Leon Neyfakh was working late at the Observer last night, trying to figure out why Jane Friedman stepped down as CEO of HarperCollins, especially since she seemed so happy last week at BookExpo America, and all the HarperCollins people there seemed happy with her as well. The closest Neyfakh comes to an explanation? “A poor first quarter performance reported in November did inspire some rumblings among publishing insiders that a change in leadership was conceivable.” Awfully quiet rumblings, though.
HarperCollins president Brian Murray is taking over as CEO. He’s been with the company for eleven years and is closely tied to the company’s digital agenda. It may be also worth noting his international background: He did a three-year stint as CEO of the Australia/New Zealand office, and was also the driving force behind the creation of an outpost in Beijing.
(Note: Last year, mediabistro.com gave Friedman a “Golden Boa” prize for being one of the most prominent people in the publishing industry.)