In the editorial eyrie of Newsweek, on Manhattan's 42nd Street, walls began coming down in mid-October. As workmen remodeled three little offices into one big one, staffers jittered over rumors that the masthead might be remodeled too.
Last week Malcolm Muir, editorial board chairman, announced that 20 staffers (including ten researchers, two writers, one Washington reporter) were being fired for economy and "sounder operations." Although Newsweek (circ. 759,900) was grossing more than ever, Muir said that soaring costs had put its combined operations slightly in the red for several months of this year. On Jan. 1, it will abandon its special Pan-American...