Editor & Publisher to close

Big news on the media industry today. Editor & Publisher, chronicler of the media since 1884, will be closed by Nielsen Business Media Company. 

Below is an excerpt from the memo sent out by Greg Farrar, President of Nielsen Business Media (via Romensko)

"[...]We've made the decision to cease operations for Editor & Publisher and Kirkus Reviews.

This move will allow us to strengthen investment in our core businesses – those parts of our portfolio that have the greatest potential for growth – and ensure our long-term success. We remain committed to building our trade show group and affiliated brands. These assets continue to be a key part of The Nielsen Company's overall portfolio and we strongly believe they are positioned to grow as the economy recovers. In addition, we'll continue to assess the strategic fit of our remaining portfolio of publications."

My initial thought about Editor & Publisher being closed: Now who will cover the death throes of the newspaper industry? As unfortunate as their closure is, it makes sense in context; the magazine that covers the convulsions of the media industry is inevitably affected by those convulsions.

To answer my previously asked question: new media vanguards, such as Gawker, Romenesko, Fred Wilson, Jeff Jarvis and people like them will chronicle the fall of old media and the ascent of new media while print publications, like Editor & Publisher, fall by the wayside. New media now has the chance to rise and meet the open call for serious reportage. I hope they have the will and desire to answer that call.