T Magazine (Photo credit: The New York Times).

The summer travel issue of T, the Times's luxury magazine that was included in this Sunday's paper, drew some reader criticism, public editor Margaret Sullivan noted today in a blog post.

The cover showed a rather slender model dressed in a lace one piece, with wet hair and a leather jacket slung over one shoulder and the accompanying feature, which was a round-up of models in black bathing suits and  leather cover ups, promoted readers to declare the model too thin and too young, and the feature too bondadge-y.

“Where did you get this child for your cover? The photo represents kiddy porn and I object," wrote Jane Sherman of Westport, Connecticut. "I’m a long time print subscriber to The New York Times and I don’t want to read a newspaper that’s moving into sleaze for dirty old men."

If nothing else, that seems to be an original way to describe the paper of record.

Another reader, Margaret Wheeler, who Ms. Sullivan notes "lives in France and described herself as a former writer and producer at ABC News" objected to the timing of cover.

"As a woman, I was infuriated to see the current cover of T Magazine, which featured an anorexic-looking model," Ms. Wheeler wrote. "The additional photos in the shoot featured in the magazine were of similar super-thin models — and this on Mother’s Day weekend, when we should be celebrating some more realistic picture of womanhood."

We didn't know that that was the point of Mother's Day (and, as a side note, it seems that Fête des Mères, the French equivalent of the holiday, is actually celebrated on 26 Mai). But fair enough.

T editor Deborah Needleman answered the charge, noting that the cover model, while thin and young, is actually really smart.

"Julia Nobis, the model, is a 20-year-old undergraduate studying medicine," Ms. Needleman responded on the public editor's blog. "She is rather thin for my taste, as most models are, and I considered adding some fat to her with Photoshop, but decided that as it is her body, I’d let it be."

Additionally, Ms. Needleman noted that despite the fact that black bathing suits and leather jackets might be slightly risqué, they are a far cry from Fifty Shades of Grey-level S&M.

Ms. Sullivan, for her part, wrote that while she understands the readers objections, she found the photos to be "arresting but pretty mild, especially by today’s fashion magazine standards."

Ms. O'Neill, who held editorial roles at New York magazine and Time Out New York before moving to Harper's Bazaar in 2000, will report to Ruth Altchek. Ms. Altcheck will oversee the Off Duty lifestyle section and WSJ. Magazine in the newly created role of editorial director for WSJ Weekend.

“The appointment of Kristina, one of America’s most talented editors, marks a new phase of the exponential evolution of WSJ.,” said Robert Thomson, editor-in-chief of Dow Jones & Company and managing editor of The Wall Street Journal, in a statement. “We are increasing the frequency and expanding global reach in the coming year with our winning mix of intelligent writing and visual virtuosity – gloss without dross is our magazine mantra.”

The Journal will increase the frequency of WSJ. It recently announced plans to publish 11 issues in 2013 and 12 issues in 2014. The mag was a quarterly when it launched in 2008.

Full press release below:

Kristina O’Neill Named Editor of WSJ. Magazine

NEW YORK, Oct. 17, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Wall Street Journal announced today the appointment of Kristina O’Neill as editor of WSJ. Magazine. Effective Oct. 29, Ms. O’Neill will oversee all editorial content of WSJ., the Journal’s luxury lifestyle magazine that appears as part of WSJ Weekend. Ms. O’Neill most recently served as executive editor of Harper’s Bazaar magazine, where she has worked since 2000.

As the number two editor at Harper’s Bazaar, Ms. O’Neill helped drive the magazine’s editorial vision and direction. She was instrumental in more than a decade of designer coverage, collaborated with storied writers and photographers, oversaw brand extensions and was an integral part of the critically acclaimed March 2012 redesign.

“The appointment of Kristina, one of America’s most talented editors, marks a new phase of the exponential evolution of WSJ.,” said Robert Thomson, editor-in-chief of Dow Jones & Company and managing editor of The Wall Street Journal. “We are increasing the frequency and expanding global reach in the coming year with our winning mix of intelligent writing and visual virtuosity – gloss without dross is our magazine mantra.”

