What the Hell Has Happened to Vanity Fair?

As dramas go, it is minor stuff. But in the itsy-bitsy, hothouse world of magazine glossies, the question everyone seems to be asking this summer is, “What the hell has happened to Vanity Fair?” You remember Vanity Fair, no doubt. It was big not so long ago. The chatterati obsessed over it—its striking covers, its fabulous photo features, its stories (the revelations, the scandals, the crime deconstructions!), even its stylish advertising, which filled its shiny pages. And, of course, its larger-than-life editor, Graydon Carter, who announced his retirement at the end of last year after a quarter-century at the helm. Now, half a year since Carter handed over the reins to his surprise-pick successor… silence. And not the kind of silence that issues from respect. Well, that’s not entirely accurate. I do hear things, mainly because I’ve spent my life in the media. I listen for the whispers. This is what media people are whispering: Vanity Fair is disappearing from the radar. In various forms and contexts, I hear the words “disaster,” “awful,” “irrelevant.” Unfortunately for the magazine’s owner, Condé Nast, this is occurring at a most inauspicious moment. The publisher is confronting strong economic headwinds on several fronts, to the extent that it has begun the process of selling three of its books. For the time being, it’s said that VF is safe, but how long before some sort of radical change, or rescue, is deemed necessary? (As if to kick sand in VF’s face, a newly... Continue reading at 'Folio Magazine'

[ Folio Magazine | 2018-08-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #guilty pleasure

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Venue for London Book Fair 'still in balance'

A return by the London Book Fair to the ExCeL Centre in Docklands is not a done deal, according... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London Book Fair's Return to ExCel Raises Industry Concerns

Concern is mounting among the publishing community, in London and elsewhere, over a possible relocation of the London Book Fair to the ExCel Exhibition Centre in Docklands, the far east of the capital. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London Book Fair consults on future location

The London Book Fair has begun a consultation over the fair's future location following the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The 10 Biggest Things That Happened at New York Comic Con

In case you slept through this weekend and missed it, here are the 10 biggest comic book stories from 2013's New York Comic Con.     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Markus Dohle's Full Remarks

What does the future hold for the world's first mega trade publisher, Penguin Random House? Check out this transcript of PRH CEO Markus Dohle's full remarks delivered at the 2013 Frankfurt Book Fair. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: WME, HC Lead the Deal-Making in Active Show

If there a theme emerged from the deal-making at this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair, it was the dominance of HarperCollins as a buyer of big books, and of William Morris Endeavor as the seller of those books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Watch Videos from Thursday at the Frankfurt Book Fair

Watch our Frankfurt Book Fair video interviews with Peter Usborne (Usborne Books), Bob Campbell (Wiley), Jamie Byng (Canongate), Richard Nash (Small Demons), and other leading figures in the publishing industry. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Ferals Emerges as Hot Middle-Grade Property

One of the big children’s projects that has bubbled up at Frankfurt is a series called Ferals that was acquired jointly by HarperCollins Children’s Books U.S. and U.K. last week, and has already been optioned for film. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Post-Amazon, Goodreads Still a Place for Book Lovers

Director of author marketing, Pat Brown, spoke about how the company remains, even after being acquired by Amazon, a place for authors and their fans. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Pricing is the New Piracy

At this year’s fair, piracy has been a noticeably absent topic, replaced by a new, more pressing concern for publishers in the digital age: pricing. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: HC Wins Self-Published Novel In Major Buy

In what is rumored to be a deal worth $500,000, Jennifer Brehl at HarperCollins’s William Morrow imprint bought North American rights to Tina Seskis’s novel, One Step Too Far. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: 'We Have to Get this Right,' Says Dohle

The CEO of the recently merged mega-publisher Markus Dohle addressed a range of subjects. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Debut From Joshua Ferris’s Wife Draws Buzz, Along With Co-Authored Iraq War Novel

Two more books drawing buzz at the fair include a debut novel by Joshua Ferris's wife, and a co-authored book about friendship and the Iraq war. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Terézia Mora Wins German Book Prize

On the eve of the Frankfurt Book Fair, Her Das Ungeheuer was honored as the year's best German-language novel. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Where the World Plugs In

At an opening session at last year’s Frankfurt Book Fair, U.K. Publishers Association CEO Richard Mollet remarked that digital publishing was no longer in its infancy, but in the “voting and drinking stages of early adulthood.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: What Is a Publisher Now?

The publishing industry is in the midst of a rapid, tech-fueled period of change, but what does that change mean for the future of the business? That was the question posed to an opening panel at the 2013 Frankfurt Book Fair: What Is a Publisher Now? Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Knopf Nabs Galassi's Debut Novel

Muse pulls from Galassi's own life and follows a book editor who, Knopf explained, "is caught in the middle of the decades-long rivalry between two publishing lions over the work of a beautiful, iconic female poet." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: Redmayne Talks New Storytelling Models and Competing With PRH

The CEO of HarperCollins U.K. talked about taking his new job and how he plans on taking HC into the future. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2013: The Digital Spotlight

Read the complete Frankfurt Book Fair 2013 Digital Spotlight in this Scribd reader Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt 2013: CONTEC Opens 'Good Mood' Frankfurt Book Fair

The popular Tools of Change is no more, but in its place a more intimate digital conference--CONTEC--kicked off what Frankfurt v-p of conferences and entertainment & media Holger Volland said was going to be “a good mood” Frankfurt Book Fair. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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