Wagman, founding editor of Jacksonville Biz Journal, dies at 90

Jules Wagman, who was the founding editor of the Jacksonville Business Journal, has died at the age of 90.

A story on its website states, “He had joined American City Business Journals’ flagship weekly in Kansas City in 1983 from Cleveland, Ohio, where he was on the news staff of The Cleveland Press until it folded in 1982.

“The success of the earlier Business Journals indicated that the weekly would succeed here. The question was, with Jacksonville being the smallest market in the chain, would the business community respond? That was a needless question.

“Three weeks after the first issue was published, staff members stopped explaining who they were. In its 10th month, the Jacksonville Business Journal reached its goals for the year in advertising and circulation.

“The editorial goal was simple: Beat the daily on every story. ‘Obviously, being a weekly, we can’t do that, but that’s our goal,’ he told his reporters. ‘If the daily has a story on your beat before we do, take that as an affront and tell your source he gets better play if you have it first.'”

Read more here.