Credit Where Credit Is Due

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, August 1, 2002

Byline: CABLE NEUHAUS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Full disclosure: I'm listed on the masthead of this issue as editor-in-chief, but don't you believe it. My name is up there as a formality, to announce, in essence, that I'm in the house, ready to roll as Folio:'s new top editor. To date, I've not done a lot of rolling.

All credit for the August Folio: goes to our long-time executive editor, Teresa Palagano, pictured below. Another revelation: Teresa is mortified that I am writing about her here (and I can't even tell you how difficult it was to get that picture!), which is totally typical of her. She dodges the spotlight the way Billy Bob Thornton avoids long-term marriages, which is to say actively and with prodigious skill. But never mind that. Teresa Palagano deserves a public pat on the back.

My first week on the job, about a month ago, I recall standing at one corner of our newsroom and observing the clamor and palpable angst that is familiar to anyone who has ever earned a buck in journalism. In a distant cubicle I spotted Teresa, working with - and carefully calming - one of our reporters. So very Teresa. She, the imperturable one, comes complete with a jumbo catalog of editorial skills, and first among them may be her ability to expertly reconcile the often conflicting personalities and issues that roil the waters of a magazine office. I've yet to experience a crisis in our shop that could elude the solution-wrangling talents of our fabulous executive editor.

Maybe this shouldn't really come as a surprise. It's not as if Teresa stumbled into her current role at the magazine about magazines. A lover of mags, she has long had ambitions to be a part of this industry. By the age of 15, she admits to having amassed "a huge collection" of Cosmos. Soon after college (Hofstra), she landed a job at M. Shanken Communications as an assistant editor, and then, appropriately, moved on to Circulation Management magazine, where she ascended to executive editor. No wonder she is regarded around Folio:'s offices as a circulation guru. "I have pure love for this industry. It has the most fascinating personalities," Teresa recently told me (adding - obviously not convincingly enough - that she'd prefer not be quoted in this column). She said, "I've watched the industry develop, and I can see where it reveals so much about our culture."

Next month, when I actually begin as this magazine's editor-in-chief, I suspect Teresa will look forward to taking a few days off to pursue her favorite pastimes - boating and watercolor-painting - but, as it happens, that isn't in the cards. After six months of running the book and three years of serving in other positions here, Teresa's contributions to Folio: will be more vital than ever.

As I work on plans for bringing a fresh perspective to this venerable title (watch for them beginning in September), I will rely on Teresa as my extremely capable lieutenant. Alas, she'll need to work harder than ever. There's a great deal to be done. And rough waters, doubtless, will need to be calmed.

TO RESPOND, WRITE TO CABLE AT folio:, 470 PARK AVENUE SOUTH, 8TH FLOOR, NEW YORK, NY 10016; PHONE: 212-545-3603; OR E-MAIL CNEUHAUS@MEDIACENTRAL.COM