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| Newsweek Europe's print edition to close as editor steps down | Newsweek Europe's print edition to close as editor steps down |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| The experiment to publish a European print edition of Newsweek is over, reports Alex Spence on Politico. Just 18 months after launch, and three months after announcing expansion plans, the London-based weekly magazine has been closed by its owners, IBT Media. | The experiment to publish a European print edition of Newsweek is over, reports Alex Spence on Politico. Just 18 months after launch, and three months after announcing expansion plans, the London-based weekly magazine has been closed by its owners, IBT Media. |
| Its editor-in-chief, Richard Addis, has resigned and eight editorial staff are being made redundant. | Its editor-in-chief, Richard Addis, has resigned and eight editorial staff are being made redundant. |
| So an ambitious attempt to publish long-form, narrative journalism in print has come to nought because the company failed to attract advertising. And subscription sales revenue, despite circulation claims of 70,000 copies across Europe, was also slight. | So an ambitious attempt to publish long-form, narrative journalism in print has come to nought because the company failed to attract advertising. And subscription sales revenue, despite circulation claims of 70,000 copies across Europe, was also slight. |
| From now on, the Newsweek on sale in Europe will be produced in America, with a bureau chief in London (and no other print staff) to provide some European content. And the European website will also continue. | |
| Addis will announce the closure to readers in a letter to be published in Friday’s issue in which he writes: | Addis will announce the closure to readers in a letter to be published in Friday’s issue in which he writes: |
| “There’ll be one more edition of this magazine under me and my team and then it will fall under the guidance of the US parent team and their editor-in-chief, Jim Impoco, who plays a mean jazz drum and, apparently, a meaner set of tennis and is rather a brilliant editor as well”. | “There’ll be one more edition of this magazine under me and my team and then it will fall under the guidance of the US parent team and their editor-in-chief, Jim Impoco, who plays a mean jazz drum and, apparently, a meaner set of tennis and is rather a brilliant editor as well”. |
| He also refers to Newsweek Europe having had “a glittering first year” and praises his writers “who spent months researching and honing their sentences” plus the photographers, editors and designers. He concludes: “And yes, of course it was worth it. Absolutely”. | He also refers to Newsweek Europe having had “a glittering first year” and praises his writers “who spent months researching and honing their sentences” plus the photographers, editors and designers. He concludes: “And yes, of course it was worth it. Absolutely”. |
| Addis, the former editor of the Daily Express and Canada’s Globe & Mail, laid claim to having correspondents in 40 countries. Among his British freelance recruits were Harry Eyres, Adam LeBor, Alex Renton, Sarah Helm, Catherine Ostler and Nicholas Shakespeare. | Addis, the former editor of the Daily Express and Canada’s Globe & Mail, laid claim to having correspondents in 40 countries. Among his British freelance recruits were Harry Eyres, Adam LeBor, Alex Renton, Sarah Helm, Catherine Ostler and Nicholas Shakespeare. |
| One particular in-depth interview/profile - with former prime minister Tony Blair - garnered headlines in daily newspapers and the Times ran a lengthy extract. | One particular in-depth interview/profile - with former prime minister Tony Blair - garnered headlines in daily newspapers and the Times ran a lengthy extract. |
| Several other pieces - on Vladimir Putin, Oscar Pistorius, Alex Salmond, homegrown jihadis, African pygmies, people trafficking - also attracted attention. | Several other pieces - on Vladimir Putin, Oscar Pistorius, Alex Salmond, homegrown jihadis, African pygmies, people trafficking - also attracted attention. |
| Editorial strength was not matched by commercial strength, however, so IBT Media pulled the plug on its own project. The company, which owns the International Business Times website, bought Newsweek title from the IAC/InterActiveCorp in 2013. The European print edition was launched in March 2014. | Editorial strength was not matched by commercial strength, however, so IBT Media pulled the plug on its own project. The company, which owns the International Business Times website, bought Newsweek title from the IAC/InterActiveCorp in 2013. The European print edition was launched in March 2014. |
| When I reported in the London Evening Standard in mid-April on Addis’s expansions plans, I concluded: “It would be remiss of me, given the onward march of the digital revolution, not to add a word of caution about its prospects for retaining a newsprint presence”. | When I reported in the London Evening Standard in mid-April on Addis’s expansions plans, I concluded: “It would be remiss of me, given the onward march of the digital revolution, not to add a word of caution about its prospects for retaining a newsprint presence”. |
| Sources: Politico/Personal knowledge | Sources: Politico/Personal knowledge |