Brit Joanna is new editor of Cosmo with '365 sex positions to learn'
Another Brit is stepping into a top job in the U.S. publishing business: Joanna Coles, a former reporter for the Guardian and the Times, is the new editor of the world's No 1 women's magazine, Cosmopolitan, famed for advocating a" fun fearless approach" for young women. .
Joanna Coles : raunchy magazine
She replaces Kate White, 61, who in January told David Carey,president of Hearst Magazines, that she was thinking of stepping down after 14 years on the job. Coles takes over next week but White is staying with the company meantime.
Coles, editor of Hearst's Marie Claire for six years, joins a UK influx that has seen BBC Director General Mark Thompson , appointed as CEO of the New York Times, Colin Myler as editor of the New York Daily News, Piers Morgan as a top interviewer on CNN and Tina Brown as editor of the Daily Beast.
One of the judges on “Project Runway All Stars,” she has been a big success at Marie Claire. She originally came to America in 1997, working for The Guardian.
In the 1960s Helen Gurley Brown, who died last month, remade Cosmo by "latching on to feminism and the sexual revolution," said the New York Times.
Unlike many other magazines, it has gained circulation in recent years reaching 3,017,834 in the first half of 2012. There are 64 international editions, including Slovenia, Ecuador, and China and 8.5 million unique visitors to its Web site a month.
In an interview at Hearst HQ in New York, Coles said she welcomed the challenge. “Cosmopolitan is an iconic brand that resonates with women worldwide. To be able to take over the flagship edition is both a huge challenge and an incredible opportunity. I relish the chance to put my stamp on Cosmo and make it the young woman’s ultimate playbook for confidence, choices and navigating change.
“Cosmo is big because it talks about things that are really important to women.”.
As editor, White,61, modernised Cosmo to fit the times and account for the progress women have made in the business world.
An author of eight mystery and thriller novels, she is finishing her fourth non-fiction title , “I Shouldn’t Be Telling You This,” an advice book.
From The Guardian and The Times, Coles eventually went to work as an editor at New York magazine and later became executive editor at More, a magazine for women over 40.
Now 50 with two children and a mid-Atlantic accent, she was asked whether she was ready to edit a magazine that is consumed by young, and single, middle Americans.
“I have seen more parts of this country than many people as a reporter for The Guardian here,” she said. “I am not doing this on my own. I will be working with many talented young editors and writers.”
Coles said she wants the journey through one’s 20s and 30s to be as fun for readers as it was for her. She bought her first apartment at 23 as she worked her way up in the male-dominated world of newspapers.
“The 20s and 30s are incredibly exciting and full of potential, but also a little overwhelming,” Ms. Coles said. “The things that keep women awake now are the same things that kept women awake 30 years ago.
“For me what’s important is to be on the side of women when it comes to sex.
“It’s very important to have a sense of humour when you edit a magazine. Cosmo is much raunchier. I have a lot of learning to do. There are 365 sex positions of the day here and one of them is called the linguine.”