MEDIA WATCH: KEEPING AN EYE ON THE MEDIA AROUND US

GUARDIAN FANCIES A CHINESE

Interesting stuff ... The Guardian's website is now offering selected stories in Chinese translation.

NEW FACE AT THELONDONPAPER.COM ARTS

Serena Kutchinsky has been made thelondonpaper.com's online producer (with a brief to cover all of the site's online arts and events content). She was previously a producer at Timeout.com, so she ought to be well-placed for the role, really.

BBC TO HACK N SLASH MAGS TEAMS

From the Media Guardian ...

"Up to 30 jobs are at risk at BBC Magazines, which publishes titles including Radio Times and Top Gear, in a reorganisation prompted by the recession."

More (tho scant detail) here.

THE ECONOMIST ON THE SHIFT TO DIGITAL

Bloody interesting piece on The Economist on the demise of print in the US, the continued emergence and dominance of digital news reporting and its implications.

There is a short and sweet opinion piece on the matter, while there is also a lengthier feature.

What's happening in the US will no doubt follow over here in the regionals, so well worth a read, we thought.

Odd that San Francisco could be without a newspaper at all in a matter of months or weeks. Even stranger (when you really think about it with the UK's paper-obsessed readers) that no one very much under 30 will notice ...

HEART REBRAND MEANS LESS LOCAL CONTENT

The rebranding of a bunch of regional radio stations under the Heart brand is going to be completed by mid-June, according to reports from Global Radio.

The move will see established names including 2CR, Champion 103, Coast 96.3, Essex FM, Invicta FM, Marcher Sound, Ocean FM, Southern FM and Wirral's Buzz 97.1 become Heart stations.

The plan means that all the stations will create local programmes during breakfast (6-10am) and afternoon and evening slots (1-7pm Monday to Friday). The rest of the time, content will go out centrally across the network.

ALL CHANGE (KIND OF) AT MY WEEKLY

News reaches Seventy Seven towers that it's all change at My Weekly. Sally Rodger has swapped specials to become health editor, while Maggie Seed drops her health editorship to take on specials. Makes you wonder why they bothered really.

Still, change is as good as a rest.

Meantime, Eileen Towns becomes fashion and beauty editor while Jennifer McEwan has taken over the food and gardening pages. There is no foundation in the rumour that Eileen used to cover food and gardening. But it would be quite funny if she did.

BEER BACK AT GLAMOUR

Just a quick note to mention that Jade Beer is back from her maternity leave and takes up the reins as deputy editor of GLAMOUR. She particularly looks after all things travel and food at the mag, for those who didn't know that already.

MORE WORK FOR LOUISA SAUNDERS

Louisa Saunders, associate features editor at The Independent has picked up a brief to looks after the food features in the Life section, covering all aspects of buying and eating food. Her new brief includes everything from cookbooks to supermarkets, food producers to celeb chefs, as well as restaurants. She remains the key contact for all things health, families, wellbeing, shopping and beauty. She's a busy lass, is Louisa.

NEW BBC US ED ANNOUNCED

Mark Mardell has been named as Justin Webb's replacement as the BBC's North America editor. Mardell is currently the Brussels-based Europe news editor.

Webb will return to the UK as the latest face to be added to Today's roster (controversially replacing Ed Stourton) in the late summer, when Mardell will take up his new post.

THE SHAKE OUT NORTH OF THE BORDER

As the Scotsman, Scotland on Sunday and the Ediburgh Evening News see various of their editorial teams merged, news is starting to emerge of the shake-out amongst the editorial teams of all three papers.

John McLellan is to be Editor-in-Chief of all three papers (Scotland on Sunday, the Edinburgh Evening News and The Scotsman).

Ian Stewart, current deputy editor of The Scotsman, will add the Editorship of Scotland on Sunday to his portfolio, while Tom Little becomes editor of the Edinburgh Evening News. Kenny Farquharson becomes the paper's deputy editor.

