Tech moguls and the TNR meltdown

Stage 1: The vanity mogul announces that he’ll return the publication to its former glory but says he doesn’t need to make money right away. Quality, he says, will attract readers. (That’s you, today.)

Stage 2: He replaces the editor with a journalistic star, redesigns the publication, expands editorial and art budgets, moves it to better quarters, and muses about parlaying his single title into a publication empire. (You’re writing that memo now.)

Stage 3: As fresh red ink flows, the mogul hires “name” writers to compose columns that will be talked-about and to get invited onto television to build buzz. (I see it in my crystal ball.)

Stage 4: Still losing money, the mogul grumbles, “I’m not running a charity here!” He eliminates employee perks, increases the price of the product, and reduces frequency of publication.