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Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham to Exit After Sale

The Wall Street Journal


Newsweek editor Jon Meacham is planning to announce Monday that he will resign from the magazine after its expected sale to audio equipment magnate Sidney Harman, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Mr. Meacham took over as editor of Washington Post Co.-owned publication in October 2006.

His resignation ends a 15-year career at Newsweek that began in 1995 when he joined Newsweek as a writer. He became national affairs editor soon after that and was named managing editor in November of 1998.

Mr. Harman's bid was attractive to Post Co. because it assured a higher degree of continuity than the other bidders were willing to offer, according to people familiar with the situation. However, the departure of Mr. Meacham, 41 years old, is bound to fundamentally transform the magazine.

His influence has been more pronounced in the last year as Newsweek shifted away from newsgathering to more opinion and analysis. Many of the cover stories, which he regularly writes, reflect his interest in politics and religion.