Mary Murcko Named Publisher At Self

by The Daily Front Row

(NEW YORK) Following yesterday’s news that Self has snagged Cosmopolitan exec editor Joyce Chang as the fitness glossy’s new EIC and said farewell to longtime editrix Lucy Danziger and VP/publisher Laura McEwen, the mag announced today the appointment of Mary Murcko as McEwen’s successor. It’s a homecoming of sorts of Murcko, who was on Self‘s ad team from 1991 to 1995. Most recently, Murcko was president of national sales at Gannett, overseeing USA Today, USA Weekend, and Gannett Digital. Prior to Gannett, Murcko was at Rodale as the publishing house’s exec vice president and group publisher until September 2010 for a spate of titles: Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Runner’s World and Prevention. Before that, her Rodale titles included SVP/publisher at Prevention for a year and a half, preceded by three years as VP/publisher at Women’s Health and two years as VP/publisher at Best Life. Her gigs before joining Rodale include a stint as associate publisher at W from 2001 to 2004, following six years as general manager/group publisher at ELLE Thailand. 

“This is an unprecedented opportunity to cultivate one of Condé Nast’s most dynamic brands,” said Murcko in a statement. “Reaching the Self audience is more important to marketers than ever before – and creating those opportunities through print, digital, mobile and experiences is truly exciting.”

What state is Self in as Murcko returns? Its current circ is 1.5 million, ad pages decreased 5.7 percent in 2013, and newsstand sales dropped 10 percent in the second half of last year. Which Condé title’s masthead will receive the next Anna Wintour-sanctioned revamp next? Self is the third Condé mag as of late to get completely overhauled on the EIC/publisher front: Lucky got shaken up in June, while Traveler saw major changes go down in August. 

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