There's been some chatter about this online, but we wanted to tell you ourselves: As of yesterday, The New Republic has new owners. A group, actually, put together by Larry Grafstein, a one-time intern at the magazine and its long-time friend. (Some of you may know his byline from the pieces that he has occasionally penned for us over the years.) There are several others in Larry's group, including Marty Peretz.
Canwest has been our owner for the last two years. And some very good things happened during that period: Our business found a more secure footing; they helped us relaunch our print magazine, better suiting it for the age of the internet. But it's no secret that Canwest has been selling its non-core assets.
Fortunately, we couldn't have landed in better hands. Our new owners have bought the magazine because they love it, and because they firmly believe in its business future. They understand The New Republic's editorial mission and have no desire to alter it.
--Marty Peretz and Franklin Foer