“I am absolutely thrilled to be joining The Wall Street Journal, with its incredible reputation and reach,” said Ms. O’Neill. “WSJ. Magazine is on a roll, and I can’t wait to pick up the momentum and create content that further drives the conversation.”

Ms. O’Neill will report to Ruth Altchek, who has been named to the newly created role of editorial director for WSJ Weekend, overseeing the Off Duty lifestyle section and WSJ. Magazine. Ms. Altchek has served as editor of Off Duty since August 2011, after joining the Journal as a news editor to help oversee the section’s September 2010 launch.

In conjunction with the November issue, WSJ. will celebrate its second annual Innovator of the Year Awards later this week in New York City, honoring winners across six categories, including Fashion, Architecture, Design, Education, Art and Technology, hosted by Mr. Thomson. The November Innovators issue will appear as part of WSJ Weekend on Saturday, Oct. 27.

The Journal recently announced plans to increase the frequency of WSJ., which will publish 11 issues in 2013 and 12 issues in 2014. The magazine launched in September 2008 as a quarterly publication. It appears globally as part of WSJ Weekend in the U.S. and in the Journal’s Europe and Asia editions as well as online via wsj.com/magazine.

About Ms. O’Neill

Ms. O’Neill most recently served as executive editor of Harper’s Bazaar, for which she has worked since October 2000. While with Harper’s Bazaar, she was editor-in-chief of the annual spin-off Runway Report magazine and executive editor on Harper’s Bazaar Greatest Hits book and Harper’s Bazaar Best Covers.

Prior to joining Harper’s Bazaar, Ms. O’Neill held editorial roles with New York Magazine and Time Out New York.

She has a bachelor of arts degree from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study.

About Ms. Altchek

Ms. Altchek has served as editor of Off Duty since August 2011. She joined the Journal in June 2010 as a news editor and helped managed the section’s 2010 launch.

Before joining the Journal, Ms. Altchek was senior editor at Martha Stewart Living from March 2009 to April 2010, where she helped launch the magazine’s new product section. Ms. Altchek also held several editorial positions, including editorial projects director and features editor, at domino magazine. She spearheaded special issues and packages that received National Magazine Award nominations from the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME), and was a contributor to Domino: The Book of Decorating, published by Simon & Schuster.

Ms. Altchek has also held editorial positions with I.D. and Art on Paper, and written on design, architecture and style for The New York Times, Veranda, Architectural Record and Martha Stewart Living.

Ms. Altchek graduated from Columbia University with a bachelor’s degree in Art History.

Ms. Rusli's jump to the Journal was first reported by Capital's Joe Pompeo, who published a joint memo from DealBook team Larry Ingrassia, Andrew Ross Sorkin and Jeff Cane breaking the news to the newsroom and expressing their regret at Ms. Rusli's departure.

"Evelyn lit up the newsroom with her energetic personality and her enthusiasm for stories. We will miss her," they wrote.

Ms. Rusli's exit comes the same day as the announcement that the Times poached Deborah Needleman from WSJ to edit T.  The move makes sense for Ms. Rusli as Mr. Sorkin's massive media profile casts a rather large shadow over Dealbook. Changing newspapers may give Ms. Rusli a chance to take more of the spotlight for herself.

The not-unexpected news comes after the abrupt departure of Sally Singer at the end of the summer. 

Full press release below:

Press Release

The New York Times Names Deborah Needleman Editor of T Magazine

NEW YORK, September 27, 2012 – The New York Times announced today that Deborah Needleman has been named the new editor of T: The New York Times Style Magazine.  Ms. Needleman joins The Times from The Wall Street Journal where she currently serves as editor in chief of WSJ. Magazine.  Ms. Needleman also has editorial oversight of Off Duty, the Journal’s weekend lifestyle section, which she created and launched in September 2010.

