Catching Up With… Jeff Jarvis

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Dec 1, 2002 by Geoff Van Dyke

Byline: Geoff Van Dyke

WHEN WE LAST HEARD FROM JARVIS... He was the TV critic for TV Guide. Before that, Jarvis was the associate publisher and Sunday editor of the New York Daily News, and, in 1990, the founding managing editor of Entertainment Weekly. Jarvis has also held positions at People, The San Francisco Examiner, and the Chicago Tribune.

Since 1995, Jarvis, 48, has been at Advance.net, which oversees all of Advance Publications' (Vanity Fair, Glamour, Vogue) Internet activities. Two years ago, he was named president and creative director, which means he's responsible for the vision and strategy of Advance's online properties. "Our philosophy is simple," says Jarvis. "Either you're a vertical category where we can be the best and the biggest, or we're doing these companion sites where we're taking advantage of the efficiency we have by having CondeNet."

Jarvis will be the first to admit that the Web hasn't necessarily lived up to its hype. Given the historic dot-com flameout, is the Web something he's still excited about? "Absolutely," he says. "And for one important reason: The audience is still excited about it - the audience is still here."

Claiming he doesn't miss the glamour of his last several gigs, Jarvis says he enjoys the challenges the Web provides.