After 121 years of printing a Yiddish and English Jewish paper, The Forward, one of the longest-running Jewish publications in the United States, will cease its print edition, and lay off its editor in chief and 40 percent of its staff, according to JTA.
The New York Post reported Wednesday that editor in chief, Jane Eisner will be let go after more than a decade in the position, along with Executive Editor Dan Friedman. Kurt Hoffman, the art director; Anya Ulinich, the deputy art director; Dave Goldiner, director of digital media; Kathleen Chambard, vice president of marketing; and Fern Wallach, an advertising account executive will also be laid off from the staff of the publication, which has been in business since 1897.
“The Forward is taking the next step in making our brand more relevant to our readers and more connected to their lives,” Publisher and CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen said, on the Forward’s website. “Over our 121-year history, we have changed our format many times, launching new sections, publishing in new languages (Yiddish, English, Russian), and embracing change in our community. Whereas our readers once went to the newsstand with a nickel to read the news of the day, today, the vast majority of our community connects through the digital world. That is where the Forward is and will be.”
The transition to all-digital will take place spring of 2019.
