The new Newsweek: Bold, or a bore?

Maverick editor Tina Brown has just relaunched the troubled newsweekly, and critics wasted no time before weighing in

Tina Brown busts out big bylines, glossier photos and noticeably more ad pages in her debut Newsweek issue.
(Image credit: Newsweek)

The first issue of Tina Brown's new-look Newsweek hit the stands on Monday. The former New Yorker and Vanity Fair editor took over stewardship of the 78-year-old weekly news magazine following its much-debated merger with her website, The Daily Beast. So far, Brown's Newsweek retains the basic newsweekly formula while putting greater emphasis on glossy photo-spreads and big-name journalists. Her first issue's cover features Hillary Clinton — just like the debut 1999 issue of her now-defunct Talk. Will Brown's relaunch be enough to keep Newsweek essential? (Watch Tina Brown discuss the new Newsweek)

Yes. It's a mature and calm read: The new Newsweek is like "soaking in a nice warm bath," says Choire Sicha at The Awl, where "kind-of powerful people" explain the week's events to you "simply and calmly." Kudos to Brown for aiming the magazine at the mid-40s crowd rather than "gunning for 32-year-olds." And making it glossier is "probably a very good business decision."

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