T Magazine

Deborah Needleman has made some bold changes to T Magazine, the most noticeable of which is its brand-new logo.

Gone is the Gothic capital T that used to reside on the magazine's cover, and in its place is a sleeker sans serif T custom-designed by the magazine's creative director Patrick Li.

"I feel the Times is such a strong brand that it can handle under its umbrella a kind of distinctive magazine and that it doesn't need to typographically reference the Gothic type," Needleman said in an interview with WWD.

Speaking of strength, the magazine is now also physically bigger and printed on heavier paper. The thicker pages will provide support for her fashion-themed first issue, which will debut on Feb. 17. The issue features a cover story on front-row staple Lee Radziwill that Needleman started working on while she was still at the helm of WSJ. Magazine and a new front-of-book op-ed that examines "something in the zeitgeist." (For this issue, Suzy Menkes will ruminate on fashion bloggers; the cover teases the story with the line "the circus that is fashion.")

Photo via T Magazine

Kate Lanphear has found a new job after leaving her position as Elle's style director in November.

Journalist Jim Shi tweeted on Monday that "Lanphear has joined T: The New York Times Style Magazine as style director. She'll be at the upcoming women's shows with Team T." The Times' official communications account later confirmed the news by tweeting, "Welcome to Kate Lanphear, new Style Director of @TMagazine."

Lanphear has been the subject of a number of job-related rumors over the past several months. In October, she was mentioned as a possible replacement for Deborah Needleman, who left WSJ. Magazine to take over T in September. In November, some believed she was headed to a start-up magazine called Editorialist.

She's the newest big-name addition to the team since stylist Joe McKenna was named the magazine's fashion director at large in November.

Joanna Coles told us she was "not going to muddle" with Cosmopolitan when she took over as editor in chief in September, but she clearly wasn't referring to staff changes.

Coles has reportedly sacked nine members of the magazine's team, including seven on the editorial side and two from the photo department. And while she's hired British GQ's Paul Solomons as creative director and Marie Claire's Joyce Chang as executive editor, a litany of other positions have yet to be filled.

The departures leave Jessica Knoll as the magazine's only current senior editor. When the two first met at a staff meeting in September, Coles joked, "Kate [White] told me you're a rock star. But Kate's gone, so it doesn't matter now."

Over the last several months, the desks at New York's glossy fashion titles have operated more like a game of musical chairs than anything else. The latest departure in a round of shuffling that started in August sees Elle's style director Kate Lanphear leaving her position. It's unclear where she's headed next.

The revolving doors started spinning when Sally Singer was ousted as editor in chief of T Magazine at the end of August. She's now back at Vogue as the digital creative director and was replaced by former WSJ. Magazine editor Deborah Needleman in late September. Needleman took WSJ.'s creative director Patrick Li and fashion features director Whitney Vargas with her when she made the jump.

This week it was announced that stylist Joe McKenna would join T Magazine as fashion director at large. W's Maura Egan has joined T as features editor. Meanwhile, Alix Browne, T's deputy design editor, will head to W Magazine as features director.

Back at The Wall Street Journal, Needleman's deputy editor Ruth Altchek was named editorial director of the paper's weekend Off Duty section and WSJ. in mid-October. Harper's Bazaar executive editor Kristina O'Neill was brought in as editor of the magazine. Two senior members of Bazaar's accessories team, Kate Davidson Hudson and Stefania Allen, left shortly after O'Neill, but not to join her at WSJ. Bazaar's features director Anamaria Wilson also left in October for a position as vice president of global corporate communications at Michael Kors.

Bazaar held onto and promoted three key staffers: longtime senior fashion market editor Joanna Hillman was promoted to style director, Nicole Fritton was named fashion market and accessories director, and Elisa Lipsky-Karasz became the magazine's features editor.

Brides executive editor Anne Fulenwider replaced Coles as editor in chief of Marie Claire. Her first big staff changes have been to promote Nina Garcia from fashion director to creative director and to hire Alex Gonzalez as artistic director. Fulenwider was herself replaced by Keija Minor, becoming the first black editor in chief of a Condé Nast title.

Speaking of Condé Nast employees, Eva Chen left her position as beauty and health director at Teen Vogue and was replaced by Glamour's senior beauty editor Elaine Welteroth.

Above: Joanna Coles. Below: Kate Lanphear.

Sally Singer, who left her job as editor of T Magazine in September, has been named the digital creative director of Vogue. She'll head back to 4 Times Square to take the newly created position on Oct. 29. Singer, who had been the features director and fashion news editor at Vogue before she took over T Magazine in 2010, will report to Anna Wintour and will work closely with Vogue.com Editor Caroline Palmer.

