New Media

Yesterday AOL revealed that it was looking to cut one-third of its staff as it heads towards its spin off from parent company Time Warner and looks to trim $300 million from its annual operating costs.

But, as our sister blog WebNewser pointed out today, today's Wall Street Journal actually has some good news about AOL for journos:

"AOL is still hiring for some positions that [CEO Tim Armstrong] has pinpointed as essential to its growth, such as journalists."

All of those journalists losing their jobs from places like BusinessWeek and the Associated Press may have a new place to work.

AOL Grapples With Harsh New Reality --Wall Street Journal

Details of AOL's Voluntary Layoff Plan --WebNewser

Earlier: AOL Looks One Third Of Staff

Coming a day late (The Wall Street Journal broke the story yesterday which quickly sped through media outlets) Condé Nast announced this afternoon its plan to move its titles into the 21st century with its Digital Magazine Initiative. This includes the much-talked-about e-readers version of Wired magazine, which will "deliver full-color, high resolution magazines" to your smartphone, laptop and "netbooks."

But that's not the only thing S.I. Newhouse's team is working on: Condé Nast Digital has been busy reorganizing its sales sector into 5 different sectors, and hiring on its digital arm even as deep cuts are being made into its print divisions. Good strategy for looking ahead, or cutting off the nose to spite the face? You tell us.

Press release after the jump.

Read More: Condé Preparing E-Reader Version of Wired Preparing E-Reader Version of Wired --Wall Street Journal

Previously: Condé Nast Digital's Schutte: We're Not A Late Bloomer

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Fashion and lifestyle e-newsletter DailyCandy launches its members-only, curated sample sale Web site Swirl, Sample Sales by DailyCandy today. A "limited number of first-come, first-served DailyCandy subscribers" will be privy to a sale of Alisha Levine knits today, as DailyCandy branches out into a new line of revenue: e-commerce.

Following the model of sites like Gilt Groupe, Swirl has one unique feature: it's curated by DailyCandy's editors. Explained the company:

"Since most sample sale sites replicate the same random experience a traditional outlet store or offline sample sale offers, DailyCandy's trusted editorial eye will lend much-needed credibility to the category."

And the site, led by former DailyCandy editor in chief Eve Epstein, is offering special deals to DailyCandy subscribers. Not only do they get early access to the beta version before its official launch in January, subscribers will get other perks like special sales, one-time discounts or deals on shipping. Swirl will also be "editorially integrated" into DailyCandy's daily emails.

With so many of these exclusive, members-only sample sale sites popping up, Swirl might just get lost in the mix. But we have a feeling loyal DailyCandy readers will be intrigued enough to check it out. Will you?

Earlier: DailyCandy's Levy: CEO's Exit Won't Stop Growth

Earlier this year, we learned of Atlantic Media's plans to launch a new digital property when it brought on Slate founder Michael Kinsley to oversee the mysterious project.

Today, the parent company of The Atlantic announced another new hire for the project, Adam Pasick, who will serve as managing editor. The new digital property is set to launch in early 2010 and we now know that whatever it is, it will target "global business executives."

Previously, Pasick worked as an editor in the U.S. bureau of Reuters.com.
Atlantic Media (which also owns The National Journal Group and Government Executive magazine) has been focusing on its online presence since August of last year, when it hit a traffic peak and hired Felix DiFillipo and Bill McGarry from Forbes and CondeNet. In September, Atlantic Media launched The Atlantic Wire as a sister site to TheAtlantic.com. The Atlantic's most notorious columnist, Andrew Sullivan, blogs regularly, and we look forward to seeing what writers Atlantic Media scoops up for their new site.

Previously: Atlantic Shifts Tide With Hires, Atlantic Wire Launches With (Media) Star-Studded Fete

At first we thought this may have been news about The New York Times and publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. planning to build a pay wall for his newspaper's Web site, but apparently they are catching pay wall fever across the sea, too. The Times, owned by News International, is planning on charging for online access as well, as editor James Harding announced today.

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Our sister blog WebNewser reports that Slate.com spin-off Double X, which just launched in May, is folding into its parent Web site and becoming a separate section instead of a separate site.

Founders Hanna Rosin and Emily Bazelon said they now hope "to create a more intimate version of the community we have built, with many of the same voices and passions."

But WebNewser is quick to point out that, although this move is being touted as a good thing, its result is less content produced for Double X, meaning layoffs are probably not far behind. Said WebNewser's Chris Nerney:

"Sorry, but 'a more intimate version of the community' reminds me of Spinal Tap's manager explaining that the smaller venues on the band's latest tour mean 'their appeal is becoming more selective.'"

