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The New York Observer

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New York Observer
44th Street office
TypeWeekly newspaper
FormatTabloid[1]
Owner(s)Observer Media
Founder(s)Arthur L. Carter
PublisherJared Kushner
Editor-in-chiefKen Kurson[2]
Deputy editorDavid Wallis
Managing editorLale Arikoglu
FoundedSeptember 22, 1987; 37 years ago (1987-09-22)
LanguageEnglish
Headquarters321 West 44th Street
CityNew York City
ISSN1052-2948
Websiteobserver.com

New York Observer is a weekly newspaper first published in New York City on September 22, 1987, by Arthur L. Carter, a former investment banker. The Observer focuses on the city's culture, real estate, media, politics and the entertainment and publishing industries. Since July 2006, the paper has been owned and published by the American real‑estate figure Jared Kushner. The paper has its headquarters at 321 West 44th Street in Manhattan, and is published every Wednesday.

As of January 2016, the editorial team is led by Ken Kurson with other writers and editors including Rex Reed, Kara Bloomgarden–Smoke, Will Bredderman, Jillian Jorgensen, Ross Barkan, Drew Grant, James Jorden, Kim Velsey, Matthew Kassel.[2]

Previous writers include Joe Conason, Doree Shafrir, Hilton Kramer, Andrew Sarris, Richard Brookhiser, Michael Tomasky, Azi Paybarah, John Heilpern, Robert Gottlieb, Foster Kamer, Nicholas von Hoffman, Simon Doonan, Anne Roiphe, Terry Golway, Ron Rosenbaum, Michael M. Thomas, Robert Sam Anson, Philip Weiss and Steve Kornacki.

The paper is perhaps best known for publishing Candace Bushnell's column on Manhattan's social life on which the television series Sex and the City was based. It is visually distinctive because of its salmon‑colored pages and sketch illustrations, in the style of La Gazzetta dello Sport. Henry Rollins once described it as "the curiously pink newspaper". The paper switched to white‑colored paper in 2014.[1]

The fourth and longest serving editor for the newspaper, Peter Kaplan, left the newspaper on July 1, 2009. Interim editor Tom McGeveran was replaced by Kyle Pope in 2009.[3] Elizabeth Spiers served as editor from 2011 to 2012, followed by interim editor Aaron Gell. In January 2013, publisher Jared Kushner named Ken Kurson, a political consultant, journalist, and author, as the Observer's next editor.[4]

The New York Observer was also the name of a weekly religious paper founded by Sidney E. Morse in 1823.

Ownership

The publisher and original owner, Arthur Carter, has had other publishing interests, including the Litchfield County Times. At one time, he was a part‑owner in The East Hampton Star. Carter received a B.A. in French literature from Brown University and an M.B.A. in finance from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. He spent 25 years in investment banking until 1981, when he founded the Litchfield County Times in New Milford, Connecticut. He owned it for twenty years until selling to Journal Register Company, later also selling his 50‑percent interest in The East Hampton Star in 2003. He has been an adjunct professor of philosophy and journalism at New York University and is a trustee. From 1985 to 1995 he owned The Nation.[citation needed]

In July 2006, Jared Kushner, a 25‑year‑old law student and son of a wealthy New Jersey developer, Charles Kushner, purchased the paper for just under $10 million. In April 2007, Bob Sommer became president.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b Pompeo, Joe (March 18, 2014). "Observer C.E.O. touts gains ahead of relaunch". Capital New York. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2015. Tomorrow, newsstand readers and subscribers will get a look at the Observer's relaunched print product, which is a smaller, tabloid‑format, saddle‑stapled publication that will trade in its distinctive salmon hue for white paper. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b "About". New York Observer. ISSN 1052-2948. Archived from the original on November 23, 2015. Retrieved January 19, 2016. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ Neyfakh, Leon (November 5, 2009). "Kyle Pope Is the Next Editor of The Observer". New York Observer. ISSN 1052-2948. Archived from the original on March 21, 2011.
  4. ^ Carr, David (January 4, 2013). "New York Observer Hits Reset Again, Names Ken Kurson New Editor". The New York Times. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  5. ^ Seelye, Katharine Q. (July 31, 2006). "Developer's Son Acquires New York Observer". The New York Times. Retrieved March 5, 2010.