Harper's Bazaar Executive Editor Kristina O'Neill has been named editor of WSJ Magazine. She'll report to Ruth Altchek, the newly named editorial director of both the magazine and The Wall Street Journal's Off Duty section. Altchek had been former WSJ Magazine Editor Deborah Needleman's deputy during her tenure at the Journal. The news comes in the wake of the much-publicized departure of Needleman to T Magazine.

"I am absolutely thrilled to be joining The Wall Street Journal, with its incredible reputation and reach," O'Neill said in a statement. "WSJ Magazine is on a roll, and I can't wait to pick up the momentum and create content that further drives the conversation."

A representative for the Journal told us that the magazine currently produces 10 issues a year, but O'Neill will increase publication to 11 issues in 2013 and 12 issues in 2014.

O'Neill had been at Harper's Bazaar since 2000, but before that she held positions at New York Magazine and Time Out New York.

Meanwhile, The New York Times announced today that T Magazine's publication under Needleman will scale down to 13 issues year from 15, and that every issue will include design content on top of stories about fashion, art, and travel.

"By covering the breadth of style subjects in every issue, and publishing on a more regular schedule, our aim is to serve our readers better and create a deeper connection to the magazine," Needleman said.
Above, Kristina O'Neill

Newly appointed T Magazine editor Deborah Needleman is settling into her office at The New York Times, and she's bringing some of her old staff at WSJ. with her.

Sources have confirmed to WWD that WSJ.'s creative director Patrick Li and fashion features director Whitney Vargas will join Needleman at T. Whether they will replace the magazine's current features director Jacob Brown and creative director David Sebbah remains to be seen.

Needleman had also reportedly been negotiating with the Times about her role before Sally Singer packed up her desk. Among her demands for the job were for T to have its own publisher, for printing of the magazine to be scaled back from 15 issues a year to 12, and to stop doing themed issues in favor of general interest issues that cover fashion and a range of other topics.

A spokeswoman for the Times wouldn't comment on these requests or the prospective new hires.

"It's her second day and she's focused on getting herself settled here. She's not ready to talk to the press and likely won't be for a while," the spokeswoman said. "Similarly, it's too early to talk about who might stay, who might go, who might join."

Be that as it may, Needleman told Daily Front Row before the Chanel show that she already has her first cover idea in the works — she's just keeping it a surprise.

After weeks of speculation, the wait is over: Deborah Needleman will leave The Wall Street Journal's WSJ. Magazine to edit T, The New York Times Style Magazine effective immediately.

"Deborah is a creative and innovative editor with an impeccable sense of style and design," said The New York Times' executive editor, Jill Abramson, in a statement. "As we look to expand and extend T and continue to evolve it for our loyal and sophisticated New York Times audience, we will rely on Deborah's broad range of experience and creative energy. She is coming on board to strengthen the franchise and reimagine its future on all platforms."

Needleman replaces Sally Singer, whose departure from the magazine was announced just before New York Fashion Week.

The New York Times has offered Deborah Needleman the editor's chair at T Magazine twice, according to reports, but no one knows for sure whether she'll accept.

Needleman, currently editor of WSJ. Magazine, told WWD Wednesday that any suggestion she has taken the job "is just not true!" Needleman became an early frontrunner on the list of candidates to replace Sally Singer when her departure from T was announced in late August, but at the time Needleman seemed content to stay at WSJ. "I'm focusing on our Fall-Winter issues right now," she said.

That focus — and her success at WSJ. — are part of what makes Needleman so perfect for the job. The key question now is, will the third time really be the charm?

The New York Times has reportedly already spoken to a number of potential candidates to replace T Magazine editor in chief Sally Singer, whose departure was announced Tuesday.

Deborah Needleman, who edits T's chief rival WSJ. Magazine, GQ deputy editor Michael Hainey, and the Times' Styles section editor Stuart Emmrich have been approached about the position, according to WWD. While Hainey and Emmrich have not commented on the job, Needleman gave the impression that she's not leaving any time soon.

"I love my job," Needleman said from a beach in Indiana. "I'm focusing on our Fall-Winter issues right now from the Midwest."

This report follows rumors Wednesday that T's former online director Horacio Silva was also in the running for the position. He's currently the director of content at the marketing communications and entertainment firm ALLDAYEVERYDAY, but before that Silva had been with T for 10 years.

He was reportedly in the running to replace Stefano Tonchi as editor in chief when Tonchi left to take the reins at W Magazine in March 2010. Singer was selected for the position in June 2010, and Silva made his exit in May 2011.

Another former staffer said that Singer's leaving may have something to do with how much money her version of T was — or wasn't — making. "The Times will always look at that magazine as a cash cow, and because it wasn't a cash cow under her, I think they were getting frustrated," the staffer said.

Photo: Horacio Silva at a New York Fashion Week event in February.