The New Republic magazine, which reached its 100th anniversary last month, is reducing its frequency to 10 issues a year from 20, moving its headquarters to New York from Washington, D.C., and replacing its editor. Gabriel Snyder will assume the role of editor of chief, succeeding Frank Foer.
Mr. Snyder has worked at a number of media companies, including Gawker, where he was editor in chief, and The Atlantic, where he led Atlantic Wire. Most recently, Mr. Synder was a digital advisor to Bloomberg Media.
The magazine is not closing its D.C. office, a New Republic employee said.
According to The New York Times, Mr. Foer sent a memo to staff today saying he was leaving The New Republic over a disagreement about the future of the magazine.
Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes bought The New Republic in 2012 and named himself publisher. He has sought to broaden its audience across digital media. The appointment of Mr. Snyder is another step in that direction.
Here's the memo Guy Vidra, CEO of The New Republic, sent to staff Thursday:
To All Staff,
I want to share some news about forthcoming changes at The New Republic.
As you've heard, Frank Foer is leaving the company. We are excited to announce that Gabriel Snyder will assume the role of Editor-in-Chief. In addition, Leon Wieseltier will be moving on.
In his time here, Frank has led a meaningful expansion of our team, has done a terrific job advancing the mission of our storied institution, and has continued to insert The New Republic's voice into the national discourse. We wish him nothing but the best and are very grateful for all he's done.
As we move forward under Gabriel's leadership, we are re-imagining The New Republic as a vertically integrated digital media company. Gabriel is ideally suited to bridge traditional journalism and digital media. He is committed – as am I – to The New Republic's mission of impact, influence and persuasion, but understands that fulfilling that mission in today's media landscape requires new forms. He truly reflects the "straddle generation" of journalists and editors who remain deeply rooted in the qualities of traditional journalism – having worked with brands such as the New York Observer and The Atlantic – but also understands what it takes to create content that will travel across all platforms. We believe he is the right person to help us to maintain the core DNA of The New Republic, while propelling us forward to the 21st century.
Leon has made an unsurpassed contribution to The New Republic over the last 30 years, and the qualities that he represents are the beating heart of this brand. He is quite frankly an institution unto himself whose indelible mark on this place will never go away.
As we restructure The New Republic, we will be making significant investments in creating a more effective and efficient newsroom as well as improved products across all platforms. This will require a recalibration of our resources in order to deliver the best product possible. In order to do so, we've made the decision to reduce the frequency of our print publication from 20 to 10 issues a year and will be making improvements to the magazine itself.
Given the frequency reduction, we will also be making some changes to staff structure. This is not a decision we make lightly, but we believe this restructuring is critical to the long-term success of the company. We will be holding an all-hands meeting tomorrow to help answer any questions or concerns you may have.
And lastly - as some of you may know - we will be moving to a newly re-designed, expanded office in New York's Union Square. New York was the original home of The New Republic, and we're thrilled to further expand our presence here.
These are exciting times for our company which will demand change. We are committed to the roots of this magazine – an experiment in opinion to help address the challenges of our time. We can only do this together.
Guy
