The Nashville Post (requires subscription) reports a company called iXalt has purchased the magazine Preaching and has moved its editorial and business operations to Brentwood from Jackson, Tenn. I didn’t think I would be familiar with the magazine until I discovered in the press release that it was started by Michael Duduit, who remains its editor and president. I know Michael from a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Even then, he was a great writer and editor, but his absolute claim to fame was his warp-speed two-finger typing.
Seeing this reminds me about how much magazine publishing takes place under the radar in Nashville.
I grew up in south Alabama knowing Nashville not so much as Music City, but as the place my Sunday School quarterlies came from. Living here since the late 1970s, I continue to be amazed by the range of publishing found here, from the divine to the, well, not divine.
It’s finally official. Condensed version: Older, rural Americans may not be hip for advertisers, but who cares when they purchase subscriptions.
Before CNBC, CNN-FN and the 24/7 financial coverage you now find on cable and online, Wall Street Week (see item below) was the only 30-minutes a week of stock market coverage one could find on television.
Rukeyser hit his peak in the mid 80s as mutual funds and pension plans raised the awareness of financial markets in the minds of more and more Americans. His show, despite his insufferable puns and agonizingly corny commentaries, was a must-watch by corporate tycoons and arm-chair penny-stock players alike.
I can recall Rukeyser coming to Nashville twice during that era for public appearances. One was sponsored by J.C. Bradford & Co. and was held in the War Memorial Auditorium. The other at Belmont, related I believe to the opening of the Massey School of Business.
Rukeyser drew full houses both times. The first 45 minutes of both talks were quite interesting, but after about an hour or so, the crowds got restless. Let’s just put it this way, Rukeyser enjoys hearing himself talk and had no idea how to end his lectures.
I guess that’s what happened on his show, as well.
But something tells me you can’t shut Rukeyser up this easily. My early prediction is that Fox News or CNBC will put him on opposite Wall Street Week as a slam to AOL-Time. I’ll watch.
Louis Rukeyser says he’s been sacked by Maryland Public Television as host of the PBS program, Wall Street Week. “They decided unilaterally not to proceed with me as the host of the show I created, wrote and maintained for 32 years,” Rukeyser told AP.
Quote:
MPT is entering a partnership with Fortune magazine to produce a new version of the weekly program called “Wall $treet Week With Fortune.” The show, slated to air in the fall, will feature Fortune editorial director Geoffrey Colvin and an undetermined co-anchor, MPT said.
For magazine trivia buffs, here’s a question: How does Lou Rukeyser already have a two-degrees of separation connection with Fortune?
(Answer: His brother William, used to be its managing editor and was the founding editor of Money. They are both the sons of noted financial journalist Merryle Rukeyser.)
