Tomasz Wróblewski:

We’re here because the others have overlooked changes in readership
By : Anna Kocińska

   At a time when newspapers and magazines slug it out over an ever-shrinking pool of advertising revenue, launching a new publication may not appear to be the wisest of moves, even for a publisher with deep pockets like Axel Springer. But with this week’s launch of Newsweek Polska, the German publisher – which owns the rights to the Polish edition of the U.S.’ Newsweek – is banking on the brand’s success in a market anchored by weeklies Wprost and Polityka. According to the magazine’s 42-year-old editor-in-chief, Tomasz Wróblewski, Newsweek Polska aims to carve out a hefty chunk of the market by offering better researched articles, smarter graphics and more content for women than its rivals. On the eve of the magazine’s launch, Wróblewski, who left Wprost to work for Newsweek, talked to the Business Journal’s Anna Kocińska about the evolving news-magazine market in Poland and Newsweek’s chances for survival. The following is a translated and edited version of their conversation.

   Q: While Wprost and Polityka are published in the middle of the week, Newsweek will hit the streets on Mondays. Why that day?

   A: Yes, we’ll be coming out earlier than our competitors. It’s simply our philosophy to announce (what’s happening) in the coming week rather than comment on the events of the previous one. Obviously, the events of the previous week are subject to some analysis, but what we do, above all else, is tell people on Monday what they should expect in the coming week.

   Q: Isn’t that role riskier?

   A: Everything about Newsweek is more difficult. Its graphic design, disciplined style of writing, stricter deadlines, all that is more difficult. However, our reader is also more demanding, but that’s why we are here.

   Q: Who are your journalists?

   A: They come from different papers. But there is one thing they need to have and we pay a lot of attention to: a kind of openness to the process of learning and to the new concept of our publication. This rule is applied to every single member of the editorial department, from graphic designers to reporters. Experience is extremely useful, but it becomes really valuable only if you can learn from your mistakes. You won’t find journalists here who are convinced they are experts in their area and know everything.

   Q: I heard that a few well-known journalists couldn’t keep up with Newsweek’s pace and have already left the magazine.

   A: There have been some changes to the team, but that is natural for a group of 70 people. It’s always better to make changes sooner rather than later. It’s true the pace of work is frantic, and work here is really hard and demanding. We require a lot from both reporters and ourselves, and we spend a lot of time at the office. But, again, that’s natural because it’s a start-up publication. I don’t know how much time we’ll spend here in the future, but right now reporters spend most of their lives here. I’m here all the time.

   Q: What is your opinion of Polish journalism?

   A: It’s been moving in the right direction, but it’s stuck now. When I try to compare it to U.S. or (Western) European journalism, which is extremely creative, it’s my impression that somehow we stopped and can’t move forward. And one could be creative in everything from graphic design to story ideas. It’s because of a certain stagnation in Polish media that allows us to appear on the market. We’re not here simply because there is room for a third weekly. We’re here because the others have overlooked changes in readership. For example, most readers are now women with a university degree, and in Newsweek more women will find something to read.

   Q: What are your editorial meetings like?

   A: There are a lot of them. Planning takes a lot of time, and we spend most of our time on planning. A story is practically written during the planning phase. Every story is described in detail. I would say that we even plan what we plan. This practice we adopted from the U.S. Newsweek. We’ve noticed that the more time we spend on planning, the less time we need to actually write a story.

   Q: Have you had to teach reporters how to work quickly?

   A: Many of our reporters are still too slow. On the other hand, our stories undergo a multilevel editing process, and eventually a journalist has to accept the final version of his story. After all, we don’t write it for him. We adopted Newsweek’s style of writing, so our stories in terms of structure and style are similar to the American style, which serves better to attract readers and to hold their attention. We are also trying to copy our American colleagues in the way they build credibility for their publication.

   Q: So the Americans are better at preparing stories?

   A: They are much better. We know about stories the U.S. edition of Newsweek is working on that any Polish newspaper would print immediately. The New York office has been working on one story for four weeks, and they say they are not ready yet. In the trial issue we published their story “Ears and Eyes of the CIA.” We knew about the story a month ago, when they were putting the finishing touches on it. I don’t think it would be possible to delay this kind of story in Poland. But we want to adopt this rule, even at the risk that someone may steal our story before we publish it. Reporters from New York say that losing credibility is worse than not being the first to break a story. I agree with them.