In making the announcement, Jill Abramson, executive editor of The New York Times, said, “Deborah is a creative and innovative editor with an impeccable sense of style and design.  As we look to expand and extend T and continue to evolve it for our loyal and sophisticated New York Times audience, we will rely on Deborah’s broad range of experience and creative energy.  She is coming on board to strengthen the franchise and re-imagine its future on all platforms.  Given the depth of her talent and experience, I am certain that T is in very good hands.

T magazine is currently published 15 times a year and is dedicated to coverage of fashion, living, beauty, design and travel.

Ms. Needleman was the founding editor in chief of Condé Nast’s Domino magazine, which launched in 2005 and quickly became a leading guide to style and decorating with an incredibly devoted following.  It was one of the most honored magazines in its first year, including being named best new magazine by Adweek. Domino was closed in 2009 despite its critical success.

Previously, Ms. Needleman wrote on style, design and gardens for publications such as Slate and House & Garden.  She was editor at large for House & Garden for several years.  She began her career as the photography editor for The Washington Post.

Ms. Needleman is co-author of The Domino Book of Decorating and author of The Perfectly Imperfect Home.

A graduate of The George Washington University, she lives with her family in Manhattan.

Ms. Needleman has tapped Ruth Altchek, her features editor at Domino, to be her news editor and deputy. Former Domino editor-at-large Rita Konig will work for Ms. Needleman freelance under the title of contributing decorating editor. Ms. Konig has been working for The New York Times, writing a column, "Inside Out," for T:The New York Times Style Magazine's The Moment blog.

Earlier this month, Ms. Needleman tapped Lauren Goodman, former Domino fashion director, to help out with the section's fashion coverage.

Earlier: New Front in WSJ vs. The Times — the Glossies!

The Times and The Journal have been warring on several fronts—in New York, with business and national and political coverage—and now it appears we can add the luxury magazine business firmly to the mix.

Let's call it the new Elle vs. Vogue! Maybe that's wishful thinking from a media reporter, but The Journal's announcement that it appointed Deborah Needleman as editor of WSJ. (and a redeveloped Saturday lifestyle section that will be introduced later this year) on Tuesday means that both T Magazine and WSJ. will have new editors this fall, and both of them come from a magazine background—specifically, 4 Times Square—with good reputations and a stockpile of goodwill in the bank. The match-up of personalities is intriguing, allowing the luxury and fashion worlds to follow two familiar players: Ms. Needleman, a veteran of the much beloved late Domino magazine, held her last day job at 4 Times Square; Sally Singer, The Times' new editor of T, comes from a celebrated tenure as the features and fashion news editor at Vogue at Condé Nast.

The Journal traditionally hasn't been interested in attracting the sort of talent that is cultivated at Condé Nast, but the fact that it is able to draw in a name like Ms. Needleman suggests how far it's come-and how it is inching into The Times' wheelhouse.

People at The Journal will swear to you that Ms. Needleman's hiring was not in response to The Times' hiring of Ms. Singer, but the timing is curious. After The Times stunned magazine insiders by announcing they had poached Ms. Singer away in early June, it took only nine days for WSJ. editor Tina Gaudoin to announce that she was departing (she said she was leaving for personal reasons). And now, roughly six weeks later, The Journal has hired Ms. Needleman in a move that suggests that Rupert Murdoch and Journal editor Robert Thomson were amping up the glossy's firepower. 

Let the war begin! But for now, let's take the high road. "I do think they are very different publications," said Ms. Needleman on Tuesday while she was en route to Jersey City for a sales pitch for the Saturday section. "I think they have different audiences and different goals. I mean, obviously, the common goal is market share, so I'm not saying there's no competition, but I think they are very different products and very different magazines, is my guess"

There are certainly differences between the two magazines. For one, Ms. Singer gets to take over the more established property. T. Magazine is published 15 times a year, and has been a cash cow for the company. Even in leaner times, it remains profitable, said a Times spokeswoman.

Meanwhile, WSJ. isn't even two years old yet; it publishes six times a year; and it's unclear whether it comes anywhere close to turning a profit.

