Reader’s Digest, staggering under $1.2 billion in debt, has filed for bankruptcy for the second time in four years. Rolling Stone owner Jann Wenner managed to stave off a bankruptcy filing of his own by refinancing $200 million of debt under spartan new terms.
And in the biggest news of all, Time Inc. is negotiating to spin off most of its magazines into a new company to be controlled by Meredith Corp. Held back from the deal will be Time magazine, Fortune and Sports Illustrated; Meredith is “said not to want them,” according to Michael Wolff.