   Q: Will you have the funds to send reporters on international assignments?

   A: We do have foreign correspondents in many countries. But for economic reasons we cannot have correspondents everywhere. However, we don’t need to anyway because we can rely on Newsweek’s strong network of correspondents. And not only can we use their stories, but we can also assign them stories.

   Q: How will Newsweek Polska’s content differ from Wprost and Polityka?

   A: Poland and domestic affairs will be the most important element of our structure. We will write more about media. There will also be slightly more international news compared to Wprost and Polityka. But what we will really focus on is society and culture. We like to consider ourselves a social/news publication, not a political/news publication. So, if we are working on a cover story we look at the topic from a human angle. Let’s take the budget deficit. Every other paper would write about what the government is going to do. But we’ll write a story about how ordinary people react to that news. We prefer to communicate what people think instead of informing them about what the government has to say.

   Q: How would you describe Newsweek Polska?

   A: The text, pictures and captions are all reflective of the magazine’s content. We know that 60% of Wprost’s readers don’t read their magazine. They only browse through it. Our magazine understands that people don’t read all the text, therefore our lead paragraphs and captions will provide the crux of the story.

   Q: Will you be successful in grabbing readers from Wprost and Polityka?

   A: We see ourselves as a new concept in publishing. So, we are not out to attack other weeklies. We come out on Monday. We have far wider cultural and social offerings, and we present a different style of writing. This is how we are going to convince many readers of Polityka and Wprost that Newsweek is also worth reading.

   Q: But in light of the economic slump, is this the right time to launch?

   A: It’s the best time to launch a new publication. From my point of view it’s much more difficult for competitors to face us at a time when they have to cut their budgets. It’s also much easier to organize a promotional campaign because it’s cheaper. And from an employer’s point of view, the labor market is cheaper. Lastly, during an economic recession, advertisers try to find a new medium and generally speaking the market is looking for something fresh and new. We can see such a trend in our relations with advertisers.

   Q: Are you concerned that when Axel Springer appoints a new president next year, the company may change its strategy for its foreign titles? How long is Axel Springer prepared to wait for Newsweek Polska to become successful?

   A: There is obviously a business plan that covers all that. As for Axel Springer, I know they are strongly interested in international markets. Andreas Wiele, who will become the company’s deputy president with the appointment of the new president next year, has supported such investments. He is strongly in favor of international expansion.

   Q: How difficult was it to get backing for the magazine’s American concept? German publishers are used to a completely different style. Is Newsweek Polska’s design a compromise between the two concepts?

   A: There is quite a significant difference between the U.S. Newsweek and what’s going on in most modern European publications. Even our colleagues in New York told us that if they had a chance to create Newsweek again they would have done it in a different way – more modern and more European. The U.S. edition of Newsweek will be going through some changes that are in line with European trends. But, yes, we will have elements of the American style. For example, one of our graphic designers worked in New York and many elements in the Polish Newsweek came together in a slightly changed and updated way from the American version.

   Q: But was there a conflict between the U.S. and German concepts of the magazine?

   A: There wasn’t a war. There was an ongoing discussion. We’ve been looking for an ideal solution for a long time and actually we’re still looking. We are still making some improvements. Cooperation between New York and Germany is strong, and it’s impossible for us to launch a publication that is not approved by the Americans and Germans. I had been discussing this magazine for a long time before we even started it. It’s been corrected and improved all the time, and now the two sides are happy with it.

   Q: How will you judge Newsweek Polska a success?

   A: We want to be in the big three with Wprost and Polityka. That’s our goal. The initial print run will be higher than either magazine. We will have a very strong promotional campaign and that’s why we expect Newsweek to sell.

   Q: What are the chances of success?

   A: Was it risky to take this job? I don’t know. I’m trying my luck, but I’m convinced it’s going to be a success. I’m not worried about the future because I’ll be able to find a job somewhere else if necessary. But Newsweek may become the greatest success of my life. While Wprost was a wonderful place to work, Newsweek is a challenge. So I didn’t leave for the money. I left for the experience. I needed a new challenge.