Yglesias to Exit Slate for Klein Venture

yglesiasSlate economics columnist and blogger Matthew Yglesias will step down next month to join departing Washington Post writer Ezra Klein's new venture.

Slate editor-in-chief David Plotz said in a staff email that Yglesias is set to depart at the end of February for the "ambitious new venture," adding " Matt will tell us more about it as the veil lifts."

Yglesias pens the "Moneybox" column for Slate and is a prolific blogger for the site. He said via Twitter that he's "excited to be pursuing some new opportunities in the near future" with Klein and Washington Post colleagues Melissa Bell and Dylan Matthews.

Said Slate's Plotz: " “You may recall that our last Moneybox columnist, Annie Lowrey, left Slate to go off and marry Ezra Klein. Well, it’s happening again."

Union Trib Hit with $10M Judgment

The San Diego Union Tribune was hit with a $10M judgment in state court on Jan. 21 in a class action suit brought by newspaper carriers.

The 1,200 carriers sued in 2009 claiming they were misclassified as independent contractors, rather than employees of the company entitled to reimbursement for expenses.

The case went to trial in June 2013 with San Diego County Superior Court Judge John Meyer ruling in December that the carriers were employees, despite a contract that described them as independent contractors. Meyer held that the company had extensive control over the manner and means in which the carriers operated, trained them, and did not allow them to transfer routes to others, among other factors.

The court awarded $4.9M to the carriers and $6.1M in attorneys' fees, although about $1.2M of the lawyers' take will be paid out of the carriers' award.

The Union-Tribune said it will appeal.

Callahan & Blaine, the law firm that led the case for the carriers, said it won a $38M settlement against the Orange County Register in 2009 and has two similar cases heading to trial against the Sacramento Bee and Fresno Bee this year.

Revamped Guggenheim Taps Brand Chief

Dana Miller, who was executive producer of the 2013 Billboard Music Awards as senior VP for Prometheus Global Media, has moved to Prometheus parent Guggenheim Media in Los Angeles to head marketing and brand development for The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard.

An executive VP, she reports to newly installed co-president and chief creative officer Janice Minn, who leads editorial, and co-president John Amato, who heads the business side.

Miller was creative services director at Vanity Fair and VP of creative services at parent Conde Nast. Earlier stints included CBS Publishing, Ziff Davis and Hearst, among others.

Guggenheim earlier this month split its Prometheus operations into an entertainment group, including Billboard and THR, and a second operation encompassing a Adweek, the CLIO Awards and its Film Expo group.

Amazon Launches Christian Publishing Unit

Amazon's publishing operation has created a Christian imprint, Waterfall Press, to produce fiction and non-fiction titles.

The online retail giant said Waterfall titles will be published by its Brilliance Publishing unit, which currently offers self-help books under the Grand Harbor Press imprint and has published audiobooks of Christian authors.

Mark Pereira, president and publisher of Brilliance Publishing, said, “We are excited to expand our offering to readers of faith-based material by publishing original Christian content with enduring appeal.”

Tammy Faxel, formerly of Tyndale House and Oasis Audio, leads editorial for Waterfall.

Debut titles, to be published in collaboration with Christianity Today, include "The Four Best Places to Live"(February 2014) by Mark Buchanan; "When You Need a Miracle" (April) by Cherie Hill, and "The Quiet Revolution" (June) by Jay Hein, director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives under President George W. Bush.

Yost to Edit Columbus CEO

Mary Yost, former VP of public affairs for the Ohio Hospital Association, has been named editor of Columbus CEO magazine, a monthly business title from the publisher of the Columbus Dispatch.

Yost started her career as a reporter for the Dispatch in 1973. She led PR, communications and media relations for the OHA for more than 20 years.