Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Bonnie Fuller out as the queen of the tabloids

[This post has been updated] The trajectory of Bonnie Fuller's career has taken a major dip with word that she's out as the Executive Vice-President and Chief Editorial Director of American Media Inc.. A release from AMI says that she is leaving both position effective today.
"I am proud of the significant achievements of American Media's celebrity and fitness brands over the past five years, and I am now ready for a new adventure," said Ms. Fuller. "The transformation of Star from a tabloid into a glossy magazine was unprecedented and has proven to be a great success. I am also proud of the redesigns of several other titles over the past few years. I have been fortunate to work with an exceptional group of talented editors and publishers, and am thrilled to continue my involvement with AMI through my role as editor-at-large at Star and consultant to David Pecker."
Usually, being given a consulting job and an honorific title like editor-at-large is simply part of a severance package and that seems to be the case here, with AMI likely paying her out for the balance of the 3-year contract renewal she signed in June 2006.

AMI publishes Star, Shape, Men's Fitness, Fit Pregnancy, Natural Health, and The National Enquirer.

As can be seen from past posts here, Fuller has come a long way since her days as a fashion reporter at the Toronto Star and the editor of Flare magazine then shot to prominence in New York heading up Women's Wear Daily, Glamour and then US Weekly.

[UPDATE] Dylan Stableford, in his blog on Folio: ventures some tart commentary about Fuller's departure:
Now, I'm no financial whiz. But a magazine that's spending $2,500,000—not including her hair and makeup!—on an editor who appears, at this point, to be relegated to blogging for the Huffington Post, is not spending its money wisely...

I think, too, that paying an editor some 50 times, say, what another editorial staffer was making is a poisonous recipe for any magazine.

Unless your name is Martha or Rachael Ray (or A-Rod), it's a good time for publishers to rein it in those exorbitant edit contracts.

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good riddance, I say. She's caused great depression regarding Western media, inspired every bellicose Islamist and idotically established all-time lows on so many dimensions that it beggars the imagination. She cheapened people to throttle stories well beyond the red line. Let's pray that she's blown her silly engine.

6:10 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yes. And let's not forget that she caused the cyclone in Burma, the earthquake in Sichuan, and the misery of psoriasis, too.

Traffic in hyperbole much?

I grant you she was despised by many who had the unfortunate experience of working for her, and that she contributed to the dumbing down of the collective culture. But a little perspective, please.

2:53 pm  

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