Bill Shapiro, who lost his managing editor job at Life when it folded for the sixth or seven-hundredth time, is back on Time Inc.’s payroll. The former chief of Time’s, custom publishing unit, Shapiro is the new development editor for all of Time Inc., according to a memo sent out by editor-in-chief John Huey, who describes Bill as the “primary liaison between editorial and our colleagues in corporate sales and marketing.” That is, he’s your go-to guy when your client needs an editorial plug in the front of the book!
Most fun in Huey’s reintroduction of Bill, however, is the endnote about Bill’s new book, Other People’s Love Letters, which comes out at the end of the month. The book features what appear to be stolen love notes found in attics, basements, and discared cell phones. Staffers will have a chance to celebrate the tome at a party featuring “some Cheetos, Dr. Pepper and an opportunity to buy a copy.”
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Think Time Inc. chief John Huey is going to let Ann Moore have all the memo-issuing fun? Hells-to-the-no! The Hu-meister chimes in on those 250 folks being forced out of the publishing giant to emphasize “It’s not you, it’s me.” And just like in the world of dating, we’re certain that excuse will go over swimmingly to the staffers soon to be without health insurance.
John’s full memo, after the jump.
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Breaking:
We’ve just reeceived word that Time Magazine has finally started implementing some of those “big changes” they’ve kept on hinting at.
In an internal memo released just a few minutes ago, John Huey (Time’s sixth editor-in-chief) announced the appointment of Priscilla Painton, Adi Ignatius and Michael Elliott as deputy managing editors, and bid farewell to veterans Steve Koepp and Bob Safian..
In his letter, Huey gives a flowery run-down of each of the new editors’ individual qualifications, making sure to mention that Painton is a “dogged reporter” and bilingual, (alas, Ignatius “one-ups” her by being a “cool-headed manager,” and fluent in both Russian AND Chinese), and describes Elliot as “a man who can see both the big picture and pointilist picture with equal ease.” He also offers an extremely generous send-off to Koepp and Safian, thanking them profoundly for their years of service (”no journalist could ask for an editor with a defter pencil…or a sweeter manner”) and wishing them good luck in their new ventures.
All of this, of course, could be part of that sensitive, nice-guy image Huey’s tried to cultivate ever since a GQ profile cast him in a particularly aggressive light.
A rather one-sided GQ magazine article years ago made him sound like a cross between Attila the Hun and Machiavelli, and he has been dogged by it ever since.
As proof of his gentler side, Huey told me that he often cries when he reads a vintage tear-jerker in Sports Illustrated, which has been known to publish the odd rags-to-riches or riches-to-rags piece.
Wow, Huey weeps while reading Sports Illustrated AND uses phrases like “pointillist picture.” All we can say is, what a softie! Can’t wait to see what impact John “Waterworks” Huey and his dogged reporting staff have on the shaping future of Time.
• Without Ted Koppel, the new Nightline looks more like 20/20. And without Barbara Walters, the new 20/20-esque Nightline looks like decoupage. [USA Today]
• Get Eliot Spitzer’s heart medication. Not only is the radio industry engaging in payola tactics, but now the U.S. military is buying off Iraqi newspapers to publish favorable stories penned by American soldiers. [LAT]
• Brian William’s nightly news lead continues to grow, thanks to all that viewer email he’s responding to. [AP]
• At John Huey’s super secret succession initiation at Time Inc., where Norm Pearlstine finally moves on out, guests were treated to hot water-revealing mugs of Huey’s, ahem, mug. [Gawker]
• Since the U.S. is far too flooded with celebrity weeklies, they’re now invading Canada. British tabloid Hello will set down across the northern border next August, where it’ll hope to beat native Bonnie Fuller at her own game. [Toronto Star]
• Blogger Panopticist goes way too far with the half-assed satirical rumor of the New York Times buying Gawker. Way. Too. Far. [Panopticist]
• Obligatory note: NBC makes official Steve Capus‘ position as NBC News president, a role he’s filled since September anyhow. [NYT]