‘The Forward’ Ceases Print Publication After 121 Years
The Forward will do so without its print edition.
The 121-year-old Jewish-American publication, founded as the Yiddish language Jewish Daily Forward on the Lower East Side in 1897, suspended print operations this week and will refocus efforts toward its online verticals. As a result, forty percent of the staff was reportedly laid off, including editor-in-chief Jane Eisner.
“The Forward is taking the next step in making our brand more relevant to our readers and more connected to their lives,” publisher and CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen told the New York Post.
“We are announcing that this spring The Forward will complete its evolution from what was once a print-focused publisher to become a digitally focused publication.”
The publication is owned by The Forward Association, a nonprofit whose endowment ballooned to more than $100 million after selling its former East Broadway headquarters in 1974 as well as the radio station WEVD.
The ten-story beaux arts building at 175 East Broadway was designed by architect George Boehm and completed in 1912. The Forward held the offices until selling the building in 1974 to the Lau family and moving to midtown. For many years, a Chinese church occupied part of the space. Condo conversion later took place in the late 1990s. Notable tenants have included Tatum O’Neal, Spike Jonze, and America Ferrera.
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