Jann Wenner Sells Us Weekly to Owner of National Enquirer

The magazine will go from openly gay, liberal Jann Wenner into the hands of David J. Pecker, a Trump-friendly conservative

Us Weekly
Us Weekly

American Media, Inc. announced on Wednesday that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Us Weekly magazine from Wenner Media.

The magazine will go from openly gay, liberal Jann Wenner into the hands of AMI CEO and Chairman David J. Pecker, who is a Trump-friendly conservative. The entertainment and lifestyle news brand reaches an audience of 1.9 million paid copies per week and an online presence of more than 22 million visitors per month.

“We are excited to bring one of the most distinctive and powerful media brands to AMI and are looking forward to continuing its great editorial standards its loyal and growing audience expects,” Pecker said in a statement. “The extraordinary growth of Us Weekly as a multi-media leader for advertisers under Victoria Lasdon Rose’s leadership underscores the vitality of the brand to deliver creative and engaging marketing opportunities with its star-studded events.”

“We are enormously proud of the evolution and tremendous accomplishments of Us Weekly, a brand that has continually defined celebrity news,” Wenner Media digital boss Gus Wenner said. “We know that AMI will provide Us Weekly with exciting opportunities and we look forward to following their continued success.”

The New York Times Company started Us Weekly in 1977; it was acquired by Wenner Media in 1985. Us Weekly also has an in-house video operation that produces 20 editorial and branded videos per day, picking up over 20 million average views per month.

“The addition of such a strong stand-alone media brand like Us Weekly underscores AMI’s continued focus on our assertive strategy to expand our business and further establish our distinct advantages in today’s new media landscape,” Pecker added.

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