-senior vice president programming, overseeing Adweek’s print magazines and events. Stephanie Paterik, executive editor, will oversee newsroom operations, including digital news.

Cooper took over as editorial director to replace Michael Wolff, the combative media columnist who held the job for less than a year and left in 2011. Wolff oversaw a radical transformation of Adweek from a trade publication that covered Madison Avenue into a consumer-oriented magazine featuring media and entertainment personalities.

Wolff's revamped Adweek ended up alienating readers and advertisers, and Cooper worked to restore the publication’s long-standing relationships with ad agencies. Adweek not only publishes news about the advertising and marketing industries, but it has expanded into live events and conferences.

Paterik started at Adweek as a senior web editor in 2015 and was managing editor for the past two years. Granatstein has worked at Adweek since 2011. Previously, she covered digital media for sister publication Mediaweek and Time magazine.

In 2016, private-equity firm Beringer Capital bought Adweek from MediaBistro Holdings. The acquisition included nine industry blogs in the Adweek Blog Network: AgencySpy, FishbowlNY, FishbowlDC, GalleyCat, LostRemote, PRNewser, SocialTimes, TVNewser and TVSpy.

Adweek announced the managerial changes as the ad industry goes into its busy upfronts and NewFronts season. The company plans to host a new ad-tech event called NexTech, on July 24-25 in New York and its second annual Brandweek summit Nov. 3-6 in Palm Springs, Calif.