MAXIM ONLINE TEAM EMERGES

As previously reported, Dennis lad's mag, Maxim, has axed its print edition to focus solely on its digital offer. As a result, Maxim.co.uk will re-launch in the next few weeks with a new team.

The only names to emerge in the frame are Ben Raworth (who becomes editorial director) and Stuart Messham (who will take on the position of the brand's online editor).

ALL CHANGE AT ST MAGAZINE

The Sunday Times Washington Correspondent Sarah Baxter will be taking over the role of Editor of The Sunday Times Magazine from this summer.

ES RELAUNCH CAMPAIGN ... "SORRY" THE HARDEST WORD?

Interesting relaunch campaign from the Evening Standard which is, as many will know, under new ownership as of next week.

They are putting a fair amount of clear space between the new look Standard and the previous incarnation, as well as between themselves and some of the other mid-market Tabloids in the market. Will be interesting to watch how it manifests itself.

More thoughts on the new title when it hits the streets next week ...

via CR

JF MEDIA GETS FOOTBALL PUNK ONTO THE PITCH

The owners of Golf Punk magazine, the irreverant title aimed at the younger generation of golf fans and players, has finally launched its football spin-off, Football Punk.

The new title was supposed to be launched a while back as an insert with its golf-related cousin. The editor was out and about across the media pages touting FP as the latest rival to FourFourTwo as far back as August last year.

However, corporate machinations at the titles' owner meant that the re-vamped Golf Punk only made it back to shelves in April, so Football Punk was in turn delayed.

The title will now launch as a stand-alone in WH Smiths, with a print run of 50,000. The launch editor has been former Golf Punk associate editor, Richard Lenton.

The former RoI and Liverpool defender Phil Babb (who owns a considerable share of the Punk title's owners), will act as editor at large for the magazine to secure interviews with leading players.

FOOL FALLS FOR MONEY

Veteran investment site, The Motley Fool, has gone back to its roots with the launch of sister site, LoveMoney.com, a new personal finance site.

LoveMoney.com will focus on personal finance issues, while The Motley Fool will shift its focus back to investment - the territory whence originally it came. For those keen to get in touch, former deputy editor of Fool.co.uk, Donna Werbner, has been appointed acting editor of LoveMoney.

APPRENTICE FAILURE LAUNCHES CHICONOMISE

The Apprentice's Michelle Dewberry has launched a new website (well, weekly newsletter, in all truth), Chiconomise.

Apparently to cover all things fashion, beauty, travel and lifestyle in the recession. Looks strikingly similar to Daily Candy, if you ask me. But there you go.

For those who really want the skinny, we're told that there will be a UK competitor on its tail before too long as US blog, Recessionista has a UK spin-off planned.

TIME OUT SWITCHES SHOPPING

Dan Jones has taken over as Time Out's shopping and style editor.

For those who like the sense of completeness, Rebecca Lowrey Boyd, (who writes WeeBirdy.com) has joined as Dan's deputy.

COSMO GETS A NEW FACE IN HEALTH

Rosie Mullender has taken over looking after Cosmopolitan's health features and health news page ... she will be looking after all health, food and fitness news and reviews, new products and procedures to be tried and tested as well as the facts and statistics that the mag carries on all things health.

NEW (ACTING) ED FOR GUARDIAN WEEKEND

Sue Matthias (until recently, the deputy editor of the New Statesman), is joining The Guardian as acting editor of the paper's Weekend Magazine at the end of the month. She's there for six months covering Merope Mills' maternity leave. Sue takes her previous experience as assistant editor of the Independent on Sunday and editor of the Independent's Magazine.

MORE ESCAPES THAN HOUDINI

As previously reported, PG was looking like a goner. Well, it turns out that Press Gazette has been saved (again) from closure as it has been snapped up by Progressive Media. News coverage on the ailing title's website and blogs is already back up and running, remarkably.

