Angela Burt-Murray editor-in-chief of Essence magazine exited stage left today, resigning from her post after a five-year-run.
Apparently, Burt-Murray summoned her editors late this afternoon and made the big announcement that she was moving to Atlanta with her family. Insiders say Burt-Murray had actually laid the groundwork for her resignation last July and wanted to keep it under wraps.
At the time that Burt-Murray began her resignation process, the magazine was being burned at the stake for placing a white woman at the helm of its fashion department. African-American women were up in arms about Burt-Murray's controversial decision to hire Ellianna Placas, who had previously workedat O: The Oprah Magazine and US Weekly, as Essence's fashion director. Essence was forced to deal with the cyber ire of black women on Facebook and other Afro-centric websites.
Despite the furor over the hiring of Placas, Burt-Murray stood her ground and did not sway in her decision one bit. Burt-Murray told Media Ink: "I understand that this issue has struck an emotional chord with our audience. However, I selected [Placas], who has been contributing to the magazine on a freelance basis for the last six months, because of her creativity, vision, the positive reader response to her work and her enthusiasm and respect for the audience and our brand. We remain committed to celebrating the unique beauty and style of African-American women in Essence magazine and online at Essence.com."
In the official company memo that was distributed earlier today, the editor was praised for her efforts particularly with the Essence Book Club and Essence Music Festival Seminar Series.John Huey, editor-in-chief of Time, Inc., the magazine's parent company said, the company was "beginning our search for a new editor." In the interim, the company has hired a former editor, Sheryl Tucker, who took a buyout as an editor-at-large at Time Inc. in 2008.
Essence, who is celebrating its 40th year in business has had its fair share of ups and downs, ad-wise, over the decades, as have many of the magazines that are aimed at predominantly African-American audiences. The magazine did however see a spark in advertisements mid-year. Reportedly, ad pages were up 31 percent for May, 14 percent for July and 21 percent for August. On the digital side, online ad revenues were up 32 percent during the first half of 2010.
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