We see Double X as a cautionary tale of online launches. Even if you have a good idea and readers, it's not easy to make money to keep new launches alive -- even when they're backed by established brands like Slate and its owner The Washington Post Co.

Slate's DoubleX Online Site For Women To Shut Down --WebNewser

Earlier: Online Women's Mag Double X Launches

We've been hearing for months now about how Bonnie Fuller, formerly of Star and Us Weekly, was planning a media comeback with her new gossip blog HollywoodLife.com, poaching Corrynne Steindler from Page Six and Laura Schreffler from New York Daily News along the way.

Now the day has finally arrived: the launch of the "female-focused" blog HollywoodLife.

Billed as a Web site that crosses traditional magazine coverage with "interactive conversation" for women -- as well as "feminine bling" from Fuller herself -- HollywoodLife has already drawn in huge advertisers (Sony, We television, Old Navy) for the big names it promises to deliver. Of course, their first (and largest) post up right now is about the New Moon premiere in L.A. last night with a streaming video of Taylor Lautner, Kristin Stewart and Robert Pattinson walking the red carpet.

Full press release after the jump (It's a must-read, trust us)

Read More: HollywoodLife.com

Previously: Steindler Leaves Page Six To Join Bonnie Fuller, Bonnie Fuller to Announce New 'Media' Venture 'Shortly', HollywoodLife.com Snags Another NY Gossip Columnist

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Our sister site BayNewser led the charge and all of mediabistro.com's blogs asked, "Do you think pay walls will save newspapers?"

The poll received over 1,500 responses, and the results were in: 65 percent of readers believed that pay walls would just make readers flee to sites with free content, while another 20 percent allowed that some revenue could be made by charging for access to a site, but that the money wouldn't be enough to buoy the costs of traditional journalism.

The people have spoken! Now let's just see if anyone can come up with a better idea for publishers to somehow make money off their content on the web.

Earlier: Poll: Will Pay Walls Save Newspapers?

This showed up in our inbox today, oddly enough labeled "contest," although if you're honest with yourself, isn't every job a contest between you and the thousands of other applicants?

Either way: Flavorpill, the daily newsletter of fun things to do in your hometown, is opening up a branch in Melbourne, Australia and looking for a managing editor to oversee their content. Unfortunately, you don't just have to be hip and cool to apply for this job, you also have to fit into a predetermined age range of 18-30, which would seem to go against the Age Discrimination in Employment act of 1967, but Australia's passing of a similar bill only happened 5 years ago, and is a little more lax about pigeonholing their employees. Unfortunately, Flavorpill's HQ is based in New York, meaning if someone wanted to take the the company to court over not getting the Melbourne position, they might have a fair shot at the case.

Unless by calling it a contest, instead of a job opening, the daily listings guide has found a way to bypass that tiny little hiccup.

Any HR gurus or employment attorneys out there want to weigh in?

UPDATE: Flavorpill co-founder and CEO Mark Mangan clarifies the age requirement: "The age range is related to visa requirements by the Australian government. And the work is part-time, ideal for a freelancer who wants to be Australia-based for a period of time. Flavorpill doesn't ever discriminate based on age, or anything else."

Today's launch of Gawker.TV is the product of Richard Blakeley's three years as Nick Denton's video editor. Now the This Is Why You're Fat co-author is manning his own satellite site, which will be posting videos throughout the day, with the help of the 16 or so interns currently working under Blakeley.

The fact that so much (unpaid) manpower is going into this spin-off site isn't exactly a surprise. Gawker's largest-generating posts have almost always been candid videos: Tom Cruise ranting about Scientology, the Eric Dane/Rebecca Gayheart/Kari Ann Peniche sex tape, and the video shot by Blakeley of Heath Ledger's body being wheeled out of the apartment he was staying in Soho when he died in 2008.

Denton has also admitted that it will be easier to sell ads on a site that is not as specifically themed as some of his other off-shoots like Jezebel (for women) or Fleshbot (Gawker's sex Web site). Sales of Gawker's other sites -- Wonkette, Idolator, and Gridskipper -- were similarly explained to be the result of poor ad revenue.

Gawker.TV currently has a tip box at the top of the site for users to submit videos. We have yet to hear back from Gawker Media if the tip box will automatically filter into the new open forums, as they do on Gawker's main site.

See More: Gawker.TV