A NEW CAT GETS EDITOR'S CREAM

Isabelle O'Carroll has stepped into the well-heeled editor's shoes at the fashion blog Catwalk Queen, part of the burgeoning Shiny Media empire.

She's remains the editor of sister (or should that be brother, give its focus on men's fashion?) site, Brandish, for those who might be worrying that she had relinquished that particular role.

MEN'S HEALTH ONLINE ... AS YOU WERE

Contrary to recent reports, Laura Murphy at Men's Health Online isn't leaving at all. She has decided to work with the online outfit on a freelance basis, however. There is now a solid team of three working on the title and they are report that they are getting 700,000 unique users a month these days.

BUSINESS AND FEATURES EDS AT THE INDY ...

For those who may be interestedSusie Rushton has been appointed features editor of the Independent, while erstwhile Indy stalwart (and former PF editor), David Prosser, has been made business editor for the ailing national title.

SUN LAUNCHES DIGITAL RADIO

SunTalk will be a new online radio service from The Sun newspaper which launches next week - at 10.00 am on 20th April 2009, to be precise.

The programme/show/station marks a return to broadcasting for "disgraced" DJ, John Gaunt, who will act as host for the show.

The new "station" has pulled off a bit of a coup as their first guest will be none other than Conservative leader, David Cameron, who will be live in the studio.

From then, SunTalk will broadcast (webcast?) live every weekday from 10.00 am until 1.00 pm featuring "high profile" guests, alongside appearances from hacks including Lisa Minot and Dr Carol Cooper, amongst others.

OLD AND NEW COLLIDE

Two articles that folks should read on the meeting of old and new media. Really interesting piece by Clay Shirky and another by outside.in's Steven Johnson. They're long ... but they're worth the effort, seriously.

FAREWELL TO SPORT MAGAZINE (FOR NOW)

News reaches us that SPORT Magazine - briefly the biggest circulation men's mag in the market - has been forced to close its doors as its French parent has gone under.

We're a bit gutted, to be honest, because we liked the magazine and we liked Mark and all the other guys over there. It follows the closure of Maxim's print edition and the closure of Arena by Bauer a short while ago.

The press release says that the team (of 24 people) "has decided to suspend publication whilst the company rethinks its business model and looks for further investment".

Which makes it sound like there might yet be hope. Good luck guys.

FHM IN SEARCH FOR NEW EDITOR

FHM veteran, Anthony Noguera, is leaving Bauer, where he was most recently editor-in-chief of the publisher's men's lifestyle portfolio.

He's had a helluva run at EMAP and more recently Bauer, editing FHM - twice - as well as now defunct Arena and weekly lads' magazine Zoo.

The departure means that FHM is now in search of an editor and that Chris Bell (currently the title's deputy editor) will become acting editor for the timebeing.

GUARDIAN LAUNCHES WEEKLY BUSINESS PODCAST

The Guardian is launching a new, weekly business news podcast.

The show, which will be presented by journalists including Dan Roberts, Deborah Hargreaves and Larry Elliott and will take a look at the major issues of the week. If it's anything like the Media podast, it'll be well worth a listen.

Oh, and they're in the market for senior business folk for the programme, so do get in touch with Dan if you've got a CEO who might fit the bill.

SPECTATOR BUSINESS CUTS TO A QUARTER

Guardian Media reports that the Spectator's business magazine is cutting back from monthly to quarterly until the economic situation improves.

THE BATTLE FOR LONDON ... AND BEYOND

For those who really wanted to know, theLondonPaper is still ahead in the London evening battle, with a circulation of 500,949. The London Lite distributed 400,547.

For those who care, 104,493 copies of City AM were distributed.

The Standard sold 143,673, but gave away an additional 132,931 copies.

Elsewhere, the now national METRO daily freesheet distributed 1,335,627, making it one of the biggest dailies in the country, PR folks ...