“Philistine Blunder” Cry LA Times Editors

Four past book editors of The Los Angeles Times have gotten together to let people know they “are dismayed and troubled at the decision by Sam Zell and his managers to cease publishing the paper’s Sunday Book Review.”

Sonja Bolle, Digby Diehl, Jack Miles and Steve Wasserman only barely contain their venom when they write that “Angelenos in growing number are already choosing to cancel their subscriptions to the Sunday Times. The elimination of the Book Review, a philistine blunder that insults the cultural ambition of the city and the region, will only accelerate this process and further wound the long-term fiscal health of the newspaper.” They call for “readers and writers alike to join with us as we protest this sad and backward step.”

LA Observed runs the letter from the editors in its entirety here and brings news of the “new upscale magazine” being launched in relative editorial secrecy here. While Publishers Weekly offers up a bit of backstory here.