But the news of Ms. Needleman's hiring was definitely a shot in the arm at The Journal on Tuesday afternoon. One Journal source said that the rank-and-file in the newsroom rarely spoke about WSJ. under Ms. Gaudoin, but that Ms. Needleman was a topic among the more culturally minded Journal staffers (though, naturally, magazines at newspapers are usually their own little fiefdoms).

In addition to her responsibilities at WSJ., Ms. Needleman will be the editor for the new Saturday lifestyle section, a section that is already profitable for The Journal, which is a trend that Dow Jones expects to continue. Since Domino folded last January, Ms. Needleman has been doing consulting work for The Journal, contributing to an illustrated decorating book with the artist Virginia Johnson for the Crown imprint Clarkson Potter, and developing a Web venture with Huffington Post co-founder Ken Lerer.

She told us back in March that "it's a commerce site—with a Domino-like sensibility—that makes it easy and pleasurable to decorate and shop for a home."

Ms. Needleman was also in negotiations with Condé Nast CEO Chuck Townsend about potentially taking over the Domino name for her Web site. But she decided, ultimately, not to make the jump into the Web business.

"I was busily kind of working on that, but I had some reservations about the business model and also quite frankly about what my life would be starting up a business on my own," said Ms. Needleman.

The idea of running a website essentially by herself, she said, was "overwhelming."

Now she gets back to work in a magazine world where she'll have a much smaller staff than she was used to at Condé Nast.

"It's a luxury lifestyle magazine," said Ms. Needleman, speaking of WSJ. "And that's exactly what appeals to me. I feel like my true subject is lifestyle. Getting the best people to write and photograph and digest that information for the reader is what I want to do. In that way, it's not that different from what I was before. It's a different audience, but it's still living. It's still fashion, food, decoration, it's lifestyle."

Ms. Needleman said that the consulting work evolved very nicely into this bigger role-and she's awfully excited. 

"I do really love crafting a great magazine," she said. "As corny as it sounds, I really love serving readers. Some people like to sing and dance, and I like to package content. I'm really looking forward to it. The Journal has a dream reader that every editor hopes for-smart, successful, affluent and busy. It is terribly exciting."

Both Ms. Singer and Ms. Needleman will be in full swing in their assignments in September. We'll be watching.

 
From: Thomson, Robert
To: WSJ All News Staff
Sent: Tue Jul 27 11:01:44 2010
Subject: Deborah Needleman

To All:

I am delighted to announce the appointment of Deborah Needleman to a
newly created role in which she will serve as editor-in-chief of WSJ.
magazine and editor of a new weekly Saturday lifestyle section, about
which we must necessarily be somewhat discreet, for now.

Deborah - who was founding editor of domino magazine - will succeed
Tina Gaudoin at WSJ., which has thrived as other magazines have
struggled during the downturn. The content of the new Saturday section
will complement that of the magazine, so Deborah will be able to
exercise her knowing eye and refined taste in overseeing and
developing both publications.

There have been sightings of Deborah on the fourth floor in New York,
as she has been consulting on the soon-to-be-launched section. She has
shown in her past work that glossies need not be panglossian, and the
new section will have a sensibility that separates it qualitatively
from the competition.

As we welcome Deborah, we should also recognize Tina's significant
achievements. To sculpt a successful magazine in such harsh economic
conditions is remarkable. Tina will begin her new role as contributing
editor for style and fashion for The Wall Street Journal Europe in
London after polishing the September and October issues. Upon assuming
her new role on September 1, Deborah, who will report to Mike Miller,
will begin fashioning the December issue.

Please join me in welcoming Deborah and lauding Tina.

Robert.

Ms. Needleman replaces Tina Gaudoin, who ran WSJ. since it launched in 2008 until this summer, when she stepped down to return to Europe to work on fashion coverage for the Journal.

Here's the release:

NEW YORK, July 27, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Wall Street Journal has named Deborah Needleman to a newly created role in which she will serve as editor in chief of WSJ., the Journal's glossy lifestyle magazine, and editor of a new weekly Saturday lifestyle section in development for the Journal for the fall.

