Lucia Moses of Adweek reports that the new business news site Quartz will name Jay Lauf as its publisher and will go live on Sept. 24.
Moses writes, “One can see why Atlantic Media turned to Lauf to lead Quartz, which is being positioned as mobile-driven. Under Lauf, the Atlantic turned a profit in 2010 for the first time in recent memory and hit another milestone in 2011 when half its ad revenue came from digital, making it a rarity in the magazine industry.
“‘Justin [Smith, Atlantic Media president] and I have both been architects of a digital-first strategy for The Atlantic, so for the time I’ve been here, I can count myself as a digital native, regardless of what my background is,’ Lauf said.
“The last publisher was Chris Batty, a Gawker media vet who was hired in March but quietly left a few weeks ago. In announcing his hire, Atlantic Media described Batty as an ‘innovator’ and a ‘rare digital talent’ who would work arm in arm with editor Kevin Delaney in launching the new brand. Atlantic Media now downplays his role, describing him as a consultant, and Smith has taken on a more active role at Quartz, securing its four launch sponsors.”
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