Early this morning, Slate editor-in-chief and chairman Jacob Weisberg tweeted that former colleague and culture editor John Swansburg was “back!” A New Yorker spokesman confirmed that Mr. Swansburg’s last day was Friday Oct. 28 and that he was returning to Slate–though we’re not sure as what yet. The Observer is still waiting to hear back from Mr. Weisberg, Mr. Swansburg, and Slate.
Before Slate lost Mr. Swansburg, the site laid off Jack Shafer, Timothy Noah, June Thomas, and Juliet Lapidos. But Mr. Swansburg escaped the layoffs, leaving voluntarily for newyorker.com where he became the site’s first online culture editor in September, according to WWD. Mr. Swansburg had been with Slate since 2007, and it seems that, after four years, he couldn’t stand being anywhere else (even the New Yorker).