Effective September 1, Ms. Needleman, founding editor of domino magazine for Condé Nast, will oversee all editorial content in the magazine while also managing the new lifestyle section, for which she has been serving as a consultant. Ms. Needleman will report to Mike Miller, senior deputy managing editor of the Journal.

"Deborah has shown in the originality, professionalism and energy of her development work in recent months that she is the perfect person to lead the next phase of the magazine's expansion and to create a Saturday section unique in both character and content," said Robert Thomson, editor in chief of Dow Jones & Company and managing editor of The Wall Street Journal.

"I am thrilled to be taking on this role at the Journal," said Ms. Needleman. "There is great momentum and energy at the paper, and a mandate for innovation, and I am excited to be a part of it."

WSJ. magazine launched in September 2008 and provides the Journal's notable take on fashion, art, travel, philanthropy, architecture, food and more, and offers unparalleled access to industry leaders and newsmakers. WSJ. appears globally six times per year as part of the Journal's Weekend Edition and is distributed to a U.S. circulation of 1.5 million, with an additional circulation of 160,000 outside the U.S. in copies of The Wall Street Journal Europe and The Wall Street Journal Asia.

The next issue of WSJ. magazine is scheduled to appear on Saturday, September 11, with issues to follow in October and December. Content from WSJ. is available online via WSJ.com/magazine.

The short list of replacements, according to WWD:

Among those said to be in the running are Marie Claire editor in chief Joanna Coles, as well as Jay Fielden, former editor of Men's Vogue, Horacio Silva, online director of T: The New York Times Style Magazine, Julie L. Belcove, the former deputy editor of W and Deborah Needleman, the former Domino editor.

The glossy also lost its executive editor Owen Philips earlier this week to The Hollywood Reporter, but the editor will likely pick his or her own number two.

Ms. Needleman has to be the favorite, and she is probably the biggest name. She is already at work on a weekend lifestyle section for the Journal, and Mr. Thomson would like to see the magazine pursue female readers more aggressively, according to WWD sources. There is also talk of increasing the magazine's frequency. Given her experience, Ms. Needleman would be more than comfortable leading both of these charges.

In Sarah Ellison's War at the Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch spends one of his first days at the Journal's office looking at mock-ups for the magazine. He said that he got the idea to add a weekend fashion magazine after watching his wife Wendi page through similar magazines just to look at the ads.

"We wanted to produce more than a catalog of things to buy," Ms. Gaudoin told the audience at the launch of the fall of 2008. "We wanted to respect the audience's respect for money."

Ms. Needleman said that she wanted to marry irreverence and utility in the new lifestyle weekend section. "It needs to be a pleasure to read and to look at, but you really have to get something out of it," she told Ad Age last month.

A spokesperson for the Journal told the Observer earlier this week that there was no timetable yet for replacing Ms. Gaudoin.

"It will be quite grand and rather profitable," said Robert Thomson in an interview with us back in April.

AdAge has learned a bit more about the Journal's new weekend lifestyle section.

Deborah Needleman, who still has a loyal following after Domino's close, will consult on the launch. Last we heard, Ms. Needleman was working on a shelter website with Ken Lerer.

Ms. Needleman told AdAge that she plans to bring a magazine sensibility to the newspaper's newest section.

"Part of what we're trying to do is marry the fun and irreverence of the British weekend papers with the utility of a really great service section that addresses luxury in a real-life way," Ms. Needleman said. "It needs to be a pleasure to read and to look at, but you really have to get something out of it."

The section will continues in the direction of the Journal's bi-monthly magazine WSJ., which was added in September 2008 at the behest of Mr. Murdoch to create more space for consumer advertising.

In his first visit to the Journal as the paper's future owner, according to Sarah Ellison's War at the Wall Street Journal, Mr. Murdoch sat in on a meeting to review prototypes of the new magazine.

"We've got to lower the advertising rates to make them comparable to The Times's weekly magazine," Mr. Murdoch said.

Never heard that one before!