Deborah Needleman, the editor of WSJ. magazine, has been offered the job as editor of the New York Times’ T magazine, reports Joe Pompeo of Capital New York.
Pompeo writes, “It’s unclear what the exact status of the deal is; sources cautioned that anything could still happen. And Needleman, reached on her cell phone, hung up before I could ask. Later, responding to an email about whether she’d accepted an offer from the Times, Needleman wrote: ‘That is not true.’ She did not immediately respond to follow-ups asking for confirmation that the offer was on the table, but I’ll update if I hear back.
“The Times declined to comment on the matter. A spokesperson for The Journal likewise did not immediately have a comment.
“The timing, of course, is a bit awkward: It’s Fashion Week, for which Needleman is WSJ.’s ambassador. But Needleman had been floated early on as a possible successor to Singer. And getting her would be a huge coup for the Times, which has been struggling to increase its advertising revenue with T as the Journal is making significant gains under Needleman with WSJ. The Journal magazine was launched as a major initiative of the company in 2008, after Rupert Murdoch took over the paper. Needleman, formerly editor of the late Conde Nast shopping title Domino, became the editor of WSJ. in 2010.
“Both magazines are meant to bring new revenues to their parent publications with lucrative luxury advertising, commanding high prices for large, glossy pages full of high-end fashion and design photography that doesn’t share space with the type of horrifying news from around the world that has often repelled luxury brands.”
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