Vanity Fair Editor Graydon Carter, who turns 64 in July, is
in the midst of negotiating a new contract, kicking the Condé Nast rumor mill
into high gear as the company enters a more fiscally conservative era.For the first time in his 21-year tenure, the talks are not
being handled by the company’s aging family patriarch S.I. Newhouse Jr. but
rather by CEO Charles Townsend, who holds the purse strings.
Carter has been at the helm since 1992, when he succeeded
Tina Brown. After a bumpy first year, he went on to become one of the most
high-profile and powerful editors, making his annual Hollywood Oscar night
party and the VF’s New Establishment list of media moguls coveted totems in the
world of pop culture. He loves his job, and he’s very powerful,” said one
insider.His contract is believed to expire in July, roughly two
months from now, indicating that things aren’t going smoothly. As the negotiations between Carter’s attorney and Condé drag
on, insiders have come up with a wish-list of potential replacements. They
include: Adam Moss, the award-winning editor of New York magazine; Janice Min,
who pushed Us Weekly to its highest circulation before taking over The
Hollywood Reporter; Dylan Jones, editor of the well-regarded British GQ; and
Geordie Greig, the politically connected editor of the Sunday Mail in the UK. Carter enjoys the perks of his position. But as his
interests have expanded, sources say he is spending less and less time in his
well-appointed office at 4 Times Square. Last year, the powers-that-be grew alarmed when VF’s
single-copy sales in the first half plunged 18.8 percent, to 288,938, out of
total circulation of just under 1.2 million. The second-half figures didn’t
reverse the newsstand slide. Ad sales have also been soft, which doesn’t put Carter in
the strongest negotiating position. One source suggested it is like a baseball
player having an off year in the so-called walk year of a contract. Townsend insists that talk of a succession plan is off base
and that he expects Carter to be at the helm for years to come. “There are no plans for anyone to succeed Graydon at Vanity
Fair,” said Townsend. “We look forward to many more years of his leadership,
wit and talent.”
